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Murder Rate by Country 2024

Snapshot

  • Globally, socioeconomic factors like social inequality, unemployment, and gang activity significantly influence murder rates.

  • Central America and the Caribbean have the highest murder rates, with El Salvador, Honduras, and Jamaica notably higher than the global average.

  • Countries with low murder rates, such as Japan and Singapore, benefit from effective law enforcement, strict weapon regulations, and severe punishment for crimes.

According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime's Global Study on Homicide 2019, 464,000 people were murdered in 2017—more than five times as many as were killed in armed conflicts during the same period. The report explains that many socioeconomic factors can drive homicide rates. These factors include gender stereotypes, social inequality, unemployment, political instability, firearms possession (just over half of all homicides are committed via firearms)... and especially gangs, organized crime, and the drug trade. In fact, the report estimates that "an average of roughly 65,000 killings every year were related to organized crime and gangs over the period 2000–2017, and that up to 19% of all homicides recorded globally in 2017 were related to organized crime and gangs."

Top 10 Countries with the Highest Murder Rates (per 100k people) in 2022:*

Country
Total per 100k 2022
Jamaica53.34
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines40.41
Trinidad and Tobago39.52
Saint Lucia36.70
Honduras35.09
Bahamas31.22
Belize27.88
Ecuador26.99
Mexico26.11
Colombia25.38

While 2022's global murder rate was 6.1 (per 100k people), murder rates varied widely across the globe. Central America and the Caribbean were global hotspots, with countries such as El Salvador (61.7), Honduras (41), and Jamaica (56.4) posting murder rates up to 10 times higher than the global average. The South American countries Brazil (30.8), Venezuela (49.9), and Colombia (25) followed close behind. Even with the rest of South America and North America posting lower rates, the overall average for the Americas as a whole rose to 17.2. Africa's rate came in at 13.0, but with the major caveat that "the raw statistics for many countries are not available." Similarly, Oceania posted an impressive rate of 2.8, but official homicide reports "tend to deviate substantially from information on violence contained in hospital records," suggesting that many homicides may be going unreported to the police. Finally, Europe (3.0) and Asia (2.3) displayed rates of less than half the global average.

Factors known to contribute to lower murder rates and decreased crime overall include the wealth of a nation, the effectiveness of its law enforcement, the availability of weapons (especially firearms), and the severity of punishment for committing murder. For instance, Japan is a fairly wealthy nation with very strict regulations regarding gun possession and murder is punishable by hanging.

Top 10 Countries with the Lowest Murder Rates (per 100k people) in 2022:

Country
Total per 100k 2022
Singapore0.12
Oman0.26
Macau0.29
Hong Kong0.40
Switzerland0.49
South Korea0.53
Italy0.55
Norway0.55
Slovenia0.61
Cyprus0.64

Below is a list of each country's homicide rate (number of murders per 100,000 people). Note that accidental deaths and cases of "self-inflicted murder", more commonly called suicide, are not included in these statistics.

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Country
Total 2022
Total per 100k 2022
Females 2022
Males 2022
Females per 100k 2022
Males per 100k 2022
Share of Global Homicides 2022
Mexico33,28726.113,92828,7456.0146.2229.39%
United States21,5936.384,70716,8862.7610.0819.07%
Colombia13,16625.381,00212,1643.8147.5611.63%
Pakistan9,9374.218.77%
Ecuador4,85926.994194,4234.6549.234.29%
Honduras3,66135.093.23%
Kenya2,6434.897251,9182.667.162.33%
Turkey2,2792.674661,8131.094.242.01%
Myanmar2,0983.873111,7871.146.631.85%
Haiti2,08818.021811,9073.1033.231.84%
Argentina1,9614.313471,6141.517.161.73%
Jamaica1,50853.341241,3848.7098.691.33%
Dominican Republic1,38912.371531,2362.7321.941.23%
Chile1,3226.741461,1761.4812.091.17%
Zimbabwe1,0866.652008862.3211.500.96%
Canada8742.272036611.053.460.77%
Algeria7951.771126830.512.990.7%
Costa Rica66412.820.59%
Morocco6181.65785400.422.860.55%
Trinidad and Tobago60539.520.53%
Puerto Rico57217.59535193.0833.830.51%
Panama49911.32414581.8620.780.44%
El Salvador4967.83714252.1414.090.44%
Bolivia4853.971662852.724.650.43%
Paraguay4726.960.42%
Uruguay38311.19483352.7220.200.34%
Spain3250.681212040.500.880.29%
Italy3220.551261960.420.680.28%
South Korea2750.531371370.530.24%
Poland2700.68911780.440.920.24%
Romania2471.26851620.841.700.22%
Australia2180.83671540.511.180.19%
Israel1471.63241230.532.730.13%
Netherlands1420.8148940.541.080.13%
Bahamas12831.22101184.6760.260.11%
Jordan1261.1238880.701.510.11%
Greece1171.1345720.851.420.1%
Sweden1161.1023930.441.750.1%
Belize11327.8891044.4751.040.1%
Hungary940.9444500.851.040.08%
Czech Republic870.8339480.730.930.08%
Austria790.8841380.900.860.07%
Bulgaria761.1229470.831.430.07%
Serbia741.0220540.531.560.07%
Palestine741.417670.272.560.07%
Finland671.210.06%
Lithuania672.4429381.992.940.06%
Latvia673.6240264.033.030.06%
Saint Lucia6636.709579.9064.080.06%
Denmark580.9923350.781.200.05%
Albania471.651460.073.240.04%
Suriname457.2810353.2211.380.04%
Ireland440.8810340.391.370.04%
Switzerland430.4920230.450.530.04%
Barbados4315.272411.3630.350.04%
Slovakia420.7417210.590.760.04%
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines4240.415379.8069.910.04%
Bosnia and Herzegovina351.0812220.731.380.03%
Croatia310.7714170.680.870.03%
Hong Kong300.4013170.320.490.03%
Norway300.5514160.520.580.03%
Mauritius292.2310191.522.970.03%
North Macedonia180.863150.291.440.02%
Montenegro162.556101.863.270.01%
Slovenia130.61580.470.750.01%
Oman120.26570.280.250.01%
Luxembourg101.540.01%
Antigua and Barbuda1010.67192.0420.100.01%
Cyprus80.64440.640.640.01%
Singapore70.12250.070.160.01%
Macau20.2920.540%
Total100%
showing: 71 rows

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Murder Rate by Country 2024

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Murder Rate by Country 2024

What country has the highest murder rates?

With a frequency of 53.34 murders per 100,000 people, Jamaica has the highest murder rate.

Where does the US rank in homicide rate?

Compared to other developed countries, the US has the most homicides, with 7.8 homicides per 100,000 people.

Frequently Asked Questions

Sources