In Europe, the Baltic countries of Latvia and Lithuania had the highest and third highest homicide rates respectively in 2022. Latvia had the highest rate at over four per 100,000 inhabitants. Meanwhile, the lowest homicide rate was found in Liechtenstein, with zero murders The most dangerous country worldwide Saint Kitts and Nevis is the world's most dangerous country to live in in terms of murder rate. The Caribbean country had a homicide rate of 65 per 100,000 inhabitants. Nine of the 10 countries with the highest murder rates worldwide are located in Latin America and the Caribbean. Whereas Celaya in Mexico was listed as the city with the highest murder rate worldwide, Colima in Mexico was the city with the highest homicide rate in Latin America, so the numbers vary from source to source. Nevertheless, several Mexican cities rank among the deadliest in the world when it comes to intentional homicides. Violent conflicts worldwide Notably, these figures do not include deaths that resulted from war or a violent conflict. While there is a persistent number of conflicts worldwide, resulting casualties are not considered murders. Partially due to this reason, homicide rates in Latin America are higher than those in countries such as Ukraine or the DR Congo. A different definition of murder in these circumstances could change the rate significantly.

In Europe in 2019, England and Wales had the highest reported rate of serious assaults per 100,000 inhabitants, with almost 930 reported incidents. Belgium had the second highest rate with close to 560. Romania had the lowest rate of reported serious assaults, with only 1.46 per 100,000 inhabitant, followed by Lithuania and Albania. Despite this low rate of assault, Lithuania, Albania and Romania had some of the highest homicide rates in Europe, suggesting that there is a discrepancy in how often assaults are reported in these countries, or the methodology behind data collection.

The Balkan countries Montenegro and Albania have the highest murder rates with cases involving firearms in Europe. Perhaps somewhat surprisingly, Sweden came third. The Scandinavian country has seen increasing levels of gang-related violence in recent years.

The statistic above provides information about the homicide rate for the most populous city in each European country in 2012. In 2012, the homicide rate in Berlin stood at 1 per 100,000 population.

In 2021, Liechtenstein had the highest female homicide rate in Europe, with an estimated 5.08 women per 100,000 falling victims to intentional homicide. However, this number is skewed due to Liechtenstein's very small population; in real terms, this equates to one female homicide in Liechtenstein in 2021. For more populous countries, the next countries on the list are six of Eastern Europe's seven former-Soviet states, with Latvia and Russia having the highest rates of intentional female homicide in Europe (Estonia is the outlier).

The United States had, by far, the highest homicide rate of the G7 countries between 2000 and 2021. In 2021, it reached 6.81 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants, an increase from 6.52 in 2020 and 5.07 in 2019. By comparison, Canada, the G7 nation with the second highest homicide rate, had 2.07 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants in 2021. Out of each G7 nation, Japan had the lowest rate with 0.23 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants.

The crime rate in Germany for 2022 was 6,762 crimes per 100,000 people, making it the first time in seven years in which the crime rate rose compared to the year before. Between 2000 and 2004 the crime rate in Germany increased from 7,625 to 8,037, before declining to 7,253 by 2010. The years between 2010 and 2015 saw an increase in the crime rate, but after 2015, the recent trend of declining crime started, leading to the generally low figures seen in the most recent years. While the uptick in the crime rate in 2022 marks a negative turn compared with these years, the overall crime rate is still much lower on average than in previous decades.

Crime rate highest in cities Germany’s sixteen states are made up of thirteen federal states, and three city states; Berlin, Hamburg and Bremen. These three city states had the highest regional crime rates in Germany, due to only covering urban areas which usually have higher crime rates than rural areas. The large federal state of Bavaria, in the southeast of Germany, had the lowest crime rate in the country at 4,698 crimes per 100,000 people in 2020. Baden-Württemberg, home to the black forest and the city of Stuttgart had the second-lowest crime rate per 100 thousand people in this year, at 4,944.

Saint Kitts and Nevis saw a murder rate of 65 per 100,000 inhabitants, making it the most dangerous country for this kind of crime worldwide as of 2023. Interestingly, El Salvador, which long had the highest global homicide rates, has dropped out of the top 20 after a high number of gang members have been incarcerated. Meanwhile, Celaya in Mexico was the most dangerous city for murders. Violent conflicts worldwide Notably, these figures do not include deaths that resulted from war or a violent conflict. While there is a persistent number of conflicts worldwide, resulting casualties are not considered murders. Partially due to this reason, homicide rates in Latin America are higher than those in Afghanistan or Syria. A different definition of murder in these circumstances could change the rate significantly in some countries. Causes of death Also noteworthy is that murders are usually not random events. In the United States, the circumstances of murders are most commonly arguments, followed by narcotics incidents and robberies. Additionally, murders are not a leading cause of death. Heart diseases, strokes and cancer pose a greater threat to life than violent crime.

The four Nordic countries Sweden, Iceland, Norway, and Denmark are between the five countries with the highest rate of reported sexual violence in Europe in 2022. More than 200 cases per 100,000 inhabitants were reported in Sweden.Please note that reporting varies from country to country, and the willingness of victims to come forward can vary across regions and cultures, therefore a comparison between the countries should be taken with caution.

In 2023, there were 91.23 criminal offenses reported per 1,000 inhabitants in Finland. Despite a decreasing trend until recent years, 2020 saw a considerable increase in the number of crimes, having reached a high of 98.2 per 1,000 population. Finland has one of the lowest incarceration rates in Europe In general, Finland is known as a safe country, with crime levels being comparable to those of other Nordic countries. Traffic offenses, along with property offenses, are the most common types of crime. In terms of imprisonment, Finland has one of the lowest incarceration rates in Europe. Currently, Finland has several closed and open prisons, which a focus on rehabilitation and reintegration into society. This “softer” approach to punishing crime has also been linked to falling recidivism rates. Sexual and domestic violence most often affects women Women constituted almost 67.8 percent of domestic violence victims in Finland in 2023. Furthermore, the number of female, as well as male, victims was higher than in the previous year. The Finnish government is addressing this problem by promoting sexual and reproductive health and the rights of women and girls, along with placing the human rights of women as one of its priorities.

In 2019, France had the highest number of overall homicides in Europe at 835, with 285 of the victims being women. Germany had the second highest number of intentional homicides in that year, at 623 with 347 of those victims being male.

The homicide rate in Iceland varied between 2010 and 2022, from roughly 0.3 murders per 100,000 inhabitants in 2019, to 1.37 in 2020. In real figures, the total number of homicides reached five in 2020, an unusually high number for Iceland; since 1994 there were six years where no intentional homicides were committed in Iceland, although the last of these was in 2008. Iceland generally has one of the lowest homicide rates in Europe. The most dangerous countries in Europe and worldwide In Europe, Latvia had the highest murder rate in 2021 with 5.1 per 100,000 inhabitants. Malta had the lowest with 0.39. Worldwide, Saint Kitts and Nevis is the world's most dangerous country to live in in terms of murder rate. The Caribbean island country had a homicide rate of 65 per 100,000 inhabitants. Nine of the 10 countries with the highest murder rates worldwide are located in Latin America and the Caribbean. Celaya in Mexico was the city with the highest homicide rate worldwide. Victims of homicides In most of the European countries, a higher share of the victims of homicides are men. France was the country with the highest number of homicides on the continent, whereas Malta and Iceland had the lowest. France both had the highest number of female and male victims.

This statistic presents what people perceive to be the leading causes of murder in selected European Countries in 2018. According to data published by Ipsos, 71 percent of British respondents think that most people in their country were killed by sharp objects such as knives.

In 2022, an estimated 800 femicides were reported across European countries. Femicide, which refers to the gender-related killing of women and girls, represents the most extreme cases of violence against women. In this year there were estimated to have been 120 femicides in Italy, 118 in France, 113 in Germany and 83 in Spain.

Coercion/threat made up the highest number of recorded criminal offenses with an extremist background based on religious ideology in Germany. In total, there were 57 of these recorded in 2023. Number of Islamists and Salafists There have been various terror attacks in Germany during the second half of the twentieth century. Although often associated with, terrorism is not connected exclusively to religious ideology. Such attacks can also be part of politically motivated crime. However, the same as in other countries in Western Europe, religiously fueled terrorism is still a concern for German authorities, which is the reason for the number of Islamists and Salafists living in Germany being monitored. Based on recent figures, however, both the number of Islamists on German soil (though this was recorded among non-violent groups), as well as the number of Salafists is beginning to slowly decrease. Terror attacks in Europe Based on a recent survey, the German population considers terrorist attacks a real possibility for the country. Of terror attacks that happened in Europe in 2021, France and Germany were the primary targets.

From 2013 to 2019, the United States had a gun homicide rate of 4.38 per 100,000 residents, the most out of any other G7 country. In comparison, Canada had a gun homicide rate of 0.67 per 100,000 residents while France had a gun homicide rate of 0.4 per 100,000 residents.

Despite fluctuations, namely during the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of homicides in Portugal has generally decreased. In 2023, the Portuguese police registered 90 homicides consummated in the country, down from 97 manslaughter cases reported a year earlier. There were 336 involuntary homicides due to traffic accidents in Portugal, and 22 homicides that happened under other circumstances, such as negligence. Manslaughter cases and incarceration rates are shrinking in Portugal Portugal had one of lowest homicide rates in Europe as of 2022, at 0.72 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants. The county of the nation’s capital, Lisbon, registered 21 voluntary manslaughter cases in 2023, which represented a decrease in comparison to the previous year and to pre-pandemic times. In Portugal, the incarceration rate has also been on a downward trend. In 2022, there were 114 people incarcerated per 100,000 inhabitants. This rate had not been this low since 2010, and it was in 2015 that the incarceration rate peaked at 137.1. Despite decreasing homicide numbers, domestic violence is increasing in Portugal Domestic violence, which triggers multiple manslaughter cases in Portugal, has been increasing over recent years. In 2022, there were almost 30,500 recorded incidences of domestic violence, which represents a rise compared to pandemic and pre-pandemic years. This type of crime takes place in the domestic environment and between people with a degree of kinship. In 2022, 37 percent of cases occurred between spouses or partners, while 14 percent of recorded occurrences concerned ex-spouses or ex-partners. In the same year, 24 percent of domestic violence victims were children or stepchildren of the accused, while the parents or stepparents of the alleged criminals were the victims of domestic violence in over seven percent of cases.

More men than women are victims of homicide in Sweden. The number of men who were killed in violent crimes increased from 2012 to 2015, but has remained more stable since. Meanwhile, the number of female homicide victims was usually between 25 and 30 during the past decade. In 2022, 93 men and 23 women were confirmed as homicide victims in Sweden. Compared to other European countries, Sweden's homicide rate was around the average.

A survey ending February 2023 among professionals responsible for their company's cyber security strategy in the United States and Europe found that Germany saw the highest rate of cyber attacks among the examined countries. French companies ranked second by the share of reported cyber attacks, 53 percent. Companies from the United Kingdom (UK) and Belgium reported the lowest share of cyber attacks among the listed countries, with 48 percent and 46 percent.

In 2024, Colima in Mexico ranked as the world's most dangerous city with a homicide rate of 140 per 100,000 inhabitants. Seven of the 10 cities with the highest murder rates worldwide are all found in Mexico. The list does not include countries where war and conflict exist. Latin America dominate murder statistics Except for Mandela Bay, all the cities on the list are found in Latin America. Latin America also dominate the list of the world's most dangerous countries. Violence in Latin America is caused in great part by drug trafficking, weapons trafficking, and gang wars. Crime in South Africa Mandela Bay in South Africa is the only city outside Latin America among the 10 most dangerous cities worldwide. The country is struggling with extremely high levels of inequality, and is struggling with high levels of crime and power outages, harming the country's economy and driving more people into unemployment and poverty.