In 2025, Pietermaritzburg in South Africa ranked as the world's most dangerous city with a crime rate of 82 per 100,000 inhabitants. Five of the 10 cities with the highest crime rates worldwide are found in South Africa. The list does not include countries where war and conflict exist. South Africa dominates crime statistics When looking at crime rates, among the 10 most dangerous cities in the world, half of them are found in South Africa. 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. Crime in Latin America On the other hand, when looking at murder rates, Latin America dominates 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.

In 2023, around 3,640.56 violent crimes per 100,000 residents were reported in Oakland, California. This made Oakland the most dangerous city in the United States in that year. Four categories of violent crimes were used: murder and non-negligent manslaughter; forcible rape; robbery; and aggravated assault. Only cities with a population of at least 200,000 were considered.

Comprehensive crime statistics for Los Angeles County's most dangerous neighborhoods including violent crime rates, property crime rates, gang activity, and annual victimization chances by neighborhood for 2024-2025.

In 2024, Pietermaritzburg (South Africa) ranked first in the crime index among African cities, with a rating of roughly ** index points. The six most dangerous areas on the continent were South African cities. The index estimates the overall level of crime in a specific territory. According to the score, crime levels are classified as very high (over 80), high (60-80), moderate (40-60), low (20-40), and very low (below 20). South Africa’s crime situation According to the crime index ranking, ************ was the most dangerous country in Africa in 2023, followed by ***************** and ******. Murder and organized crime are particularly widespread in South Africa. In 2023, the country had one of the highest murder rates globally, registering around ** homicides per 100,000 inhabitants. Moreover, South Africa’s crime scene is also characterized by the presence of organized criminal activities, for which the country ranked third in Africa. Reflecting these high levels of crime, a survey conducted in 2023 showed that around ** percent of South Africans were worried about crime and violence in the country. Crime risks in Africa The African continent hosts some of the most dangerous places worldwide. In 2023, *********** and the ******************************** were the least peaceful countries in Africa, according to the Global Peace Index. Worldwide, they ranked fourth and fifth, respectively, behind Afghanistan, Yemen, and Syria. Terrorism is a leading type of crime perpetrated in Africa. Home to Boko Aram, Nigeria is among the countries with the highest number of terrorism-related deaths globally. Furthermore, Burkina Faso had the highest number of fatalities in the world. Human trafficking is also widespread, predominantly in West Africa. The most common forms of exploitation of victims of trafficking in persons are forced labor and sexual exploitation.

In 2024, the highest homicide rate among 22 Latin American and Caribbean countries surveyed was in Haiti, with around 62 murders committed per 100,000 inhabitants. Trinidad and Tobago came in second, with a homicide rate of 46, while Honduras ranked seventh, with 25. In the same year, the lowest rate was recorded in El Salvador, with a homicide rate of 1.9 per 100,000 inhabitants. A violence-ridden region Violence and crime are some of the most pressing problems affecting Latin American society nowadays. More than 40 of the 50 most dangerous cities in the world are located in this region, as well as one of the twenty countries with the least peace in the world according to the Global Peace Index. Despite governments’ large spending on security and high imprisonment rates, drug and weapon trafficking, organized crime, and gangs have turned violence into an epidemic that affects the whole region and a solution to this issue appears to be hardly attainable. The cost of violence in Mexico Mexico stands out as an example of the great cost that violence inflicts upon a country, since beyond claiming human lives, it also affects everyday life and has a negative impact on the economy. Mexicans have a high perceived level of insecurity, as they do not only fear becoming victims of homicide, but also of other common crimes, such as assault or rape. Such fear prevents people from performing everyday activities, for instance, going out at night, taking a taxi or going to the movies or the theater. Furthermore, the economic toll of violence in Mexico is more than considerable. For example, the cost of homicide and violent crime amounted to 2099.8 and 1778.1 billion Mexican pesos in 2023, respectively.

Crime severity index (violent, non-violent, youth) and weighted clearance rates (violent, non-violent), Canada, provinces, territories and Census Metropolitan Areas, 1998 to 2024.

In 2024, the Mexican city of Colima was the second most deadly city in the world, with a murder rate of ****** per 100,000 inhabitants. * out of the top 10 cities with over ******* habitants and the highest homicide rates were located in Mexico.

This dataset contains different collected datasets with crime data of many large cities. Below are the descriptions for each seperate dataset. Note: Dataset properties and column may differ from each other since the information was collected by the local police in different styles and situations.

1. Los Angeles

The Los Angeles dataset has the collected data on different crimes that happened in Los Angeles from 2000 up until May 2024. The columns are as follows:

• DR_NO - Division of Records Number: Official file number made up of a 2 digit year, area ID, and 5 digits

• Date Rptd - The date when the police found out about the crime

• Date OCC - The actual date of the crime

• Time OCC - In military time

• Area - The LAPD has 21 Community Police Stations referred to as Geographic Areas within the department. These Geographic Areas are sequentially numbered from 1-21.

• Area Name - The 21 Geographic Areas or Patrol Divisions are also given a name designation that references a landmark or the surrounding community that it is responsible for. For example 77th Street Division is located at the intersection of South Broadway and 77th Street, serving neighborhoods in South Los Angeles.

• Rpt Dist No - A four-digit code that represents a sub-area within a Geographic Area. All crime records reference the "RD" that it occurred in for statistical comparisons. Find LAPD Reporting Districts on the LA City GeoHub at http://geohub.lacity.org/datasets/c4f83909b81d4786aa8ba8a74a4b4db1_4

• Crm Cd - Indicates the crime committed. (Same as Crime Code 1)

• Crm Cd Desc - Defines the Crime Code provided.

• Mocodes - Modus Operandi: Activities associated with the suspect in commission of the crime.

• Vict Age - The age of the victim

• Vict Sex - The gender of the victim. They are as follows:

  • M - Male
  • F - Female
  • X - Unknown

• Vict Descent - Descent Code:

  • A - Other Asian
  • B - Black
  • C - Chinese
  • D - Cambodian
  • F - Filipino
  • G - Guamanian
  • H - Hispanic/Latin/Mexican
  • I - American Indian/Alaskan Native
  • J - Japanese
  • K - Korean
  • L - Laotian
  • O - Other
  • P - Pacific Islander
  • S - Samoan
  • U - Hawaiian
  • V - Vietnamese
  • W - White
  • X - Unknown
  • Z - Asian Indian

• Premis Cd - The type of structure, vehicle, or location where the crime took place.

• Premis Desc - Defines the Premise Code provided.

• Weapon Used Cd - The type of weapon used in the crime.

• Status - Status of the case. (IC is the default)

• Status Desc - Defines the Status Code provided.

• Crm Cd 1 - Indicates the crime committed. Crime Code 1 is the primary and most serious one. Crime Code 2, 3, and 4 are respectively less serious offenses. Lower crime class numbers are more serious.

• Crm Cd 2 - May contain a code for an additional crime, less serious than Crime Code 1.

• Crm Cd 3 - May contain a code for an additional crime, less serious than Crime Code 1.

• Crm Cd 4 - May contain a code for an additional crime, less serious than Crime Code 1.

• Location - Street address of crime incident rounded to the nearest hundred block to maintain anonymity.

• Cross Street - Cross Street of rounded Address

• LAT - Latitude

• LON - Longitude

This dataset has 28 columns and 944K rows. I hope you will find it useful. God bless you

1. Chicago

This dataset contains crime data on Chicago, from 2001 to present. The columns are as follows:

• ID - Unique Identifier for the record

• Case Number - The Chicago Police Department RD Number (Records Division Number), which is unique to the incident.

• Date - Date when the incident occurred. this is sometimes a best estimate.

• Block - The partially redacted address where the incident occurred, placing it on the same block as the actual address.

• IUCR - The Illinois Unifrom Crime Reporting code. This is directly linked to the Primary Type and Description. See the list of IUCR codes at https://data.cityofchicago.org/d/c7ck-438e..

• Primary Type - The primary description of the IUCR code.

• Description - The secondary description of the IUCR code, a subcategory of the primary description.

• Location Description - Description of the location where the incident occurred.

• Arrest - Indicates whether an arrest was made.

• Domestic - Indicates whether the incident was domestic-related as defined by the Illinois Domestic Violence Act.

• Beat - Indicates the beat where the incident occurred. A beat is the smallest police geographic area – each beat has a dedicated police beat car. Three to five beats make up a police sector, and three sectors make up a police district. The Chicago Police Department has 22 police districts. See the beats at https://data.cityofchicago.org/d/aerh-rz74.

• Distric...

Number and rate (per 100,000 population) of homicide victims, Canada and Census Metropolitan Areas, 1981 to 2024.

In the 2024/25 reporting year, West Yorkshire Police reported a crime rate of 114.5 crimes per 1,000 population, the highest crime rate among the provided police force areas whose territories include large cities. Greater Manchester Police reported a crime rate of 108.2 crimes per 1,000 population and had the second-highest crime rate during this year.

This data set is no longer compiled by the Ministry of Solicitor General. Data from the Police Reported Crime Severity Index. Measures changes in Canadian crime severity from year to year. In the index, all crimes are assigned a weight based on their seriousness, based on actual sentences handed down in all provinces and territories. Serious crimes are assigned high weights while less serious offences have lower weights. As a result, serious offences have a greater impact on changes in the index. Data is compared to the 2006 baseline. The data can be accessed from Statistics Canada.

This dataset was utilized a join from enriched tables from ESRI which was curated from the 2020 Census from the United States Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS) and for county boundaries created by Office of Information Technology Services Next Generation 9-1-1 team in collaboration with all 44 counties of Idaho. This layer has information for all cities within Idaho regarding the county population crime index for personal and property for 2024.For more information on how the data is curated for the Enrich tool please go the link below. 2024/2029 Esri Updated Demographics

The city states of Berlin, Hamburg and Bremen were the states with the three highest crime rates in Germany in 2024, while the federal state of Bavaria had the lowest. Urban areas generally have higher crime rates than rural ones, making it difficult to compare Germany's three city states with the much larger federal states, which typically cover quite large areas. The federal state with the highest crime rate was Bremen at 14,998 crimes per 100 thousand people, compared with the German average of 6,995.

This dataset captures a comprehensive snapshot of criminal activities across multiple Indian cities from 2020 to 2024. It includes detailed information about the type of crime, the date and time of occurrence, the weapon used, victim demographics, and the level of police deployment. With crimes ranging from identity theft to homicide, this dataset offers valuable insights for researchers, policymakers, and law enforcement agencies aiming to understand crime patterns and improve public safety. The data also includes information on whether the case was closed, providing a clear view of crime resolution rates across cities

This table contains figures on the number of registered crimes per month and per year. These are broken down by type of crime and by place. Attempts are also included in the recorded crimes. For some crimes (e.g. murder/homicide), this results in a much higher number than just the number of completed crimes.

Since July 2018, it is no longer possible to record multiple offences, which are related to each other (concurrence), in one registration. An example of this is a street robbery in which a firearm (gun possession) is used. If several offences occur in one registration, only the most serious offence was counted before July 2018. As a result of this adjustment, a number of offences show an increase compared to 2018. This mainly concerns trespassing, special laws including money laundering, arms trafficking including possession of weapons, drug trafficking, violation of public order and other social integrity including insults. The increase was therefore mainly visible in the last 6 months of 2018. This adjustment has only a limited impact on the total number of crimes. For the whole of 2018, this causes an increase of approximately 1.0%. Since 30 April 2020, it is possible to report WhatsApp fraud via the Internet (also known as friend-in-emergency fraud). This was immediately used extensively. In the months of May to December 2020, approximately 20,000 reports of WhatsApp fraud were made.

The number of registered crimes fireworks 2023 is not final. In the first half of 2024, many incidents with retroactive effect will still be classified as a criminal offence and included in the census.

Data available from: 2012

Status of figures: The figures in this table are regularly updated. This may result in minor differences with previous publications. Updating the figures is necessary, for example, in order to be able to retroactively process the reclassification of municipalities or the adjustment of coding.

Changes as of 15 November 2024: Figures for October have been added.

When will there be new figures? The figures for November are added on 16 December.

In 2024, six of the eight Brazilian cities with the highest homicide rates were in the Northeast. Feira da Santana led the ranking of the most violent city in Brazil, with a murder rate of ***** per 100,000 inhabitants. It was followed followed by Recife, with a homicide rate of more than ** per 100,000 inhabitants. In Latin America and the Caribbean, Feira da Santana was the **** most deadly city.

SANDAG provides an annual report on crime in the San Diego region. This dataset contains data from the 2009 through 2022 editions of the report. Data for 2023 is converted from California Incident Based Reporting System (CIBRS) data provided by SANDAG. Additional data comes from Arjis and DOJ OpenJustice. Some data for previous years reports is updated with new editions. "San Diego County" includes all cities and unincorporated areas in San Diego County. "Sheriff - Total" includes the contract cities and the unincorporated area served by the San Diego County Sheriff's Department. California and United States data come from the FBI's Annual Crime Reports.

The average for 2017 based on 79 countries was 105 robberies per 100,000 people. The highest value was in Costa Rica: 1587 robberies per 100,000 people and the lowest value was in Oman: 1 robberies per 100,000 people. The indicator is available from 2003 to 2017. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

This dataset supports the manuscript Lawful Handgun Licensing, Population Density, Poverty, Police Staffing, and Violent Crime: A Two-Cohort Comparison of U.S. Jurisdictions (2023–2024). It contains processed violent crime counts, rates per 100,000, population denominators, poverty statistics, and police staffing levels for two cohorts of U.S. jurisdictions. Cohort A includes counties with high levels of licensed handgun ownership (Brevard FL, Macomb MI, Genesee MI, Sumner TN, Sullivan TN, Pierce WA). Cohort B includes restrictive licensing jurisdictions (New York City, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington DC, Boston). The package includes: County/city-level violent crime counts for homicide, rape, robbery, and aggravated assault (2023–2024). Population denominators (2024 Census estimates). Derived violent crime rates per 100,000. Poverty measures and law enforcement officer staffing rates. Python replication script to regenerate tables and figures used in the study. Accessed data sources: FBI Crime Data Explorer, Major Cities Chiefs Association, NYPD annual tables, FDLE FIBRS, Michigan MICR, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs, and U.S. Census QuickFacts. Data pulled on August 27, 28, and 30, 2025.

Crime Mapping Hotspot Prediction Market Outlook

According to our latest research, the Global Crime Mapping Hotspot Prediction market size was valued at $2.1 billion in 2024 and is projected to reach $7.6 billion by 2033, expanding at a CAGR of 15.2% during 2024–2033. One of the major factors driving the robust growth of the Crime Mapping Hotspot Prediction market globally is the increasing integration of advanced analytics and artificial intelligence technologies into law enforcement and urban management systems. As cities become more interconnected and data-driven, the demand for precise, real-time crime prediction tools that can support proactive policing and resource allocation is rising rapidly. This trend is further accelerated by the global push for smarter, safer cities, where predictive analytics play a pivotal role in addressing crime and enhancing public safety outcomes.

Regional Outlook

North America currently dominates the Crime Mapping Hotspot Prediction market, accounting for over 38% of the global market share in 2024. This region’s leadership is underpinned by early adoption of advanced surveillance technologies, robust investments in public safety infrastructure, and a mature ecosystem of technology providers. The United States, in particular, has been at the forefront, leveraging predictive analytics to support law enforcement agencies, municipal governments, and private security firms. Stringent data protection regulations and supportive policy frameworks, such as federal grants for smart policing initiatives, have further fueled market expansion. Additionally, North America’s strong collaboration between technology vendors and public sector agencies has led to the development and deployment of cutting-edge software and hardware solutions tailored for real-time crime hotspot identification and rapid response.

The Asia Pacific region is emerging as the fastest-growing market for Crime Mapping Hotspot Prediction, projected to expand at a CAGR of 20.1% from 2024 to 2033. This growth is primarily driven by rapid urbanization, substantial investments in smart city projects, and the increasing focus on public safety in densely populated urban centers such as China, India, and Southeast Asian countries. Government-led initiatives to modernize law enforcement and emergency response infrastructure are fueling the adoption of cloud-based and AI-powered crime mapping solutions. Additionally, the proliferation of mobile devices, IoT sensors, and high-speed connectivity is enabling real-time data collection and analysis, further enhancing the predictive capabilities of these systems. Strategic partnerships between local governments and global technology firms are also accelerating market penetration, making Asia Pacific a key region to watch in the coming years.

In contrast, emerging economies in Latin America, the Middle East, and Africa are witnessing gradual adoption of Crime Mapping Hotspot Prediction solutions, albeit at a slower pace due to infrastructural and budgetary constraints. These regions face unique challenges, including fragmented law enforcement systems, limited access to advanced technologies, and varying levels of digital literacy among end-users. However, localized demand for crime reduction and urban safety is growing, especially in metropolitan areas grappling with high crime rates. Policy reforms and international aid programs aimed at capacity building are beginning to bridge the technology gap, while pilot projects in key cities demonstrate the potential for scalable adoption. Nevertheless, the market’s expansion in these regions will depend heavily on sustained government support, public-private partnerships, and the development of tailored, cost-effective solutions that address specific local needs.

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