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.

In 2022, the New Orleans-Metairie, LA metro area recorded the highest homicide rate of U.S. cities with a population over 250,000, at **** homicides per 100,000 residents, followed by the Memphis, TN-MS-AR metro area. However, homicide data was not recorded in all U.S. metro areas, meaning that there may be some cities with a higher homicide rate. St. Louis St. Louis, which had a murder and nonnegligent manslaughter rate of **** in 2022, is the second-largest city by population in Missouri. It is home to many famous treasures, such as the St. Louis Cardinals baseball team, Washington University in St. Louis, the Saint Louis Zoo, and the renowned Gateway Arch. It is also home to many corporations, such as Monsanto, Arch Coal, and Emerson Electric. The economy of St. Louis is centered around business and healthcare, and boasts ten Fortune 500 companies. Crime in St. Louis Despite all of this, St. Louis suffers from high levels of crime and violence. As of 2023, it was listed as the seventh most dangerous city in the world as a result of their extremely high murder rate. Not only does St. Louis have one of the highest homicide rates in the United States, it also reports one of the highest numbers of violent crimes. Despite high crime levels, the GDP of the St. Louis metropolitan area has been increasing since 2001.

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

Pueblo, Colorado, was the United States city that experienced the largest surge in its gun homicide rate in 2021, with an increase of 119 percent compared to the previous year. Pueblo was followed by the Texan city of Amarillo and its growth of 117 percent in the homicide rate, while Michigan's Lansing endured an increment of 112 percent.

Turks and Caicos Islands saw a murder rate of ***** per 100,000 inhabitants, making it the most dangerous country for this kind of crime worldwide as of 2024. Interestingly, El Salvador, which long had the highest global homicide rates, has dropped out of the top 29 after a high number of gang members have been incarcerated. Meanwhile, Colima 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.

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

The graph illustrates the murder rate in the United States from 1985 to 2023. The x-axis represents the years, labeled with two-digit abbreviations from '85 to '23, while the y-axis shows the annual murder rate per 100,000 individuals. Throughout this 39-year period, the murder rate fluctuates between a high of 10.66 in 1991 and a low of 4.7 in 2014. Overall, the data reveals a significant downward trend in the murder rate from the mid-1980s, reaching its lowest point in the mid-2010s, followed by slight increases in the most recent years.

In 2023, the District of Columbia had the highest reported violent crime rate in the United States, with 1,150.9 violent crimes per 100,000 of the population. Maine had the lowest reported violent crime rate, with 102.5 offenses per 100,000 of the population. Life in the District The District of Columbia has seen a fluctuating population over the past few decades. Its population decreased throughout the 1990s, when its crime rate was at its peak, but has been steadily recovering since then. While unemployment in the District has also been falling, it still has had a high poverty rate in recent years. The gentrification of certain areas within Washington, D.C. over the past few years has made the contrast between rich and poor even greater and is also pushing crime out into the Maryland and Virginia suburbs around the District. Law enforcement in the U.S. Crime in the U.S. is trending downwards compared to years past, despite Americans feeling that crime is a problem in their country. In addition, the number of full-time law enforcement officers in the U.S. has increased recently, who, in keeping with the lower rate of crime, have also made fewer arrests than in years past.

Police recorded crime figures by Police Force Area and Community Safety Partnership areas (which equate in the majority of instances, to local authorities).

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.

Incident-based crime statistics (actual incidents, rate per 100,000 population, percentage change in rate, unfounded incidents, percent unfounded, total cleared, cleared by charge, cleared otherwise, persons charged, adults charged, youth charged / not charged), by detailed violations (violent, property, traffic, drugs, other Federal Statutes), police services in Quebec, 1998 to 2024.

Police-reported hate crime, number of incidents and rate per 100,000 population, Census Metropolitan Areas and Canadian Forces Military Police, 2014 to 2024.

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.

This statistic shows the homicide rate in Canada in 2023, distinguished by metropolitan areas. In 2023, the homicide rate was highest in Thunder Bay, with 5.39 victims per 100,000 population. During the same year, the national homicide rate was 1.94 per 100,000 population in Canada.

In 2023, the number of crimes committed in Singapore for every 100,000 individuals was 1,188. This was a ten-year high, and mostly due to the increase in scams and cybercrimes cases. Low crime rates in Singapore Singapore has a reputation for being one of the safest cities in the world. Violent crime in Singapore is rare – as of 2021, such crimes accounted for nine per 100 thousand population. One reason for this could be the harsh penalties for offenders, as well as a strict ban on weapons for those not in law enforcement. Singapore still carries out capital punishment for crimes such as murder and the illegal possession of firearms carry the death penalty. Increase in commercial crime The most common type of crime committed in Singapore were commercial crimes, especially scams. As Singaporeans carry out more aspects of everyday life online, so too are criminals looking to take advantage of unsuspecting victims. In 2021, scams involving e-commerce transactions were the most common of such crimes. These typically involve the fraudulent sale of products on C2C commercial sites, which are harder to track. Such scams, however, usually involve smaller amounts of money, unlike investment scams. These involve targeting individuals and tricking them into wiring large sums of money for supposed financial investments. In 2021, individuals in Singapore who fell victim to such scams were cheated out of around 191 million Singapore dollars.

This statistic shows the rate of homicides in Canada and the United States from 2000 to 2023. There were 6.3 homicides in the U.S. in 2022 and 2.27 homicides in Canada per 100,000 residents in 2022.

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, South Africa ranked first in the crime index among African countries, with a score of **** index points. Nigeria was the second most dangerous country on the continent, obtaining **** points. The index evaluates the overall crime levels in a specific country. Several African countries scored between ** and ** points, indicating high crime levels. Escalating concerns: South Africans worry about crime and violence In 2024, South Africa had one of the highest proportions of respondents expressing concerns about crime and violence compared to other countries participating in an online study. Throughout the period examined, the percentage of participants worried about violence peaked at ** percent in March 2023. The escalating levels of violent crime currently witnessed in the country has caused this significant rise in concerned respondents. South Africa's organized crime landscape In 2023, South Africa ranked the ************* in organized crime compared to its African counterparts. The continent's most prevalent organized criminal activity was **************************************. Moreover, from a regional perspective, Southern African countries had the lowest organized crime rate.

The most recent report of the Italian Ministry of the Interior reveals that between January 2023 and July 2024, 499 homicides were committed in Italy. The number of homicides has recorded a decreasing trend since 2011. Overall, about 2.3 million criminal acts were reported in Italy in 2023. Femicide Femicide, a homicide in which a woman is killed for gender-based reasons, poses a serious problem around the world. In 2018, roughly one in six Italians believed that femicide was on the rise. Women, victims of homicide, are often related to the culprit; in 2022, 74 women in Italy were killed by their partner. Crime in Italy In 2023, the most common crime in Italy was theft. Law enforcement corps reported one million cases of this delinquency to the juridical authority, with the highest theft rate in the Metropolitan city of Milan.