mathematics

List of countries by intentional homicide rate

List of countries by intentional homicide rate is a mathematics topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand List of countries by intentional homicide rate rather than just read about it. In short: The list of countries by homicide rate is derived from United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) data, and is expressed in number of deaths per 100,000 population per year. For example, a homicide rate of 30 out of 100,000 is presented in the table as "30", and corresponds to 0.03% of the population dying by homicide per year.

Key takeaways

List of countries by intentional homicide rate belongs to mathematics; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect List of countries by intentional homicide rate to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of List of countries by intentional homicide rate from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The list of countries by homicide rate is derived from United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) data, and is expressed in number of deaths per 100,000 population per year. For example, a homicide rate of 30 out of 100,000 is presented in the table as "30", and corresponds to 0.03% of the population dying by homicide per year. The reliability of underlying national murder rate data may vary. Only UNODC-vetted data is used in the main table to maintain consistency. In some cases, it may not be as up to date as other sources. Homicide rates may be under-reported for political reasons. A study undertaken by the Geneva Declaration on Armed Violence and Development estimated that there were approximately 490,000 intentional homicides globally in 2004, for a rate of 7.6 per 100,000. UNODC calculated a global estimated rate of 6.9 per 100,000 in 2010; 6.2 per 100,000 in 2012; 6.1 per 100,000 in 2017; and a rate of 5.61 per 100,000 for 2022.

Definition

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), which collects global data on intentional homicide, currently using the International Classification of Crime for Statistical Purposes, ICCS 2015, has offered details on the methodology and definitions used, and on the limitations which exist. The UNODC in its 2013 Global Study on Homicide report stated that:

Within the broad range of violent deaths, the core element of intentional homicide is the complete liability of the direct perpetrator, which thus excludes killings directly related to war or conflicts, self-inflicted death (suicide), killings due to legal interventions or justifiable killings (such as self-defence), and those deaths caused when the perpetrator was reckless or negligent but did not intend to take a human life (non-intentional homicide).

Though some discrepancies exist in how specific categories of intentional killings are classified, the definitions used by countries to record data are generally close to the UNODC definition, making the homicide rates highly comparable at the international level. UNODC uses the homicide rate as a proxy for overall violence, as this type of crime is one of the most accurately reported and internationally comparable indicators. Figures from the Global Study on Homicide are based on the UNODC Homicide Statistics dataset, which is derived from the criminal justice or public health systems of a variety of countries and territories. The homicide rates derived from criminal justice data (typically recorded by police authorities) and the public health system data (recorded when the cause of death is established) may diverge substantially for some countries. The two sources usually match in the Americas, Europe and Oceania, but there are large discrepancies for the three African countries reporting both sources. For the 70 countries (as of 2013) in which neither source was made available, figures were derived from WHO statistical models. Deaths resulting from an armed conflict between states are never included in the count. Killings caused by a non-international armed conflict may or may not be included, depending on the intensity of hostilities and whether it is classified as 'civil unrest' or a clash between organized armed groups. The World Bank Group stated with regard to statistics on intentional homicides per 100,000 people collected by UNODC that:

Statistics reported to the United Nations in the context of its various surveys on crime levels and criminal justice trends are incidents of victimization that have been reported to the authorities in any given country. That means that this data is subject to the problems of accuracy of all official crime data. The survey results provide an overview of trends and interrelationships between various parts of the criminal justice system to promote informed decision-making in administration, nationally and internationally. The degree to which different societies apportion the level of culpability to acts resulting in death is also subject to variation. Consequently, the comparison between countries and regions of "intentional homicide", or unlawful death purposefully inflicted on a person by another person, is also a comparison of the extent to which different countries deem that a killing be classified as such, as well as the capacity of their legal systems to record it. Caution should therefore be applied when evaluating and comparing homicide data.

UNODC's global study The regions and subregions in the table are based on the United Nations geoscheme since the table sources are United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) reports. See List of countries and territories by the United Nations geoscheme. The U.N. recognizes that variability in the quality and integrity of data provided by certain countries may minimize country murder rates. Rates are calculated per 100,000 inhabitants. Rates are to the 3rd decimal place in order to separate countries with low homicide rates.

Note: When the regions or subregions are sorted the countries are also alphabetically sorted within those regions or subregions. Then shift-click the rate column head to secondarily sort countries by rates within the regions or subregions previously sorted. Note: Table last fully updated from data retrieved 24 February 2026 from UNODC. Individual countries updated since then. Note: Only UNODC-vetted data is used in the table. Asterisk (*) in Location column indicates a Crime in LOCATION article.

Other multi-country studies A 2024 study by InSight Crime revealed that the Turks and Caicos Islands had the highest homicide rate in Latin America and the Caribbean. Haiti ranked second, followed by St. Kitts and Nevis in third place. In 2025, InSight Crime reported that the overall homicide rate across Latin America and the Caribbean declined. Haiti recorded the highest rate in the region, followed by the Turks and Caicos Islands, Ecuador, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Saint Lucia.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with List of countries by intentional homicide rate

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what List of countries by intentional homicide rate claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In mathematics, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to List of countries by intentional homicide rate before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about List of countries by intentional homicide rate ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of List of countries by intentional homicide rate

In research: List of countries by intentional homicide rate appears in mathematics research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses List of countries by intentional homicide rate in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: List of countries by intentional homicide rate is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Crime-related lists, Homicide statistics, Lists of countries, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for List of countries by intentional homicide rate outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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Frequently asked questions

What is List of countries by intentional homicide rate in simple terms?

Why does List of countries by intentional homicide rate matter?

Because it connects several mathematics ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study List of countries by intentional homicide rate?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on List of countries by intentional homicide rate.