Homicide rate (World Health) in Colombia
Colombia: Homicide rate (World Health) was 35.63 deaths per 100,000 people in 2021. ▼ Falling
Latest (2021)
35.63 deaths per 100,000 people
Change on year
down 4.1%
World rank
9th
of 194 countries
All-time high
100.02 deaths per 100,000 people
in 2002
All-time low
35.63 deaths per 100,000 people
in 2021
Years of data
22
2000–2021
Homicide rate in Colombia, 2000–2021
Source: World Health Organization (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in deaths per 100,000 people.
Analysis
In 2021, homicide rate in Colombia stood at 35.63 deaths per 100,000 people. That is the lowest value across all 22 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 4.1% on the previous year and down 38.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, homicide rate in Colombia peaked at 100.02 deaths per 100,000 people in 2002 and was at its lowest, 35.63 deaths per 100,000 people, in 2021.
Colombia ranks 9th of 194 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 22 years of available data.
Homicide rate (World Health) in Colombia, year by year
| Year | deaths per 100,000 people | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 93.31 deaths per 100,000 people | — |
| 2001 | 96.17 deaths per 100,000 people | +3.1% |
| 2002 | 100.02 deaths per 100,000 people | +4.0% |
| 2003 | 76.54 deaths per 100,000 people | -23.5% |
| 2004 | 71.18 deaths per 100,000 people | -7.0% |
| 2005 | 60.1 deaths per 100,000 people | -15.6% |
| 2006 | 59.75 deaths per 100,000 people | -0.6% |
| 2007 | 55.87 deaths per 100,000 people | -6.5% |
| 2008 | 57.43 deaths per 100,000 people | +2.8% |
| 2009 | 66.85 deaths per 100,000 people | +16.4% |
| 2010 | 62.7 deaths per 100,000 people | -6.2% |
| 2011 | 57.91 deaths per 100,000 people | -7.6% |
| 2012 | 55.66 deaths per 100,000 people | -3.9% |
| 2013 | 51.88 deaths per 100,000 people | -6.8% |
| 2014 | 48.04 deaths per 100,000 people | -7.4% |
| 2015 | 45.29 deaths per 100,000 people | -5.7% |
| 2016 | 43.65 deaths per 100,000 people | -3.6% |
| 2017 | 42.15 deaths per 100,000 people | -3.4% |
| 2018 | 40.71 deaths per 100,000 people | -3.4% |
| 2019 | 38.76 deaths per 100,000 people | -4.8% |
| 2020 | 37.15 deaths per 100,000 people | -4.2% |
| 2021 | 35.63 deaths per 100,000 people | -4.1% |
Colombia compared with similar countries
- Colombia's 35.63 deaths per 100,000 people is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 4.79 deaths per 100,000 people, 7.4× the median. (58 countries reporting)
- Colombia's 35.63 deaths per 100,000 people is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 14.24 deaths per 100,000 people, 2.5× the median. (33 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 73.72 deaths per 100,000 people | 55.87 deaths per 100,000 people | 100.02 deaths per 100,000 people | 10 |
| 2010s | 48.67 deaths per 100,000 people | 38.76 deaths per 100,000 people | 62.7 deaths per 100,000 people | 10 |
| 2020s | 36.39 deaths per 100,000 people | 35.63 deaths per 100,000 people | 37.15 deaths per 100,000 people | 2 |
Countries ranked near Colombia
- 6 Lesotho 39.76 deaths per 100,000 people compare
- 7 Belize 38.47 deaths per 100,000 people compare
- 8 Trinidad and Tobago 37.33 deaths per 100,000 people compare
- 10 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 34.62 deaths per 100,000 people compare
- 11 South Africa 32.81 deaths per 100,000 people compare
- 12 Brazil 32.5 deaths per 100,000 people compare
More social development data for Colombia
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 1,464 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 79,669 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 2 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 2 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0015 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 79,669 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is homicide rate in Colombia?
- Homicide rate in Colombia was 35.63 deaths per 100,000 people in 2021, according to World Health Organization (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest homicide rate recorded in Colombia?
- The highest recorded value was 100.02 deaths per 100,000 people in 2002.
- What is the lowest homicide rate recorded in Colombia?
- The lowest recorded value was 35.63 deaths per 100,000 people in 2021.
- How does Colombia rank for homicide rate?
- Colombia ranks 9th out of 194 countries with data for 2021.
- Is homicide rate rising or falling in Colombia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 38.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Colombia data come from?
- The figures come from World Health Organization (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Homicide rate. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 22 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Estimated number of deaths from interpersonal violence in both sexes, per 100,000 people.