Homicide rate in Jamaica
Jamaica: Homicide rate was 49.44 homicides per 100,000 population in 2023. ▲ Rising
Homicide rate in Jamaica, 1990–2023
Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024); United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in homicides per 100,000 population.
Analysis
Jamaica recorded 49.44 homicides per 100,000 population for homicide rate in 2023.
The figure is down 6.9% on the previous year and up 14.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, homicide rate in Jamaica peaked at 62.3 homicides per 100,000 population in 2005 and was at its lowest, 22.86 homicides per 100,000 population, in 1990.
That places Jamaica 5th out of 179 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 34 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 30.23 homicides per 100,000 population | 22.86 homicides per 100,000 population | 40.74 homicides per 100,000 population | 10 |
| 2000s | 49.99 homicides per 100,000 population | 34.01 homicides per 100,000 population | 62.3 homicides per 100,000 population | 10 |
| 2010s | 45.56 homicides per 100,000 population | 35.97 homicides per 100,000 population | 58.49 homicides per 100,000 population | 10 |
| 2020s | 50.4 homicides per 100,000 population | 47.09 homicides per 100,000 population | 53.11 homicides per 100,000 population | 4 |
Countries ranked near Jamaica
- 2 Saint Kitts and Nevis 64.16 homicides per 100,000 population compare
- 3 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 51.32 homicides per 100,000 population compare
- 4 United States Virgin Islands 49.86 homicides per 100,000 population compare
- 6 Ecuador 45.72 homicides per 100,000 population compare
- 7 South Africa 43.72 homicides per 100,000 population compare
- 8 Haiti 41.15 homicides per 100,000 population compare
More social development data for Jamaica
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of asy 31 (2022)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of ori 2,642 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 2 (2025)
- Freedom of Association Index 0.879 (2025)
- Human Rights Index 0.876 (2025)
- Liberal Democracy Index 0.679 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 2 (2025)
- Participatory Democracy Index 0.524 (2025)
- Key features of human rights 0.876 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is homicide rate in Jamaica?
- Homicide rate in Jamaica was 49.44 homicides per 100,000 population in 2023, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024); United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest homicide rate recorded in Jamaica?
- The highest recorded value was 62.3 homicides per 100,000 population in 2005.
- What is the lowest homicide rate recorded in Jamaica?
- The lowest recorded value was 22.86 homicides per 100,000 population in 1990.
- How does Jamaica rank for homicide rate?
- Jamaica ranks 5th out of 179 countries with data for 2023.
- Is homicide rate rising or falling in Jamaica?
- Over the last ten years it is up 14.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Jamaica data come from?
- The figures come from UN, World Population Prospects (2024); United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Homicide rate. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Intentional homicide rate per 100,000 population.