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Homicide rate, WHO vs. UNODC in United States

United States: Homicide rate, WHO vs. UNODC was 5.76 homicides per 100,000 population in 2023. ▼ Falling

Latest (2023)
5.76 homicides per 100,000 population
Change on year
down 11.5%
World rank
56th
of 179 countries
All-time high
9.63 homicides per 100,000 population
in 1991
All-time low
4.38 homicides per 100,000 population
in 2014
Years of data
31
1990–2023

Homicide rate, WHO vs. UNODC in United States, 1990–2023

02468101990200620231990: 9.3 homicides per 100,000 population1991: 9.6 homicides per 100,000 population1992: 9.2 homicides per 100,000 population1993: 9.3 homicides per 100,000 population1994: 8.8 homicides per 100,000 population1995: 8.1 homicides per 100,000 population1996: 7.3 homicides per 100,000 population1997: 6.7 homicides per 100,000 population1998: 6.1 homicides per 100,000 population1999: 5.6 homicides per 100,000 population2000: 5.5 homicides per 100,000 population2001: 6.7 homicides per 100,000 population2002: 5.7 homicides per 100,000 population2006: 5.8 homicides per 100,000 population2007: 5.7 homicides per 100,000 population2008: 5.4 homicides per 100,000 population2009: 5 homicides per 100,000 population2010: 4.7 homicides per 100,000 population2011: 4.7 homicides per 100,000 population2012: 4.7 homicides per 100,000 population2013: 4.5 homicides per 100,000 population2014: 4.4 homicides per 100,000 population2015: 4.9 homicides per 100,000 population2016: 5.3 homicides per 100,000 population2017: 5.2 homicides per 100,000 population2018: 4.9 homicides per 100,000 population2019: 4.9 homicides per 100,000 population2020: 6.4 homicides per 100,000 population2021: 6.8 homicides per 100,000 population2022: 6.5 homicides per 100,000 population2023: 5.8 homicides per 100,000 population

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

United States recorded 5.76 homicides per 100,000 population for homicide rate, who vs. unodc in 2023.

That represents a change of down 11.5% on the previous year and up 28.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, homicide rate, who vs. unodc in United States peaked at 9.63 homicides per 100,000 population in 1991 and was at its lowest, 4.38 homicides per 100,000 population, in 2014.

That places United States 56th out of 179 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 31 years of available data.

Homicide rate, WHO vs. UNODC in United States, year by year

Year homicides per 100,000 population Change
1990 9.25 homicides per 100,000 population —
1991 9.63 homicides per 100,000 population +4.1%
1992 9.15 homicides per 100,000 population -5.0%
1993 9.34 homicides per 100,000 population +2.0%
1994 8.79 homicides per 100,000 population -5.9%
1995 8.06 homicides per 100,000 population -8.3%
1996 7.25 homicides per 100,000 population -10.0%
1997 6.66 homicides per 100,000 population -8.2%
1998 6.15 homicides per 100,000 population -7.7%
1999 5.57 homicides per 100,000 population -9.4%
2000 5.54 homicides per 100,000 population -0.6%
2001 6.7 homicides per 100,000 population +20.9%
2002 5.65 homicides per 100,000 population -15.6%
2006 5.79 homicides per 100,000 population +2.5%
2007 5.67 homicides per 100,000 population -2.1%
2008 5.4 homicides per 100,000 population -4.9%
2009 5 homicides per 100,000 population -7.4%
2010 4.73 homicides per 100,000 population -5.3%
2011 4.67 homicides per 100,000 population -1.4%
2012 4.68 homicides per 100,000 population +0.4%
2013 4.47 homicides per 100,000 population -4.5%
2014 4.38 homicides per 100,000 population -2.0%
2015 4.87 homicides per 100,000 population +11.1%
2016 5.29 homicides per 100,000 population +8.6%
2017 5.21 homicides per 100,000 population -1.6%
2018 4.89 homicides per 100,000 population -6.1%
2019 4.93 homicides per 100,000 population +1.0%
2020 6.35 homicides per 100,000 population +28.8%
2021 6.78 homicides per 100,000 population +6.7%
2022 6.51 homicides per 100,000 population -3.9%
2023 5.76 homicides per 100,000 population -11.5%

United States compared with similar countries

  • United States's 5.76 homicides per 100,000 population is above the median for high income countries, which is 1.12 homicides per 100,000 population, 5.1× the median. (76 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 7.98 homicides per 100,000 population 5.57 homicides per 100,000 population 9.63 homicides per 100,000 population 10
2000s 5.68 homicides per 100,000 population 5 homicides per 100,000 population 6.7 homicides per 100,000 population 7
2010s 4.81 homicides per 100,000 population 4.38 homicides per 100,000 population 5.29 homicides per 100,000 population 10
2020s 6.35 homicides per 100,000 population 5.76 homicides per 100,000 population 6.78 homicides per 100,000 population 4

Countries ranked near United States

  1. 53 Samoa 6.26 homicides per 100,000 population compare
  2. 54 Bermuda 6.18 homicides per 100,000 population compare
  3. 55 Yemen 5.81 homicides per 100,000 population compare
  4. 57 Guadeloupe 5.68 homicides per 100,000 population compare
  5. 58 Burundi 5.65 homicides per 100,000 population compare
  6. 59 Mongolia 5.64 homicides per 100,000 population compare

See the full ranking of 179 places →

More social development data for United States

All data for United States →

Frequently asked questions

What is homicide rate, who vs. unodc in United States?
Homicide rate, who vs. unodc in United States was 5.76 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, who vs. unodc recorded in United States?
The highest recorded value was 9.63 homicides per 100,000 population in 1991.
What is the lowest homicide rate, who vs. unodc recorded in United States?
The lowest recorded value was 4.38 homicides per 100,000 population in 2014.
How does United States rank for homicide rate, who vs. unodc?
United States ranks 56th out of 179 countries with data for 2023.
Is homicide rate, who vs. unodc rising or falling in United States?
Over the last ten years it is up 28.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this United States 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, WHO vs. UNODC. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Homicide rate, WHO vs. UNODC in United States. Statizoid, drawing on UN, World Population Prospects (2024); United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Retrieved 23 October 2026, from https://social-development.statizoid.com/stat/homicide-rate-who-vs-unodc/united-states/

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About this data

Indicator
Homicide rate, WHO vs. UNODC
Unit
homicides per 100,000 population
Source
UN, World Population Prospects (2024); United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
179 places, 4,154 data points, 1990–2024
Last refreshed

Intentional homicide rate per 100,000 population.