Homicides in El Salvador
El Salvador: Homicides was 496 homicides in 2022. ▼ Falling
Latest (2022)
496 homicides
Change on year
down 54.3%
World rank
59th
of 179 countries
All-time high
7,977 homicides
in 1995
All-time low
496 homicides
in 2022
Years of data
29
1994–2022
Homicides in El Salvador, 1994–2022
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.
Analysis
El Salvador recorded 496 homicides for homicides in 2022. That is the lowest value across all 29 years on record.
The figure is down 54.3% on the previous year and down 80.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, homicides in El Salvador peaked at 7,977 homicides in 1995 and was at its lowest, 496 homicides, in 2022.
That places El Salvador 59th out of 179 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 29 years of available data.
Homicides in El Salvador, year by year
| Year | homicides | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | 7,673 homicides | — |
| 1995 | 7,977 homicides | +4.0% |
| 1996 | 6,792 homicides | -14.9% |
| 1997 | 6,573 homicides | -3.2% |
| 1998 | 5,584 homicides | -15.0% |
| 1999 | 3,845 homicides | -31.1% |
| 2000 | 3,551 homicides | -7.6% |
| 2001 | 3,590 homicides | +1.1% |
| 2002 | 2,835 homicides | -21.0% |
| 2003 | 3,356 homicides | +18.4% |
| 2004 | 3,897 homicides | +16.1% |
| 2005 | 3,882 homicides | -0.4% |
| 2006 | 3,927 homicides | +1.2% |
| 2007 | 3,497 homicides | -10.9% |
| 2008 | 3,179 homicides | -9.1% |
| 2009 | 4,382 homicides | +37.8% |
| 2010 | 3,987 homicides | -9.0% |
| 2011 | 4,371 homicides | +9.6% |
| 2012 | 2,594 homicides | -40.7% |
| 2013 | 2,513 homicides | -3.1% |
| 2014 | 3,921 homicides | +56.0% |
| 2015 | 6,656 homicides | +69.8% |
| 2016 | 5,276 homicides | -20.7% |
| 2017 | 3,962 homicides | -24.9% |
| 2018 | 3,346 homicides | -15.5% |
| 2019 | 2,398 homicides | -28.3% |
| 2020 | 1,341 homicides | -44.1% |
| 2021 | 1,085 homicides | -19.1% |
| 2022 | 496 homicides | -54.3% |
El Salvador compared with similar countries
- El Salvador's 496 homicides is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 241.5 homicides, 2.1× the median. (52 countries reporting)
- El Salvador's 496 homicides is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 489 homicides, 1.0× the median. (41 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 6,407 homicides | 3,845 homicides | 7,977 homicides | 6 |
| 2000s | 3,610 homicides | 2,835 homicides | 4,382 homicides | 10 |
| 2010s | 3,902 homicides | 2,398 homicides | 6,656 homicides | 10 |
| 2020s | 974 homicides | 496 homicides | 1,341 homicides | 3 |
Countries ranked near El Salvador
- 56 Panama 522 homicides compare
- 57 Kazakhstan 511 homicides compare
- 58 Cuba 500 homicides compare
- 60 Puerto Rico 489 homicides compare
- 61 Uzbekistan 479 homicides compare
- 62 Rwanda 472 homicides compare
More social development data for El Salvador
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 182 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 68,182 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 5 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 0 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 5 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0107 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 68,182 (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 homicides in El Salvador?
- Homicides in El Salvador was 496 homicides in 2022, 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 homicides recorded in El Salvador?
- The highest recorded value was 7,977 homicides in 1995.
- What is the lowest homicides recorded in El Salvador?
- The lowest recorded value was 496 homicides in 2022.
- How does El Salvador rank for homicides?
- El Salvador ranks 59th out of 179 countries with data for 2022.
- Is homicides rising or falling in El Salvador?
- Over the last ten years it is down 80.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this El Salvador 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 Homicides. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Number of intentional homicides.