Homicides (UN, World) in Jamaica
Jamaica: Homicides (UN, World) was 1,404 homicides in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
1,404 homicides
Change on year
down 6.9%
World rank
29th
of 179 countries
All-time high
1,683 homicides
in 2009
All-time low
544 homicides
in 1990
Years of data
34
1990–2023
Homicides 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.
Analysis
In 2023, homicides in Jamaica stood at 1,404 homicides.
That represents a change of down 6.9% on the previous year and up 16.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, homicides in Jamaica peaked at 1,683 homicides in 2009 and was at its lowest, 544 homicides, in 1990.
Jamaica ranks 29th of 179 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 34 years of available data.
Homicides (UN, World) in Jamaica, year by year
| Year | homicides | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 544 homicides | — |
| 1991 | 566 homicides | +4.0% |
| 1992 | 632 homicides | +11.7% |
| 1993 | 657 homicides | +4.0% |
| 1994 | 692 homicides | +5.3% |
| 1995 | 780 homicides | +12.7% |
| 1996 | 925 homicides | +18.6% |
| 1997 | 1,038 homicides | +12.2% |
| 1998 | 859 homicides | -17.2% |
| 1999 | 854 homicides | -0.6% |
| 2000 | 887 homicides | +3.9% |
| 2001 | 1,139 homicides | +28.4% |
| 2002 | 1,045 homicides | -8.3% |
| 2003 | 975 homicides | -6.7% |
| 2004 | 1,471 homicides | +50.9% |
| 2005 | 1,674 homicides | +13.8% |
| 2006 | 1,340 homicides | -20.0% |
| 2007 | 1,584 homicides | +18.2% |
| 2008 | 1,619 homicides | +2.2% |
| 2009 | 1,683 homicides | +4.0% |
| 2010 | 1,447 homicides | -14.0% |
| 2011 | 1,133 homicides | -21.7% |
| 2012 | 1,102 homicides | -2.7% |
| 2013 | 1,202 homicides | +9.1% |
| 2014 | 1,005 homicides | -16.4% |
| 2015 | 1,209 homicides | +20.3% |
| 2016 | 1,354 homicides | +12.0% |
| 2017 | 1,647 homicides | +21.6% |
| 2018 | 1,289 homicides | -21.7% |
| 2019 | 1,340 homicides | +4.0% |
| 2020 | 1,333 homicides | -0.5% |
| 2021 | 1,474 homicides | +10.6% |
| 2022 | 1,508 homicides | +2.3% |
| 2023 | 1,404 homicides | -6.9% |
Jamaica compared with similar countries
- Jamaica's 1,404 homicides is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 241.5 homicides, 5.8× the median. (52 countries reporting)
- Jamaica's 1,404 homicides is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 489 homicides, 2.9× the median. (41 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 754.7 homicides | 544 homicides | 1,038 homicides | 10 |
| 2000s | 1,342 homicides | 887 homicides | 1,683 homicides | 10 |
| 2010s | 1,273 homicides | 1,005 homicides | 1,647 homicides | 10 |
| 2020s | 1,430 homicides | 1,333 homicides | 1,508 homicides | 4 |
Countries ranked near Jamaica
More social development data for Jamaica
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 31 (2022)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 2,642 (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 0.0009 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 2,642 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per person (2022)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per US$ of GDP (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is homicides in Jamaica?
- Homicides in Jamaica was 1,404 homicides 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 homicides recorded in Jamaica?
- The highest recorded value was 1,683 homicides in 2009.
- What is the lowest homicides recorded in Jamaica?
- The lowest recorded value was 544 homicides in 1990.
- How does Jamaica rank for homicides?
- Jamaica ranks 29th out of 179 countries with data for 2023.
- Is homicides rising or falling in Jamaica?
- Over the last ten years it is up 16.8%. 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 Homicides. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Number of intentional homicides.