Homicides in Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico: Homicides was 489 homicides in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
489 homicides
Change on year
up 3.4%
World rank
60th
of 179 countries
All-time high
1,179 homicides
in 2011
All-time low
473 homicides
in 2023
Years of data
35
1990–2024

Homicides in Puerto Rico, 1990–2024

02505007501.0k1.2k1990200720241990: 600 homicides1991: 817 homicides1992: 864 homicides1993: 954 homicides1994: 995 homicides1995: 864 homicides1996: 868 homicides1997: 724 homicides1998: 652 homicides1999: 593 homicides2000: 734 homicides2001: 802 homicides2002: 820 homicides2003: 818 homicides2004: 843 homicides2005: 825 homicides2006: 783 homicides2007: 774 homicides2008: 874 homicides2009: 956 homicides2010: 1.0k homicides2011: 1.2k homicides2012: 1.0k homicides2013: 924 homicides2014: 704 homicides2015: 614 homicides2016: 704 homicides2017: 728 homicides2018: 664 homicides2019: 633 homicides2020: 556 homicides2021: 632 homicides2022: 572 homicides2023: 473 homicides2024: 489 homicides

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 2024, homicides in Puerto Rico stood at 489 homicides.

The figure is up 3.4% on the previous year and down 30.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, homicides in Puerto Rico peaked at 1,179 homicides in 2011 and was at its lowest, 473 homicides, in 2023.

Puerto Rico ranks 60th of 179 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 35 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 793.1 homicides 593 homicides 995 homicides 10
2000s 822.9 homicides 734 homicides 956 homicides 10
2010s 819.5 homicides 614 homicides 1,179 homicides 10
2020s 544.4 homicides 473 homicides 632 homicides 5

Countries ranked near Puerto Rico

  1. 57 Kazakhstan 511 homicides compare
  2. 58 Cuba 500 homicides compare
  3. 59 El Salvador 496 homicides compare
  4. 61 Uzbekistan 479 homicides compare
  5. 62 Rwanda 472 homicides compare
  6. 63 Paraguay 464 homicides compare

See the full ranking of 179 places →

More social development data for Puerto Rico

All data for Puerto Rico →

Frequently asked questions

What is homicides in Puerto Rico?
Homicides in Puerto Rico was 489 homicides in 2024, 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 Puerto Rico?
The highest recorded value was 1,179 homicides in 2011.
What is the lowest homicides recorded in Puerto Rico?
The lowest recorded value was 473 homicides in 2023.
How does Puerto Rico rank for homicides?
Puerto Rico ranks 60th out of 179 countries with data for 2024.
Is homicides rising or falling in Puerto Rico?
Over the last ten years it is down 30.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Puerto Rico 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.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 35 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Homicides
Unit
homicides
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

Number of intentional homicides.