Homicides in Canada
Canada: Homicides was 306 deaths in 2022. ▲ Rising
Homicides in Canada, 1950–2022
Source: WHO Mortality Database (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in deaths.
Analysis
The most recent figure for homicides in Canada is 306 deaths, measured in 2022.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 29.0% on the previous year and down 37.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, homicides in Canada peaked at 622 deaths in 1991 and was at its lowest, 129 deaths, in 1950.
That places Canada 32nd out of 113 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 73 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 165.4 deaths | 129 deaths | 201 deaths | 10 |
| 1960s | 275.4 deaths | 217 deaths | 381 deaths | 10 |
| 1970s | 546.2 deaths | 433 deaths | 613 deaths | 10 |
| 1980s | 547.3 deaths | 487 deaths | 592 deaths | 10 |
| 1990s | 515.7 deaths | 431 deaths | 622 deaths | 10 |
| 2000s | 508.1 deaths | 447 deaths | 576 deaths | 10 |
| 2010s | 478.8 deaths | 396 deaths | 531 deaths | 10 |
| 2020s | 432 deaths | 306 deaths | 559 deaths | 3 |
Countries ranked near Canada
More social development data for Canada
- Political Rights Rating 1 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of asy 416,028 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of ori 360 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Key features of democracy 0.84 (2025)
- Freedom of Expression Index 0.933 (2025)
- Freedom of Association Index 0.865 (2025)
- Electoral Democracy Index 0.84 (2025)
- Participatory Democracy Index 0.589 (2025)
- Liberal Democracy Index 0.736 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is homicides in Canada?
- Homicides in Canada was 306 deaths in 2022, according to WHO Mortality Database (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest homicides recorded in Canada?
- The highest recorded value was 622 deaths in 1991.
- What is the lowest homicides recorded in Canada?
- The lowest recorded value was 129 deaths in 1950.
- How does Canada rank for homicides?
- Canada ranks 32nd out of 113 countries with data for 2022.
- Is homicides rising or falling in Canada?
- Over the last ten years it is down 37.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Canada data come from?
- The figures come from WHO Mortality Database (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 — 73 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Annual number of homicides.