Homicides in Spain
Spain: Homicides was 244.78 deaths in 2021. ▼ Falling
Homicides in Spain, 2000–2021
Source: World Health Organization (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in deaths.
Analysis
Spain recorded 244.78 deaths for homicides in 2021. That is the lowest value across all 22 years on record.
The figure is down 4.2% on the previous year and down 36.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, homicides in Spain peaked at 597.85 deaths in 2003 and was at its lowest, 244.78 deaths, in 2021.
Spain ranks 104th of 194 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 22 years of available data.
Homicides in Spain, year by year
| Year | deaths | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 561.43 deaths | — |
| 2001 | 587.51 deaths | +4.6% |
| 2002 | 573.36 deaths | -2.4% |
| 2003 | 597.85 deaths | +4.3% |
| 2004 | 527.1 deaths | -11.8% |
| 2005 | 524.27 deaths | -0.5% |
| 2006 | 480.99 deaths | -8.3% |
| 2007 | 488.57 deaths | +1.6% |
| 2008 | 431.32 deaths | -11.7% |
| 2009 | 403.62 deaths | -6.4% |
| 2010 | 395.1 deaths | -2.1% |
| 2011 | 387.78 deaths | -1.9% |
| 2012 | 363.99 deaths | -6.1% |
| 2013 | 345.25 deaths | -5.1% |
| 2014 | 329.36 deaths | -4.6% |
| 2015 | 297.79 deaths | -9.6% |
| 2016 | 294.27 deaths | -1.2% |
| 2017 | 324.52 deaths | +10.3% |
| 2018 | 274.71 deaths | -15.3% |
| 2019 | 261.57 deaths | -4.8% |
| 2020 | 255.47 deaths | -2.3% |
| 2021 | 244.78 deaths | -4.2% |
Spain compared with similar countries
- Spain's 244.78 deaths is above the median for high income countries, which is 71.2 deaths, 3.4× the median. (63 countries reporting)
- Spain's 244.78 deaths is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 100.82 deaths, 2.4× the median. (51 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 517.6 deaths | 403.62 deaths | 597.85 deaths | 10 |
| 2010s | 327.43 deaths | 261.57 deaths | 395.1 deaths | 10 |
| 2020s | 250.12 deaths | 244.78 deaths | 255.47 deaths | 2 |
Countries ranked near Spain
More social development data for Spain
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 511,079 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 186 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 1 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 1 (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 186 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0104 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 Spain?
- Homicides in Spain was 244.78 deaths in 2021, according to World Health Organization (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest homicides recorded in Spain?
- The highest recorded value was 597.85 deaths in 2003.
- What is the lowest homicides recorded in Spain?
- The lowest recorded value was 244.78 deaths in 2021.
- How does Spain rank for homicides?
- Spain ranks 104th out of 194 countries with data for 2021.
- Is homicides rising or falling in Spain?
- Over the last ten years it is down 36.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Spain data come from?
- The figures come from World Health Organization (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Homicides. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 22 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Estimated number of deaths from interpersonal violence in both sexes.