Which are the safest Latin American countries? Three measures across the region

One region, three yardsticks, and what is left out

The Global Peace Index ranks 163 independent states using 23 indicators in three domains, and gives a lower score to more peaceful countries. It measures the absence of violence and includes conflict and militarisation, so a country can fall in the rankings for reasons that a visitor in a quiet town would not notice. Wikipedia lists its limits: eight indicators are qualitative, critics say it omits positive peace and structural violence, and most data are from 2025 or earlier. A single national score also cannot show variation inside a country.

Homicide rates come from the UNODC-based table on Wikipedia. They are the most comparable crime statistic, but the years differ and definitions vary. Gallup's Law and Order Index is a survey of residents: whether they feel safe walking alone at night, trust their local police, and have been robbed or assaulted.

Wikipedia's article on crime in Latin America, which carries its own warning about missing citations and dated figures, says the region has about 9 per cent of the world's population and, citing the Financial Times, about 40 per cent of the world's murders. Treat that as context only: the article itself says several statistics lack citations or use different years.

Peace Index ranks from Uruguay to Haiti

In the 2026 edition as listed on Wikipedia, Uruguay is the highest-placed of the countries we checked at 43rd, followed by Chile at 52nd, Costa Rica at 62nd, Paraguay at 64th, Jamaica at 70th and Argentina at 72nd. Trinidad and Tobago is 79th, Panama 81st, Guatemala 88th, the Dominican Republic 89th and Bolivia 92nd.

The lower half runs from Honduras at 97th and Nicaragua at 106th through Peru at 107th, Cuba at 109th, El Salvador at 121st and Brazil at 124th, to Venezuela at 133rd, Ecuador at 135th, Mexico at 139th, Colombia at 141st and Haiti at 142nd, tied with Nigeria. Mexico rose four places on the year, while Venezuela, Ecuador, Colombia and Haiti fell.

The index says little about daily life for a visitor. It is better as a measure of how peaceful a country is as a whole, including organised crime, political conflict and military spending.

Homicide rates: a spread of nearly twenty times between the extremes

The UNODC-based table shows how wide the spread is. Among the countries we checked, the table gives El Salvador 3.297 intentional homicides per 100,000, Bolivia 3.649 and Argentina 3.943 for 2024, and Cuba 4.463 for 2019. Chile is at 6.107 and Paraguay 6.884 for 2024, and Peru 8.605 for 2021. At the other end, Ecuador is 38.940, Jamaica 40.364, Trinidad and Tobago 41.518 and Haiti 64.336.

The ordering differs from the peace index in revealing ways. Uruguay is first in peace rank but has a rate of 11.280, higher than Argentina or Chile. Costa Rica ranks 62nd for peace but its 2024 rate is 17.115. Panama, 81st for peace, has 12.778. Peace Index rank and homicide rate measure different things, so both can be true at once.

Wikipedia's homicide article cites InSight Crime studies saying the 2024 study ranked the Turks and Caicos Islands highest in Latin America and the Caribbean, followed by Haiti and St Kitts and Nevis, while its 2025 report said the regional rate declined, with Haiti highest, then Turks and Caicos, Ecuador, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Saint Lucia. Small island populations make rates volatile.

El Salvador, Chile and Ecuador: when the three measures pull apart

El Salvador shows the problem most clearly. InSight Crime reports that Gallup scored it 89 in the Law and Order Index, the highest in Latin America, with 88 per cent of Salvadorans saying they feel safe walking alone at night, which InSight Crime calls a historical record. Its homicide rate has fallen sharply: Wikipedia's article on crime in El Salvador gives 18.1 per 100,000 in 2021 and 1.9 in 2024, while the separate homicide table shows 3.297 for 2024, a reminder that sources differ. Yet the Peace Index places El Salvador 121st. Wikipedia also links a gang crackdown that began in March 2022 to the world's highest incarceration rate, at 1,086 per 100,000 in 2023, and notes that earlier hardline policies were criticised for rights violations. A very low homicide rate and a low peace rank can both be accurate.

Chile goes the other way. It is 52nd in the Peace Index with a homicide rate of 6.107, but InSight Crime says Gallup scored it 68, below the global average, with only 36 per cent feeling safe walking at night, a sharp drop from earlier years. Ecuador scores worst on perception: Gallup's 2024 figure was 55, with only 27 per cent feeling safe, and 11 per cent in Guayas province. That matches its 2024 homicide rate of 38.940 and its 135th place.

The lesson is to avoid relying on one number. Where official statistics and residents' experience diverge, both deserve a look. If you are choosing a base, Santiago, Panama City and Buenos Aires each have more detailed pages.

How safe do residents say they feel? Gallup's regional picture

Gallup's Law and Order Index reports scores out of 100 and covers more than 140 countries and territories. InSight Crime's reading of the 2024 report says Latin America and the Caribbean still has the worst citizen perception of security of any region, although it has improved over the past three years.

Within the region, El Salvador, Uruguay, Guatemala, Honduras, Paraguay and the Dominican Republic improved in that report, while Chile, Argentina, Colombia, Peru and Ecuador saw their scores fall. Venezuela and Mexico kept their rankings. Haiti is not in the index, so the survey leaves out the country with the highest homicide rate in our table.

These are perceptions and experiences of residents, not tourists. A survey of people who live somewhere cannot tell you what a short visit will be like, but it is a useful check on official statistics.

The Caribbean and Mexico: resort geography against national averages

Caribbean countries combine very different situations. Jamaica is 70th in the Peace Index but has a homicide rate of 40.364, Trinidad and Tobago 79th and 41.518, the Dominican Republic 89th and 9.118, Cuba 109th and 4.463 for 2019, and Haiti 142nd and 64.336. Cuba's figure is old, and Wikipedia's article warns that homicide rates may be under-reported for political reasons in some countries.

Mexico is 139th, with a rate of 25.638. It is a large country, and Wikipedia's crime-in-Latin-America article illustrates the point with a local example: it reports 3,622 homicides in Ciudad Juarez alone in 2010. Averages for countries as large as Mexico or Brazil, 124th with 18.691, say little about a particular coast or city, and the national statistics do not separate resort zones from industrial or border districts.

If you are looking at Mexico City, Ocho Rios or the Dominican Republic, read each place's own local information and your government's current advice rather than the national rank. Resort-style stays are explained in countries with all-inclusive resorts.

Putting the region-wide numbers to work

Use national rankings to shortlist, then narrow by city. Our overview of best South American countries for expats looks at the continent on other measures, and best countries for surfing covers surf coasts, some of them in Latin America.

Safety is one factor in an apartment choice, and the same country ranking does not tell you about a building. Check the listing for entry arrangements and reception hours, ask the operator about the area, and read recent local news. Countries with best healthcare for expats covers a separate concern for longer stays.

Every figure in this guide is annual or older, and conditions change faster than indexes. Always read official government travel advice for the specific country before you book.

• Use the Peace Index for national peace, not for what a district is like.
• Use homicide rates for a narrow comparison, noting the year of each figure.
• Use Gallup's Law and Order Index for how residents say they feel.
• Check government travel advice and local news before you book anywhere.