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Murder rate by state, 2025
Homicide is the most consistently reported crime, which makes it the most comparable crime measure between states.
Data vintage: FBI Crime in the Nation 2025 estimates (released Aug 2026). Last checked 2026-10-27 by The CompareTheData team.
Data: FBI Crime Data Explorer. Jump to sources · Methodology
Key takeaways
- The U.S. recorded about 14,085 murders in 2025, a rate of 4.1 per 100,000 (2024: 17,206; 5.1).
- Highest murder rates among states: Louisiana (8.7), New Mexico (8.6) and Alabama (8.5).
- Lowest: New Hampshire (1.2), Hawaii (1.2) and Maine (1.4).
- The rate fell in 45 jurisdictions from 2024.
Murder rate by state chart
Murder rate by state, ranked
Click a column heading to sort. Rates are per 100,000 residents; murders are estimated totals. Download this table (CSV).
| Rank | State | Murder rate 2025 | Murders 2025 | Rate 2024 | Change | Rate 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | District of Columbia | 16.7 | 116 | 25.8 | −9.1 | 23.4 |
| 2 | Louisiana | 8.7 | 404 | 10.5 | −1.8 | 11.7 |
| 3 | New Mexico | 8.6 | 182 | 10.6 | −2.0 | 8.8 |
| 4 | Alabama | 8.5 | 444 | 9.2 | −0.7 | 7.9 |
| 5 | Missouri | 7.1 | 443 | 7.9 | −0.8 | 9.4 |
| 6 | Mississippi | 7.1 | 209 | 7.0 | +0.1 | 10.0 |
| 7 | Tennessee | 6.5 | 473 | 8.1 | −1.6 | 7.5 |
| 8 | North Carolina | 6.5 | 723 | 7.6 | −1.1 | 6.2 |
| 9 | South Carolina | 6.4 | 355 | 7.8 | −1.4 | 8.8 |
| 10 | Arkansas | 6.3 | 196 | 7.6 | −1.3 | 7.8 |
| 11 | Alaska | 6.1 | 45 | 6.9 | −0.8 | 9.4 |
| 12 | Georgia | 5.6 | 629 | 6.9 | −1.3 | 5.7 |
| 13 | Maryland | 5.3 | 329 | 7.4 | −2.1 | 9.0 |
| 14 | Oklahoma | 4.9 | 204 | 6.3 | −1.4 | 6.9 |
| 15 | Kansas | 4.8 | 142 | 3.9 | +0.9 | 3.3 |
| 16 | Nevada | 4.8 | 157 | 6.4 | −1.6 | 4.7 |
| 17 | Texas | 4.6 | 1,465 | 5.3 | −0.7 | 4.9 |
| 18 | Arizona | 4.5 | 343 | 5.4 | −0.9 | 5.4 |
| 19 | Ohio | 4.5 | 530 | 5.2 | −0.7 | 5.0 |
| 20 | Michigan | 4.4 | 442 | 4.9 | −0.5 | 5.8 |
| 21 | Illinois | 4.4 | 556 | 5.9 | −1.5 | 6.7 |
| 22 | Pennsylvania | 4.2 | 543 | 5.2 | −1.0 | 5.3 |
| 23 | Virginia | 4.2 | 369 | 5.0 | −0.8 | 5.2 |
| 24 | Delaware | 4.1 | 43 | 5.8 | −1.7 | 4.8 |
| 25 | Wisconsin | 3.9 | 235 | 4.3 | −0.4 | 3.2 |
| 26 | Indiana | 3.8 | 266 | 5.9 | −2.1 | 5.5 |
| 27 | West Virginia | 3.8 | 67 | 6.0 | −2.2 | 5.6 |
| 28 | Colorado | 3.6 | 219 | 4.6 | −1.0 | 4.0 |
| 29 | California | 3.5 | 1,370 | 4.2 | −0.7 | 4.3 |
| 30 | Florida | 3.2 | 748 | 4.0 | −0.8 | 5.2 |
| 31 | South Dakota | 3.0 | 28 | 4.3 | −1.3 | 1.8 |
| 32 | Oregon | 2.9 | 124 | 3.8 | −0.9 | 2.8 |
| 33 | Washington | 2.9 | 233 | 3.8 | −0.9 | 2.7 |
| 34 | Kentucky | 2.8 | 127 | 6.4 | −3.6 | 5.1 |
| 35 | Wyoming | 2.7 | 16 | 2.4 | +0.3 | 2.2 |
| 36 | Montana | 2.6 | 30 | 3.1 | −0.5 | 3.0 |
| 37 | Utah | 2.6 | 93 | 2.7 | −0.1 | 2.4 |
| 38 | New York | 2.4 | 473 | 3.0 | −0.6 | 2.9 |
| 39 | Nebraska | 2.3 | 46 | 2.2 | +0.1 | 2.3 |
| 40 | Minnesota | 2.2 | 129 | 3.0 | −0.8 | 2.3 |
| 41 | Idaho | 2.1 | 42 | 1.7 | +0.4 | 1.6 |
| 42 | New Jersey | 1.9 | 178 | 2.4 | −0.5 | 3.0 |
| 43 | Connecticut | 1.9 | 70 | 2.4 | −0.5 | 3.0 |
| 44 | Rhode Island | 1.7 | 19 | 2.1 | −0.4 | 2.5 |
| 45 | Iowa | 1.6 | 52 | 2.3 | −0.7 | 2.2 |
| 46 | Vermont | 1.6 | 10 | 3.5 | −1.9 | 1.8 |
| 47 | North Dakota | 1.5 | 12 | 2.5 | −1.0 | 3.3 |
| 48 | Massachusetts | 1.4 | 102 | 1.8 | −0.4 | 2.2 |
| 49 | Maine | 1.4 | 20 | 2.3 | −0.9 | 1.6 |
| 50 | Hawaii | 1.2 | 17 | 2.4 | −1.2 | 2.6 |
| 51 | New Hampshire | 1.2 | 17 | 1.0 | +0.2 | 2.4 |
What changed since 2024
Largest declines: District of Columbia (−9.1), Kentucky (−3.6) and West Virginia (−2.2). 39 jurisdictions are now below their 2019 rate. In small states, a handful of cases can move the rate sharply.
How to read these numbers
- Counts are FBI estimates and include nonnegligent manslaughter.
- CDC death-certificate data report a somewhat different homicide total because definitions and sources differ.
- The FBI cautions against ranking places on its data alone.
Common questions
Which state has the highest murder rate?
Louisiana (8.7 per 100,000 in 2025). D.C., not a state, was 16.7.
Which state has the lowest murder rate?
New Hampshire (1.2 per 100,000).
What is the US murder rate?
4.1 per 100,000 in 2025 (FBI estimate).
Sources
Figures computed by CompareTheData.com from the official files below; the raw downloads are archived with the build. Where D.C. is included it is ranked alongside the states.
- FBI, Crime in the Nation 2025 (CIUS estimation tables 1, 4 and 5), Crime Data Explorer. 2025 data, tables dated Aug 3, 2026.