Is Laredo safe?
United States · North America · data updated 2026-09-04
Laredo is a city in United States, home to about 250k people, and one of 6,168 cities worldwide ranked on this site from published safety data. It currently ranks 4,238 of 6,168, with a safety score of 62.5 out of 100 - comfortably in the safer part of the ranking.
Emergency 911 (ambulance, fire, police)
Deadliest recorded locations nearby
- Nuevo Laredo6 deaths · 2 events
- nuevo laredo5 deaths · 1 event
- Las Encinas neighborhood, Nuevo Laredo5 deaths · 1 event
UCDP-recorded organized-violence deaths within 100 km of Laredo, 2022-2024, at the locations the source itself names. Conflict deaths, not street crime.
How safe is Laredo really?
The most direct evidence is measured in the city itself: Laredo recorded 2.3 homicides per 100,000 residents in 2024 - close to the global city median. United States's income inequality is middling (Gini 41.8) - in this dataset inequality predicts city violence better than any other structural factor, so this neither raises nor lowers the picture much.
Laredo also carries some conflict exposure: UCDP recorded 16 deaths from organized violence within 100 km across 4 events in 2022-2024 - a factor crime statistics alone would miss. The deadliest recorded locations in that radius were Nuevo Laredo (6 deaths), nuevo laredo (5 deaths), Las Encinas neighborhood, Nuevo Laredo (5 deaths).
What the travel advisories say
The UK Foreign Office publishes travel advice for United States without any avoid-travel warning in force. Both advisories are country-level: no official source publishes verified neighborhood-level crime guidance for individual cities, which is why this page reports named areas only where an official source names them.
What to watch out for in United States
Terrorism in the USA · Protecting your belongings · Violent crime · Protests · Personal ID · Alcohol laws · Illegal drugs · LGBT+ travellers · Road travel · Vehicle safety · Petrol stations · Air travel · Snowstorms · Hurricanes · +6 more
Topic headings from the official UK FCDO travel advice for United States — country-level, not specific to Laredo. Read what each one says →
The numbers
- Homicide rate
- 2.3 /100kcity-measured, 2024
- Conflict deaths
- 16within 100 km, 2022-2024 (UCDP)
- Income inequality
- Gini 41.8country, 2024
- Human development
- HDI 0.938country, 2023
- Income
- $89,490/yrGNI per capita PPP · context only, not scored
- Population
- 250kurban centre · 3,203/km²
Country context for travelers
- Road deaths
- 12.7 /100kWHO, 2019 · often the biggest real travel risk
- Political stability
- 64/100World Bank WGI, 2024 · higher = more stable
- Rule of law
- 74/100World Bank WGI, 2024 · police and courts reliability
- Corruption perceptions
- 64/100Transparency International, 2025 · higher = cleaner
- Natural-hazard risk
- 3.3/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Women, Peace & Security
- 0.84Georgetown WPS Index, 2025 · 0-1, higher = better
- Air quality
- 7.0 µg/m³PM2.5 annual mean, 2023 · WHO guideline is 5
- Safely managed drinking water
- 98%of the population, 2024 · WHO/UNICEF JMP
- Healthcare capacity
- 3.7 doctors /1k2.7 hospital beds per 1,000
Natural hazards in United States
- Earthquake
- 7.7/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Cyclone
- 7.7/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Flood
- 7.4/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Tsunami
- 7.2/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Drought
- 4.2/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
Hazard types scoring under 1 out of 10 are not listed. These describe United States as a whole, not Laredo specifically.
Same-sex sexual activity is legal in United States (as of 2025).
All country-level figures shared by every city in United States; none of them affect the safety score.
How the score works
One fixed, calibrated mix for every city: 40% homicide · 25% peace · 25% equality · 10% HDI. Homicide and conflict deaths are measured outcomes; income inequality carries the structural share because it predicts real city violence far better than national income (which is shown above but scored at zero). Each factor maps to 0-100 against fixed anchors, missing data drops out and is never estimated, and cities with data behind less than half the weighting get “no data” instead of a score. For Laredo that gives 62.5/100. Full methodology, anchors and sources →
Laredo compared with Reynosa
| Measure | Laredo | Reynosa | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Safety score | 62.5 | 46.5 | +16.0 — better for Laredo |
| Homicide ratecity-measured where published, otherwise the national rate | 2.3 /100k | 15 /100k | −13 /100k — better for Laredo |
| Conflict deaths within 100 km | 16 | 21 | −5 — better for Laredo |
| Income inequality (Gini) | 41.8 | 42.6 | −0.8 — better for Laredo |
| Human development (HDI) | 0.938 | 0.789 | +0.149 — better for Laredo |
| Road deaths | 12.7 /100k | 12.8 /100k | −0.1 /100k — better for Laredo |
| Rule of law | 74/100 | 37/100 | +37/100 — better for Laredo |
| Corruption perceptions | 64/100 | 27/100 | +37/100 — better for Laredo |
| Air quality (PM2.5) | 7.0 µg/m³ | 16.6 µg/m³ | −9.6 µg/m³ — better for Laredo |
| Natural-hazard risk | 3.3/10 | 4.9/10 | −1.6/10 — better for Laredo |
Differences are plain arithmetic between the two stored figures — nothing is modelled. Country-level rows describe the two countries, not the cities themselves. Full report for Reynosa →
Nearby cities
- Nuevo Laredo, Mexico 53.6
- Piedras Negras, Mexico 51.3
- McAllen 55.4
- El Puente, Mexico 38.6
- Reynosa, Mexico 46.5
- Monclova, Mexico 51.3
- Corpus Christi 61.2
- Monterrey, Mexico 38.6
See Laredo on the interactive map → · Safest cities in North America → · Full travel briefings →