Is Maputo safe?
Mozambique · Africa · data updated 2026-09-04
Maputo is a city in Mozambique, home to about 3.2M people, and one of 6,168 cities worldwide ranked on this site from published safety data. It currently ranks 5,422 of 6,168, with a safety score of 46.8 out of 100 - mid-table: neither the data for concern nor the data for reassurance dominates.
Emergency Ambulance 848888 or 823388 · Fire 198 · Police 112
- UK FCDO advises against all travel to parts of this country3 named areas - see "areas to avoid" below.
- High income inequalityGini 49.6 puts Mozambique in the most unequal quarter of countries - the strongest structural predictor of city violence in this dataset (street crime and robbery tend to track it).
Deadliest recorded locations nearby
- Maputo7 deaths · 3 events
UCDP-recorded organized-violence deaths within 100 km of Maputo, 2022-2024, at the locations the source itself names. Conflict deaths, not street crime.
Areas the UK FCDO advises against visiting country
- Cabo Delgado Province
- Nampula Province
- Niassa Province
Named in the official UK travel advice for Mozambique (in full or in part - the advisory lists exact boundaries and exceptions). These are country-level warnings and may be far from Maputo.
How safe is Maputo really?
No published homicide figure exists for Maputo itself, so the national rate stands in: Mozambique recorded 3.6 homicides per 100,000 people in 2011 - close to the global city median. The city itself may be safer or more dangerous than its country's average. That matters because income inequality is the strongest structural predictor of city violence in this dataset, and Mozambique's Gini of 49.6 puts it in the most unequal quarter of countries - conditions under which street crime and robbery tend to be a real concern.
Maputo also carries some conflict exposure: UCDP recorded 67 deaths from organized violence within 100 km across 32 events in 2022-2024 - a factor crime statistics alone would miss. The deadliest recorded locations in that radius were Maputo (7 deaths).
What the travel advisories say
The US State Department currently rates Mozambique at level 2 of 4 - "Exercise increased caution" (updated 2025-06-15). The UK Foreign Office advises against all travel to parts of this country, naming 3 specific areas - listed above with the official advisory linked for exact boundaries and exceptions. 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 Mozambique
Terrorism in Mozambique · Terrorist kidnap · Political situation · Protecting yourself and your belongings · Carjacking · Police harassment and corruption · Criminal kidnap · Personal ID · Alcohol laws and bans · Illegal drugs and prison sentences · Landmines · Using cameras in secure areas · LGBT+ travellers · Money · +5 more
Topic headings from the official UK FCDO travel advice for Mozambique — country-level, not specific to Maputo. Read what each one says →
The numbers
- Homicide rate
- 3.6 /100knational rate, 2011
- Conflict deaths
- 67within 100 km, 2022-2024 (UCDP)
- Income inequality
- Gini 49.6country, 2022
- Human development
- HDI 0.493country, 2023
- Income
- $1,540/yrGNI per capita PPP · context only, not scored
- Population
- 3.2Murban centre · 6,583/km²
Country context for travelers
- Road deaths
- 30.0 /100kWHO, 2019 · often the biggest real travel risk
- Political stability
- 36/100World Bank WGI, 2024 · higher = more stable
- Rule of law
- 36/100World Bank WGI, 2024 · police and courts reliability
- Corruption perceptions
- 21/100Transparency International, 2025 · higher = cleaner
- Natural-hazard risk
- 7.0/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Women, Peace & Security
- 0.55Georgetown WPS Index, 2025 · 0-1, higher = better
- Air quality
- 13.7 µg/m³PM2.5 annual mean, 2023 · WHO guideline is 5
- Safely managed drinking water
- 28%of the population, 2024 · WHO/UNICEF JMP
- Healthcare capacity
- 0.2 doctors /1k0.7 hospital beds per 1,000
- Malaria
- 295 /1k at riskWHO, 2024 · listed for endemic countries only
Natural hazards in Mozambique
- Drought
- 7.1/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Flood
- 6.0/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Tsunami
- 3.8/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Earthquake
- 3.4/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Cyclone
- 2.6/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
Hazard types scoring under 1 out of 10 are not listed. These describe Mozambique as a whole, not Maputo specifically.
Same-sex sexual activity is legal in Mozambique (as of 2025).
All country-level figures shared by every city in Mozambique; 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 Maputo that gives 46.8/100. Full methodology, anchors and sources →
Maputo compared with KaMaqhekeza
| Measure | Maputo | KaMaqhekeza | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Safety score | 46.8 | 29.8 | +17.0 — better for Maputo |
| Homicide ratecity-measured where published, otherwise the national rate | 3.6 /100k | 40 /100k | −36 /100k — better for Maputo |
| Conflict deaths within 100 km | 67 | 69 | −2 — better for Maputo |
| Income inequality (Gini) | 49.6 | 54.1 | −4.5 — better for Maputo |
| Human development (HDI) | 0.493 | 0.741 | −0.248 — better for KaMaqhekeza |
| Road deaths | 30.0 /100k | 22.2 /100k | +7.8 /100k — better for KaMaqhekeza |
| Rule of law | 36/100 | 57/100 | −21/100 — better for KaMaqhekeza |
| Corruption perceptions | 21/100 | 41/100 | −20/100 — better for KaMaqhekeza |
| Air quality (PM2.5) | 13.7 µg/m³ | 27.7 µg/m³ | −14.0 µg/m³ — better for Maputo |
| Natural-hazard risk | 7.0/10 | 5.2/10 | +1.8/10 — better for KaMaqhekeza |
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 KaMaqhekeza →
Nearby cities
- KaMaqhekeza, South Africa 29.8
- Xai-Xai 58.2
- Kanyamazane, South Africa 35.4
- Middelburg, South Africa 39.5
- Madadeni, South Africa 39.5
- eMalahleni, South Africa 39.5
- Vosman, South Africa 39.5
- eMbalenhle, South Africa 39.5
See Maputo on the interactive map → · Safest cities in Africa → · Full travel briefings →