Matagalpa scores 59 out of 100 (moderate safety) on World Safety Map, ranked 4484 of 6168 cities worldwide. The score combines the homicide rate, nearby conflict deaths, income equality and human development from published data (UNODC, UCDP, World Bank, UNDP).

Is Matagalpa safe?

Nicaragua · North America · data updated 2026-09-04

59.3Moderate · rank 4484 / 6,168
safer than 27% of ranked cities

Matagalpa is a city in Nicaragua, home to about 132k people, and one of 6,168 cities worldwide ranked on this site from published safety data. It currently ranks 4,484 of 6,168, with a safety score of 59.3 out of 100 - mid-table: neither the data for concern nor the data for reassurance dominates.

US 3/4 Reconsider travel

Emergency 911 (ambulance, fire, police)

US State Department: Reconsider travelOfficial travel advisory level 3 of 4 for Nicaragua, updated 2026-05-13.
Elevated homicide rate5.45 homicides per 100,000 per year (national rate), about 2× the global city median.
High income inequalityGini 46.2 puts Nicaragua 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).

No official source names specific areas to avoid here: travel advisories for Nicaragua are country-level, and no published dataset covers neighborhood-level crime - so this briefing does not invent it.

How safe is Matagalpa really?

No published homicide figure exists for Matagalpa itself, so the national rate stands in: Nicaragua recorded 5.5 homicides per 100,000 people in 2023 - roughly 2 times 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 Nicaragua's Gini of 46.2 puts it in the most unequal quarter of countries - conditions under which street crime and robbery tend to be a real concern.

What the travel advisories say

The US State Department currently rates Nicaragua at level 3 of 4 - "Reconsider travel" (updated 2026-05-13). The UK Foreign Office publishes travel advice for Nicaragua 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 Nicaragua

Terrorism in Nicaragua · Political situation · Violent crime · Taxi safety and criminal kidnap · Sexual assault · Risks when exchanging money · Illegal drugs and prison sentences · Flying drones · Swimming safety · Scuba diving · Road travel · Driving standards and road conditions · Boat and ferry travel · Hurricanes · +2 more

Topic headings from the official UK FCDO travel advice for Nicaragua — country-level, not specific to Matagalpa. Read what each one says →

The numbers

Homicide rate: 5.5 /100knational rate, 2023 · ~2× the global city median
Conflict deaths: 0within 100 km, 2022-2024 (UCDP)
Income inequality: Gini 46.2country, 2014
Human development: HDI 0.706country, 2023
Income: $8,780/yrGNI per capita PPP · context only, not scored
Population: 132kurban centre · 9,395/km²

Country context for travelers

Road deaths: 16.9 /100kWHO, 2019 · often the biggest real travel risk
Political stability: 65/100World Bank WGI, 2024 · higher = more stable
Rule of law: 29/100World Bank WGI, 2024 · police and courts reliability
Corruption perceptions: 14/100Transparency International, 2025 · higher = cleaner
Natural-hazard risk: 4.3/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
Women, Peace & Security: 0.66Georgetown WPS Index, 2025 · 0-1, higher = better
Air quality: 20.4 µg/m³PM2.5 annual mean, 2023 · WHO guideline is 5
Safely managed drinking water: no dataof the population · WHO/UNICEF JMP
Healthcare capacity: 0.7 doctors /1k1.0 hospital beds per 1,000
Malaria: 1 /1k at riskWHO, 2024 · listed for endemic countries only

Natural hazards in Nicaragua

Earthquake: 8.2/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
Tsunami: 7.2/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
Flood: 5.0/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
Cyclone: 4.2/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
Drought: 3.9/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier

Hazard types scoring under 1 out of 10 are not listed. These describe Nicaragua as a whole, not Matagalpa specifically.

Same-sex sexual activity is legal in Nicaragua (as of 2025).

All country-level figures shared by every city in Nicaragua; none of them affect the safety score.

How the score works

Low homicide40%42

Peace25%100

Equality25%42

Development10%71

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 Matagalpa that gives 59.3/100. Full methodology, anchors and sources →

Matagalpa compared with Managua

The nearest ranked city of comparable size. Green favours Matagalpa, red favours Managua.
Measure	Matagalpa	Managua	Difference
Safety score	59.3	57.5	+1.9 — better for Matagalpa
Homicide ratecity-measured where published, otherwise the national rate	5.5 /100k	7.1 /100k	−1.6 /100k — better for Matagalpa
Conflict deaths within 100 km	0	0	±0

Differences are plain arithmetic between the two stored figures — nothing is modelled. Both cities are in Nicaragua, so they share every country-level figure and only the city-level ones are listed. Full report for Managua →

Nearby cities

See Matagalpa on the interactive map → · Safest cities in North America → · Full travel briefings →