Is Ruili safe?
China · Asia · data updated 2026-09-04
Ruili is a city in China, home to about 111k people, and one of 6,168 cities worldwide ranked on this site from published safety data. It currently ranks 3,850 of 6,168, with a safety score of 66.0 out of 100, placing it clearly above the global midpoint.
Emergency Ambulance 120 · Fire 119 · Police 110 · Traffic Police 122 · Maritime Search and Rescue Centre 12395
Deadliest recorded locations nearby
- junta’s major Sakham Thit Kone base outside Namkham town56 deaths · 1 event
- Laiza in Waingmaw Township Munglai Hkyet IDP Camp29 deaths · 1 event
- Nam Hpat Kar village, Kutkai township28 deaths · 1 event
UCDP-recorded organized-violence deaths within 100 km of Ruili, 2022-2024, at the locations the source itself names. Conflict deaths, not street crime.
How safe is Ruili really?
No published homicide figure exists for Ruili itself, so the national rate stands in: China recorded 0.5 homicides per 100,000 people in 2020 - well below the global city median. The city itself may be safer or more dangerous than its country's average. China's income inequality is middling (Gini 36.0) - in this dataset inequality predicts city violence better than any other structural factor, so this neither raises nor lowers the picture much.
Ruili also carries some conflict exposure: UCDP recorded 467 deaths from organized violence within 100 km across 145 events in 2022-2024 - a factor crime statistics alone would miss. The deadliest recorded locations in that radius were junta’s major Sakham Thit Kone base outside Namkham town (56 deaths), Laiza in Waingmaw Township Munglai Hkyet IDP Camp (29 deaths), Nam Hpat Kar village, Kutkai township (28 deaths).
What the travel advisories say
The UK Foreign Office publishes travel advice for China 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 China
Terrorism in China · Risks under Chinese national security laws · Political situation · Drink spiking and sexual assault · Scams · Commercial disputes · Personal ID · National security laws · Travelling to sensitive areas · Religious activities and materials · Criminal proceedings · Exit bans · Money · Illegal drugs penalties and prison sentences · +13 more
Topic headings from the official UK FCDO travel advice for China — country-level, not specific to Ruili. Read what each one says →
The numbers
- Homicide rate
- 0.5 /100knational rate, 2020
- Conflict deaths
- 467within 100 km, 2022-2024 (UCDP)
- Income inequality
- Gini 36.0country, 2022
- Human development
- HDI 0.797country, 2023
- Income
- $29,160/yrGNI per capita PPP · context only, not scored
- Population
- 111kurban centre · 3,834/km²
Country context for travelers
- Road deaths
- 17.4 /100kWHO, 2019 · often the biggest real travel risk
- Political stability
- 63/100World Bank WGI, 2024 · higher = more stable
- Rule of law
- 47/100World Bank WGI, 2024 · police and courts reliability
- Corruption perceptions
- 43/100Transparency International, 2025 · higher = cleaner
- Natural-hazard risk
- 2.9/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Women, Peace & Security
- 0.69Georgetown WPS Index, 2025 · 0-1, higher = better
- Air quality
- 32.0 µg/m³PM2.5 annual mean, 2023 · WHO guideline is 5
- Safely managed drinking water
- no dataof the population · WHO/UNICEF JMP
- Healthcare capacity
- 3.1 doctors /1k5.6 hospital beds per 1,000
- Malaria
- 0 /1k at riskWHO, 2024 · listed for endemic countries only
Natural hazards in China
- Flood
- 9.3/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Tsunami
- 9.0/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Cyclone
- 7.8/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Earthquake
- 6.7/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Drought
- 4.6/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
Hazard types scoring under 1 out of 10 are not listed. These describe China as a whole, not Ruili specifically.
Same-sex sexual activity is legal in China (as of 2025).
All country-level figures shared by every city in China; 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 Ruili that gives 66.0/100. Full methodology, anchors and sources →
Ruili compared with Mandalay
| Measure | Ruili | Mandalay | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Safety score | 66.0 | 49.1 | +16.9 — better for Ruili |
| Homicide ratecity-measured where published, otherwise the national rate | 0.5 /100k | 3.9 /100k | −3.4 /100k — better for Ruili |
| Conflict deaths within 100 km | 467 | 1,709 | −1,242 — better for Ruili |
| Income inequality (Gini) | 36.0 | 30.7 | +5.3 — better for Mandalay |
| Human development (HDI) | 0.797 | 0.609 | +0.188 — better for Ruili |
| Road deaths | 17.4 /100k | 20.4 /100k | −3.0 /100k — better for Ruili |
| Rule of law | 47/100 | 26/100 | +21/100 — better for Ruili |
| Corruption perceptions | 43/100 | 16/100 | +27/100 — better for Ruili |
| Air quality (PM2.5) | 32.0 µg/m³ | 35.1 µg/m³ | −3.1 µg/m³ — better for Ruili |
| Natural-hazard risk | 2.9/10 | 6.7/10 | −3.8/10 — better for Ruili |
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 Mandalay →
Nearby cities
- Lashio, Myanmar 52.6
- Myitkyina, Myanmar 54.7
- Baoshan 82.7
- Mogok, Myanmar 50.1
- Lincang 82.7
- Pyin Oo Lwin, Myanmar 50.6
- Shwebo, Myanmar 48.0
- Mandalay, Myanmar 49.1
See Ruili on the interactive map → · Safest cities in Asia → · Full travel briefings →