Is San Diego safe?
United States · North America · data updated 2026-09-04
San Diego is a city in United States, home to about 1.9M people, and one of 6,168 cities worldwide ranked on this site from published safety data. It currently ranks 5,331 of 6,168, with a safety score of 48.6 out of 100 - mid-table: neither the data for concern nor the data for reassurance dominates.
Emergency 911 (ambulance, fire, police)
- Armed conflict nearbyUCDP recorded 2,255 deaths from organized violence within 100 km in 2022-2024 (1,353 events). Crime figures do not capture war risk.
Deadliest recorded locations nearby
- Tijuana766 deaths · 52 events
- Camino Verde neighborhood10 deaths · 8 events
- Tijuana town9 deaths · 6 events
UCDP-recorded organized-violence deaths within 100 km of San Diego, 2022-2024, at the locations the source itself names. Conflict deaths, not street crime.
How safe is San Diego really?
The most direct evidence is measured in the city itself: San Diego recorded 2.5 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.
Crime statistics are not the main story here: the Uppsala Conflict Data Program recorded 2,255 deaths from organized violence - war, armed conflict, militia or cartel fighting - within 100 km of San Diego across 1,353 events in 2022-2024. That is active-conflict territory, and ordinary crime figures say nothing about it. The deadliest recorded locations in that radius were Tijuana (766 deaths), Camino Verde neighborhood (10 deaths), Tijuana town (9 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 San Diego. Read what each one says →
The numbers
- Homicide rate
- 2.5 /100kcity-measured, 2024
- Conflict deaths
- 2,255within 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
- 1.9Murban centre · 2,784/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 San Diego 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 San Diego that gives 48.6/100. Full methodology, anchors and sources →
San Diego compared with Tijuana
| Measure | San Diego | Tijuana | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Safety score | 48.6 | 24.4 | +24.2 — better for San Diego |
| Homicide ratecity-measured where published, otherwise the national rate | 2.5 /100k | 75 /100k | −73 /100k — better for San Diego |
| Conflict deaths within 100 km | 2,255 | 2,264 | −9 — better for San Diego |
| Income inequality (Gini) | 41.8 | 42.6 | −0.8 — better for San Diego |
| Human development (HDI) | 0.938 | 0.789 | +0.149 — better for San Diego |
| Road deaths | 12.7 /100k | 12.8 /100k | −0.1 /100k — better for San Diego |
| Rule of law | 74/100 | 37/100 | +37/100 — better for San Diego |
| Corruption perceptions | 64/100 | 27/100 | +37/100 — better for San Diego |
| Air quality (PM2.5) | 7.0 µg/m³ | 16.6 µg/m³ | −9.6 µg/m³ — better for San Diego |
| Natural-hazard risk | 3.3/10 | 4.9/10 | −1.6/10 — better for San Diego |
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 Tijuana →
Nearby cities
- Poway 48.6
- Tijuana, Mexico 24.4
- Escondido 48.6
- Murrieta 61.8
- Ensenada, Mexico 31.5
- Mission Viejo 71.5
- Hemet 63.7
- Corona 67.4
See San Diego on the interactive map → · Safest cities in North America → · Full travel briefings →