Is Veracruz safe?
Mexico · North America · data updated 2026-09-04
Veracruz is a city in Mexico, home to about 668k people, and one of 6,168 cities worldwide ranked on this site from published safety data. It currently ranks 5,593 of 6,168, with a safety score of 44.3 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 615 deaths from organized violence within 100 km in 2022-2024 (22 events). Crime figures do not capture war risk.
- UK FCDO advises against all but essential travel to parts of this country25 named areas - see "areas to avoid" below.
- Elevated homicide rate5.8 homicides per 100,000 per year (city-measured), about 2× the global city median.
Deadliest recorded locations nearby
- Veracruz6 deaths · 1 event
- limits of the communities of El Tronconal and Chiltoyac , belonging to Xalapa5 deaths · 1 event
UCDP-recorded organized-violence deaths within 100 km of Veracruz, 2022-2024, at the locations the source itself names. Conflict deaths, not street crime.
Areas the UK FCDO advises against visiting country
- State of Baja California
- State of Chihuahua
- State of Sinaloa
- State of Tamaulipas
- State of Zacatecas
- State of Guanajuato
- State of Michoacán
- State of Jalisco
- State of Colima
- State of Guerrero
- State of Chiapas
- city of Morelia accessed by federal toll roads 15D, 126 and 43; and the federal toll road 48D between the city of Morelia and the General Francisco Mujica airport
- town of Pátzcuaro accessed by federal toll roads 14D and 15 from Morelia, and boat trips out to islands on Lake Pátzcuaro
- Federal Highway 15D
- Bolaños
- Chimaltitán
- Colotlán
- Hostotipaquillo
- Huejúcar
- Huequilla el Alto
- Mezquitic
- San Martin de Bolaños
- Santa Maria de los Ángeles
- Totatiche
- Villa Guerrero
Named in the official UK travel advice for Mexico (in full or in part - the advisory lists exact boundaries and exceptions). These are country-level warnings and may be far from Veracruz.
How safe is Veracruz really?
The most direct evidence is measured in the city itself: Veracruz recorded 5.8 homicides per 100,000 residents in 2024 - roughly 2 times the global city median. Mexico's income inequality is middling (Gini 42.6) - 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 615 deaths from organized violence - war, armed conflict, militia or cartel fighting - within 100 km of Veracruz across 22 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 Veracruz (6 deaths), limits of the communities of El Tronconal and Chiltoyac , belonging to Xalapa (5 deaths).
What the travel advisories say
The US State Department currently rates Mexico at level 2 of 4 - "Exercise increased caution" (updated 2025-08-11). The UK Foreign Office advises against all but essential travel to parts of this country, naming 25 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 Mexico
Terrorism in Mexico · Political situation · Using ATMs · Protecting your belongings · Scams · Drink and food spiking · Tainted alcohol · Methanol poisoning · Sexual assault · Kidnapping · Violence · Vehicle crime · Roadblocks · Unlicensed taxis · +18 more
Topic headings from the official UK FCDO travel advice for Mexico — country-level, not specific to Veracruz. Read what each one says →
The numbers
- Homicide rate
- 5.8 /100kcity-measured, 2024 · ~2× the global city median
- Conflict deaths
- 615within 100 km, 2022-2024 (UCDP)
- Income inequality
- Gini 42.6country, 2024
- Human development
- HDI 0.789country, 2023
- Income
- $25,070/yrGNI per capita PPP · context only, not scored
- Population
- 668kurban centre · 5,390/km²
- Nearest airport
- 5 kmGeneral Heriberto Jara International Airport (VER)
Straight-line distance from the city centre, not drive time. Scheduled-service airports only (OurAirports).
Country context for travelers
- Road deaths
- 12.8 /100kWHO, 2019 · often the biggest real travel risk
- Political stability
- 54/100World Bank WGI, 2024 · higher = more stable
- Rule of law
- 37/100World Bank WGI, 2024 · police and courts reliability
- Corruption perceptions
- 27/100Transparency International, 2025 · higher = cleaner
- Natural-hazard risk
- 4.9/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Women, Peace & Security
- 0.56Georgetown WPS Index, 2025 · 0-1, higher = better
- Air quality
- 16.6 µg/m³PM2.5 annual mean, 2023 · WHO guideline is 5
- Safely managed drinking water
- 43%of the population, 2024 · WHO/UNICEF JMP
- Healthcare capacity
- 2.6 doctors /1k1.0 hospital beds per 1,000
- Malaria
- 0 /1k at riskWHO, 2024 · listed for endemic countries only
Natural hazards in Mexico
- Earthquake
- 8.2/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Flood
- 7.9/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Cyclone
- 7.1/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Tsunami
- 5.5/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Drought
- 3.0/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
Hazard types scoring under 1 out of 10 are not listed. These describe Mexico as a whole, not Veracruz specifically.
Same-sex sexual activity is legal in Mexico (as of 2025).
All country-level figures shared by every city in Mexico; 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 Veracruz that gives 44.3/100. Full methodology, anchors and sources →
Veracruz compared with Xalapa
| Measure | Veracruz | Xalapa | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Safety score | 44.3 | 46.3 | −2.1 — better for Xalapa |
| Homicide ratecity-measured where published, otherwise the national rate | 5.8 /100k | 4.2 /100k | +1.6 /100k — better for Xalapa |
| Conflict deaths within 100 km | 615 | 662 | −47 — better for Veracruz |
Differences are plain arithmetic between the two stored figures — nothing is modelled. Both cities are in Mexico, so they share every country-level figure and only the city-level ones are listed. Full report for Xalapa →
Nearby cities
- Córdoba 33.6
- Xalapa 46.3
- Orizaba 33.6
- Tuxtepec 44.6
- Teziutlán 33.6
- Tehuacán 42.8
- Poza Rica 39.1
- Apizaco 37.4
See Veracruz on the interactive map → · Safest cities in North America → · Full travel briefings →