Homicide trends in Canada, 2024

Released: 2025-12-02

Police services reported 788 homicides across Canada in 2024, 8 fewer homicides than the previous year. In Canada, homicides—which include first-degree murder, second-degree murder, manslaughter and infanticide—account for about 0.1% of all police-reported violent crimes. The homicide rate is considered a key metric for assessing the state of violence, community safety and social welfare of a country. Domestic and international policy makers analyze the incidence of homicides to understand the extent of violence, identify trends and determine an appropriate response.

The national homicide rate decreased 4% in 2024, dropping from 1.99 to 1.91 homicides per 100,000 population. This is the second consecutive year when the homicide rate has been below 2 homicides per 100,000 population.

Chart 1 
Homicide rate, by province, 2023 and 2024

Varying trends in provincial homicide rates in 2024

In 2024, homicide rates decreased in four provinces, with the largest decline in Newfoundland and Labrador (-51%), followed by British Columbia (-27%), Alberta (-20%), and Quebec (-11%).

Conversely, the six remaining provinces saw increases. New Brunswick's homicide rate nearly doubled from 1.08 to 2.11 per 100,000 population, as the 18 homicide victims in 2024 were up from 9 in 2023. In 2024, eight of those victims died by shootings, which was twice the number in 2023.

Elsewhere, Prince Edward Island's homicide rate increased from 0.58 to 1.12 per 100,000 population (from one victim to two victims) in 2024. Nova Scotia's rate rose substantially, from 1.33 to 2.32 per 100,000 (from 14 to 25 victims). Nova Scotia recorded a notable increase in homicides related to illegal drug trade activities in 2024 (7), up from 2 in the previous year. For the first time in four years, Nova Scotia also had three incidents involving multiple homicide victims. Farther west, Manitoba recorded a 22% increase in its homicide rate, while Saskatchewan's rate grew by 7%, and Ontario's remained largely unchanged at 1.75 per 100,000.

Reflecting the broader downward trend in the national homicide rate, 22 of the 42 census metropolitan areas (CMAs) saw reductions in their homicide rates in 2024, with the most substantial decrease being recorded in Moncton (-81%). However, among the three largest CMAs (Toronto, Montréal and Vancouver), only Vancouver experienced a drop. Thunder Bay recorded Canada's highest homicide rate in 2024, rising from 5.41 to 6.08 per 100,000, followed by Chilliwack (4.75) and Winnipeg (4.66).

Handguns are the primary weapon in more than half of firearm-related homicides

Consistent with recent trends, firearms were used in more than one in three homicides (36%) in 2024. Among the 287 firearm-related homicides, handguns were the most common firearm used (56%), followed by rifles and shotguns (34%). The remaining cases involved unspecified types of firearms (e.g., where the exact firing mechanism is unknown).

Chart 2 
Number of homicide victims, by type of firearm used to commit the homicide, Canada, 2024

Overall decreases in gang-related homicide trends

Gang-related homicides (152 homicides, or 0.37 homicides per 100,000 population) dropped in 2024, down from 174 in 2023, making up less than one-fifth (19%) of all homicides. For the first time since 2016, Canada's gang-related homicide rate dropped below 0.40 per 100,000 population.

A recent analysis revealed several decreases in gang-related homicide trends in 2024. First, homicides associated with illegal drug trade activities (e.g., possession and trafficking) have become less frequent, dropping from 120 homicides in 2023 (69% of all gang-related homicides) to 80 homicides in 2024 (53%). Second, the number of gang-related homicides involving a firearm decreased, from 132 in 2023 to 110 in 2024. Together, these changes contributed to an increase in the overall proportion of gang-related homicides involving a firearm, from 78% in 2023 to 79% in 2024. The number of accused in gang-related homicides decreased from 121 to 95, resulting in a drop in the proportion of accused who were involved in gang-related homicides, from 18% in 2023 to 14% in 2024.

More youths charged with homicide

More youths under the age of 18 were charged with homicide in 2024 (72) than in 2023 (65). This pushed up the rate of youths accused of homicide from 0.87 to 0.94 per 100,000 youths. In 2024, police reported 13 incidents involving multiple youths accused of homicide, 5 of which had 3 or more youths accused.

Chart 3 
Number of youths accused of homicide, Canada, 1974 to 2024

Indigenous peoples continue to be overrepresented among homicide victims

Indigenous peoples in Canada—First Nations people, Métis and Inuit—continue to face a disproportionate risk of homicide, which is deeply rooted in the historical and present-day effects of colonization, including systemic discrimination, poverty and intergenerational trauma.

In 2024, Indigenous peoples made up 3 in 10 homicide victims (30%) while representing 5% of the overall population of Canada. The proportion of Indigenous homicide victims increased by 4 percentage points from 2023, when Indigenous peoples accounted for 26% of all homicide victims. With a homicide rate of 10.84 per 100,000 population in 2024, Indigenous peoples were victims of homicide at a rate over eight times higher than that of non-Indigenous Canadians. Among Indigenous homicide victims, increases were more pronounced for Indigenous women, with the number of homicides rising from 50 in 2023 to 71 in 2024. Homicides among Indigenous men increased from 144 to 152.

Nearly 3 in 10 homicide victims belong to a racialized group

In 2024, close to 3 in 10 homicide victims (29% or 226 victims) belonged to a racialized group. The homicide rate for racialized victims was 1.72 victims per 100,000 population, lower than the rate for non-racialized victims (1.98 per 100,000 population). Among racialized victims, the most affected groups were the Black (45%), South Asian (22%), and Arab (9%) populations.

Individuals accused of homicide often have prior criminal records

Crimes against a person are offences that involve or threaten bodily harm to a victim. This category is broad, including the most severe crimes like homicide (murder, manslaughter and infanticide), as well as sexual assault, attempted murder, robbery, criminal harassment, uttering threats and various levels of physical assault. In 2024, 42% of individuals accused of homicide had a record of either having committed or having been accused of previous crimes against a person, a rate slightly lower than in 2023 (47%).

From 2019 to 2024, roughly one-third of individuals accused of homicide were already under some form of justice system supervision. This proportion was 32% in 2024, after peaking at approximately 35% in 2023, following a low of 25% in 2021. This broad category of supervision includes not only those on bail, but also those on remand, sentenced to custody or on probation.

Chart 4 
Proportion of people accused of homicide in custody or under community supervision at the time of the homicide, Canada, 2019 to 2024

Missing persons as victims of homicide

In 2024, the reduction in overall homicides was mirrored by a decrease in cases where victims were previously reported missing.

Approximately 1 in 20 homicide victims (5% or 41 victims) had been reported missing at the time of their death in 2024, down slightly from 6% (44 victims) in 2023. For Indigenous homicide victims, where the gender was known, 4% of both Indigenous women and men were previously reported as missing compared with 5% of non-Indigenous women and 6% of non-Indigenous men. Despite the large increase in the number of Indigenous women who were homicide victims, the percentage of those who were previously reported as missing was 3.25 times lower in 2024 than the average calculated since these data were first collected in 2015 (13%).

Women continue to account for a disproportionate number of victims of intimate partner homicide

In 2024, almost one in six homicide victims (17%) were killed by a spouse or an intimate partner, totalling 100 victims. This is an increase from the 72 victims recorded in 2023. Increases were reported in 8 of the 10 provinces. Following a historical pattern, women (81%) were disproportionately the victims of intimate partner homicide in 2024, including homicide committed by a current or former spouse, common-law spouse or dating partner. More specifically, the number of women who were victims saw a sharp increase—from 53 in 2023 to 81 in 2024—while the number of men who were victims remained consistent.

Products

The infographic "Homicide in Canada, 2024" (Catalogue number11-627-M) is now available.

Additional data are available upon request.

Contact information

For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; infostats@statcan.gc.ca) or Media Relations (statcan.mediahotline-ligneinfomedias.statcan@statcan.gc.ca).