by Cassandra McBride
Of the 11 most populous U.S. cities (over 1 million people), Chicago consistently has the highest homicide rate.
We wanted to get to the truth about murders in the Windy City and wrote a report comparing it to other cities, while also analyzing trends over the years.
Here are the highlights from our report:
- Chicago’s average homicide rate is 27.1 per 100,000 residents (excluding justifiable homicide and involuntary manslaughter).
- 64% of Chicago’s neighborhoods (49 of 77) had homicide rates above the national average between October 2024 and 2025.
- Chicago’s murder rate declined by 7.95% in 2024, but its peer cities had steeper declines.
We also compared Chicago to smaller cities and analyzed the most dangerous neighborhoods. Please read the report and share it with others who may be interested. You’ll find the link here.
