Puerto Vallarta

Mexico · Latin America & Caribbean

71Safety indexLower concern

U.S. State DeptLevel 2 · Increased caution

Global Affairs CanadaLevel 2 · Increased caution

UK FCDOLevel 2 · Increased caution

Smartraveller (AU)Level 2 · Increased caution

5/5metric categories covered

Open comparison

20.65°, -105.23°

Regional locator · ring ≈ the figure's geographic unit

The safety picture

A plain-language read of the sourced figures below

Puerto Vallarta scores 71 out of 100 in our composite index, safer than about 38% of the cities we score.

Its homicide rate is 5.1 per 100,000, roughly 3.2 times the median for the cities we track. That rate covers the wider municipality and was calculated by us from a count and a population, so treat it as an upper bound. Recorded robbery is 56.9 per 100,000, again for the municipality and derived by us, and as police-recorded data it understates how often it happens. All four governments we track hold Mexico at their second advisory level, increased caution, and each flags pickpocketing and scams aimed at visitors. In a national survey, 41.3% of people said they feel safe walking alone at night, a figure for the country as a whole rather than the city.

Safety dimensions

Larger area = more concern

Violent crime10

Robbery & theft10

Travel advisory33

The radar shows the three sourced, comparable risk measures (homicide, robbery, the strictest travel-advisory level). Tourist petty-crime signals are a different kind of measure — how often advisories mention them — so they are shown as rows under Tourist-specific incidents, not as radar axes.

Homicide / general violence

Intentional homicides (per 100,000)

5.1/100k

Figure is for Puerto Vallarta (municipality), wider than Puerto Vallarta itself.

Rate computed by project-atlas: 15 (count, 2025) ÷ 291839 population (INEGI — Censo de Población y Vivienda 2020, 2020) × 100k.

Primary source: SESNSP — Incidencia delictiva municipal

Where this sits on the scaleElevated

01·3·8·20·40 /100k

Among tracked citiessafer than 31% of tracked cities

5.1/100k

0/100k safest101.2/100k

Robbery (police-recorded)

Robbery (per 100,000)

56.9/100k

Police-recorded robbery undercounts true incidence — Mexico has a high share of unreported crime (cifra negra), more so for robbery than homicide. Read this as recorded robbery, not total robbery.

Figure is for Puerto Vallarta (municipality), wider than Puerto Vallarta itself.

Rate computed by project-atlas: 166 (count, 2025) ÷ 291839 population (INEGI — Censo de Población y Vivienda 2020, 2020) × 100k.

Primary source: SESNSP — Incidencia delictiva municipal

Where this sits on the scaleGuarded

040·120·250·400·600 /100k

Among tracked citiessafer than 58% of tracked cities

56.9/100k

0.4/100k safest3097.8/100k

Travel advisories

U.S. State Department

U.S. State DeptLevel 2 · Increased caution

Primary source: U.S. Department of State — Mexico Travel Advisory

Global Affairs Canada

Global Affairs CanadaLevel 2 · Increased caution

Primary source: Global Affairs Canada — Mexico Travel Advice and Advisories

UK FCDO

UK FCDOLevel 2 · Increased caution

Primary source: UK FCDO — Mexico travel advice

Smartraveller (Australia)

Smartraveller (AU)Level 2 · Increased caution

Primary source: Australian Government (DFAT Smartraveller) — Mexico travel advice

Perceived safety

How safe people say they feel, from official population surveys — a separate signal, not part of the Safety Index.

Feel safe walking alone at night

National survey

41.3%feel safe

41.3% of people surveyed · Mexico · 2024

Survey figure is for Mexico (country), wider than Puerto Vallarta itself.

Primary source: UN SDG 16.1.4 — feel safe walking alone at night (UNODC)

Tourist-specific incidents

How often government travel advisories mention each — a source-consensus signal, not a risk rate.

Pickpocketing & petty theft in travel advisories

3 of 3 advisories mention this

project-atlas count: 3 of 3 reviewed government advisories mention this. A source-consensus signal, not a measured risk rate.

Primary source: Global Affairs Canada — Mexico travel advice (Safety and security)

Scams & fraud in travel advisories

3 of 3 advisories mention this

project-atlas count: 3 of 3 reviewed government advisories mention this. A source-consensus signal, not a measured risk rate.

Primary source: Global Affairs Canada — Mexico travel advice (Safety and security)