Homicide, the willful killing of one human being by another, is often used as a key indicator for violent crime as a whole, as it is the most reliably reported violent crime and the easiest to compare against other countries. In 2020, Canada’s homicide rate was 1.95 homicides per 100,000 residents. While this is roughly double that of western European countries it is still about three times lower than its southern neighbor, the United States which stood at five homicides per 100,000 residents in 2019.
Burglaries and motor vehicle thefts, two categories in which Canadian figures exceeded U.S. figures in the past, have declined to the point of being on par with the U.S. or lower overall. In 2020, the rates for burglaries and motor vehicle thefts in Canada were 361.83 and 205.64 respectively, with both figures roughly 60 percent lower than their peaks. It is thought that the decreasing rate of these crimes, apart from the influences of the general decline in crime, stem from advances in anti-theft technology.
