Along the same line, Santiago has the lowest homicide rate of the major South American cities, with a rate of 3.9. By contrast, Caracas, Venezuela is the most violent, with 122 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants. Santiago’s homicide rate is lower than many American cities including Boston (11.3), Miami (15.4), Atlanta (17.6), Los Angeles (7.6), and New York (4.0).

The report, Global Study on Homicide 2013, was conducted on 219 countries and territories and notes that homicide is the most accurate indicator for measuring violence in a country .

Honduras is the most violent country in the world, with a rate of 90.4 intentional homicides per 100,000 population based on data from 2012. It is followed by Venezuela with 53.7; Belize, with 44.7, and El Salvador, with 41.2. The report warns that rates above 20 are considered serious.