The number of people killed by their partners or a family member has doubled in NSW, according to the latest crime figures.

Key points: Police suggest the rate of incidents has remained steady but reporting has increased

Police suggest the rate of incidents has remained steady but reporting has increased Male murder victims increased to 14 over the past year, compared with five in the previous 12 months

Male murder victims increased to 14 over the past year, compared with five in the previous 12 months The overall state murder rate has been decreasing over the past decade

New data from the Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research reveals 38 people died as a result of domestic violence (DV) homicide in the year to March 2019, up from 19 in the previous 12 months.

Attorney-General Mark Speakman said the overall rate of murder in NSW was trending downwards, but the spike in DV-related homicides was alarming.

"Behind those numbers are real people," he said.

"They're mothers, daughters, sisters, wives, husbands, brothers, sons, fathers who've been the victims of domestic homicide."

Women accounted for 15 of the total number of victims, up from 11 the previous year.

Seven of the victims were children who were killed by a parent, up from one victim in the previous year.

But there was a significant increase in male victims of DV homicide, with 14 men killed in 2018/19 compared with five in the previous year.

Only three men were killed by their partners, with the majority killed by an adult child, a parent, a housemate or their partner's current or former partner.

Mr Speakman said the figures showed that everyone was at risk of domestic violence.

"In the majority of cases there had been no prior reporting to police … these victims were not even on the police radar," he said.

The number of domestic assaults also rose to just more than 6 per cent.

But the rate of domestic violence assaults resulting in grievous bodily harm remained steady.

Assistant Police Commissioner Mark Jones said that suggests the overall rate of domestic violence incidents had remained steady but that people were more confident in reporting it to police.

"People are now more comfortable reporting these crimes to us," he said.

"The [rate of] grievous bodily harm assault, which we believe is a very good indicator, that's the one that's been going down over the past 10 years and that's very encouraging."

The overall homicide rate in NSW rose 40 per cent in the year to March but that was driven by the increase in DV-related homicides.

The state's historic rate of murder has been steadily trending downwards over the past decade.