Medellín

Is Medellín safe?

For most visitors, yes, with one big caveat. The city that had the world's highest murder rate in the early 1990s now has about 12 homicides per 100,000Homicide rateThe number of people killed on purpose each year for every 100,000 residents. It is the most comparable crime figure between countries.More in the glossary people, the lowest in 50 years according to the Alcaldía. That is below Bogotá and well below the national rate on our Colombia page. But Medellín has a specific crime that targets foreigners: being drugged and robbed by people met through dating apps or in bars, which has sometimes ended in death.

We score Medellín 50. Visitors who avoid strangers' drinks and late-night invitations, and who travel by app taxi after dark, usually have no problems. The rest of the score is held down by street robbery and roads that kill about 10 people per 100,000 a year.

Dating apps, scopolamine and why foreigners are targeted

In November and December 2023, eight Americans died in suspicious circumstances in Medellín, according to the US embassy, which told citizens to be careful with dating apps in Colombia. Three more Americans died within four days in January 2024. The city's security secretary said two of the four foreign deaths that month may have been linked to dating platforms and that the cases were part of organised crime.

The method is well known. The FCDOFCDO travel adviceThe UK government's travel advice for each country, which can advise against all travel or all but essential travel to specific areas.More in the glossary says criminals use dating apps and websites to find foreigners travelling alone, then drug them with substances such as scopolamine, which can be slipped into drinks, cigarettes or even sprayed. Victims become disoriented and compliant, and are robbed, sexually assaulted or forced to empty their bank accounts. Large doses, or doses mixed with alcohol, can kill.

What protects you:

• Meet dates only in busy bars or restaurants, and never bring a new contact back to your hotel or flat.
• Do not accept drinks, cigarettes or snacks from strangers, and do not leave your drink unattended.
• Share your location with a friend and keep only one card and a little cash on you at night.
• Be wary of anyone who moves the meeting from the app to a private address.

Street crime in the tourist areas

El Poblado and Laureles are where most visitors stay, and both are well policed by Colombian standards. The FCDOFCDO travel adviceThe UK government's travel advice for each country, which can advise against all travel or all but essential travel to specific areas.More in the glossary still lists Medellín among the cities where pickpocketing, mugging and armed robbery are a problem. Phones are snatched from hands and café tables, sometimes by thieves on motorbikes. The US advisoryUS travel advisoryThe US State Department's rating of each country from Level 1 (exercise normal precautions) to Level 4 (do not travel).More in the glossary warns that street crime can quickly turn violent, so if someone demands your phone or wallet, hand it over.

The centre is worth a daytime visit: Plaza Botero, the Museo de Antioquia and the Palacio de la Cultura. Go in daylight, carry little, and leave before the streets empty in the evening.

Getting around

The metro and Metrocable are the city's pride and a safe, cheap way to reach places like Comuna 13 or Parque Arví. Use app taxis rather than flagging cars in the street, which US government staff in Colombia are not allowed to do.

On the roads, the city counted 210 deaths by early October 2025, 12.1% fewer than a year earlier. Motorcyclists made up 123 of them and pedestrians 75. Motorbikes weave through traffic on every avenue, so cross at lights and look both ways even on one-way streets.

Air, altitude and hillsides

At about 1,500 metres, Medellín has a mild climate all year and none of the altitude problems of Bogotá. Its air is the weak point: the city sits in a narrow valley that traps pollution, and IQAir found that no Colombian city met the WHO guideline in 2024, with the worst readings around March, when the city often declares environmental alerts. Private hospitals are good; drink bottled water, as the FCDOFCDO travel adviceThe UK government's travel advice for each country, which can advise against all travel or all but essential travel to specific areas.More in the glossary says tap water is safe only in Bogotá.

Colombia's earthquake risk is high across the Andes, and the US advisoryUS travel advisoryThe US State Department's rating of each country from Level 1 (exercise normal precautions) to Level 4 (do not travel).More in the glossary warns of landslides in Medellín's hillside informal settlements. Heavy rain in the two wet seasons can turn steep streets into streams.

How we scored it

Health and environment (66) and natural hazards (60) are Medellín's strongest factors. Theft and drugging (38), night safety (42) and road safety (48) are the weakest. Violent crime (52) sits near the top of its rubric band because murder has fallen so far, but the drugging deaths of foreigners keep it from going higher.