At the end of the fourth quarter of 2025, Mérida dropped out of the top ten cities with the lowest perception of insecurity, falling to 13th place, according to data from the National Urban Public Safety Survey (ENSU).
The survey, conducted by the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI), gathers information from people in cities about how they feel about the safety of their neighborhoods.
What is the perception of insecurity in Mérida?
Although the agency does not indicate a significant change compared to the previous quarter, in Mérida the percentage of the population that perceived greater insecurity increased by 2.9 points, rising from 34% to 36.9%.
However, this increase moved the Yucatecan city out of the top 10 cities with the lowest perception of insecurity, placing it 13th on the list, which includes cities such as San Pedro Garza García, Nuevo León; Benito Juárez, Mexico City, and Piedras Negras, Coahuila, hold the top three spots with the lowest perception of insecurity.
Last quarter, Mérida ranked among the top 10 cities with the lowest perception of insecurity, occupying ninth place on the list.
The survey data shows that in June, the perception of insecurity in Mérida was 41.9%. However, by the end of September, the figures showed that the percentage had plummeted to 34%.
Furthermore, the year-on-year change, from the fourth quarter of 2024 to the same quarter of 2025, shows Mérida’s perception of insecurity rose from 31.5 percent to 36.9 percent, an increase of 5.4 percentage points.
This is not the first time Mérida has fallen out of the top ten.
It should be noted that last year, in April, the Yucatecan capital also dropped off the list of the 10 cities where insecurity is felt least, although it returned in October. That is, it remained off the list for nine months.
In a report at the end of the fourth quarter of 2025, this is the case for the cities of the neighboring states of the Yucatán Peninsula:
San Francisco de Campeche and Ciudad del Carmen, in Campeche, showed percentage increases in the perception of insecurity among their populations, rising from 48.8 and 48.9 percent in the third quarter of 2025 to 62.6 and 53 percent in the fourth quarter.
In Campeche, Cancún and Chetumal report increased insecurity.
The capital of Campeche, according to INEGI, shows an upward trend in this perception.
In Quintana Roo, Cancún and Chetumal showed increases, which INEGI considered minimal, rising from 74.1 and 60.4 percent in the July-September period to 81 and 65.4 percent in the fourth quarter.
However, regarding Mérida, the ENSU survey revealed an increase in the percentage of the population aged 18 and over who experienced conflicts or confrontations.
The data shows that this figure rose from 22.1 percent during the July-September quarter to 28.5 percent in the October-December quarter, representing a 6.4 percent increase in these instances of violence. The survey indicates that these situations are trending upward.
They trust the Mérida government
Regarding the effectiveness of city governments in resolving their main problems, the study presented by INEGI indicates that 39.6 percent of Mérida residents aged 18 and over believe there is a capacity to solve these problems.
This percentage exceeds the national average of 29.9 percent.
However, in the region, in the cities of neighboring states included in the study, residents believe their city governments are less effective.
Insecurity in Cities of Quintana Roo and Campeche
In Cancún and Chetumal, the population percentages were 27.1 and 18.9, respectively, while in San Francisco de Campeche, Campeche, it was 25.3. All three cities were below the national average.
Nationally, the analysis explains that the main problems in urban areas are potholes in streets and avenues; failures and leaks in the drinking water supply; frequent traffic jams; and insufficient street lighting.
Other issues include clogged drains due to accumulated waste; overcrowded hospitals; and deficient public transportation, among others.
Nevertheless, it was also revealed that Mérida is the tenth city with the fewest reported crimes per household.
Percentage of Robberies or Other Crimes in Mérida Homes
According to the section analyzing whether any household or family member has been a victim of robbery, extortion, or fraud, Mérida ranks among the lowest, well below the national average of 32.3%.
By the end of 2025, robberies had increased significantly in Yucatán and had become one of the three most prevalent crimes in the state, according to the Executive Secretariat of the National Public Security System, with more than 700 reports, nearly 300 of which occurred in the state capital.
Regarding fraud and extortion, authorities reported more than 200 cases, the vast majority for fraud and only two for extortion.
In Mérida, there were 134 reports of fraud and the two reports of extortion.
The Yucatecan capital remained at 20%, 12.3 percentage points below the national average. In this category, the best-performing cities were Piedras Negras and Torreón, in Coahuila, and Ciudad Obregón, in Sonora, with percentages of 11.7, 14.3, and 16.1, respectively.
Perception of Insecurity / National Data
The National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI) released the results of its recent National Urban Security Survey (ENSU).
Perception by Gender
Nationally, last December, 63.8% of the population aged 18 and over considered it unsafe to live in their city. By gender, 69.4% of women and 57.1% of men in the country reported feeling unsafe living in their city.
Contrast in the changes
The above does not represent a statistically significant change compared to the percentage in September 2025 (63.0%), but it does represent a statistically significant change compared to the percentage recorded in December 2024 (61.7%), the report presented by INEGI indicated.
Cities where insecurity is perceived as highest
The cities with the highest percentages of the population perceiving insecurity were Uruapan (88.7%)—where Mayor Carlos Manzo was murdered last November—, Culiacán Rosales (88.1%), Ciudad Obregón (88.0%), Ecatepec de Morelos (88.0%), and Irapuato (87.3%).
Source: yucatan
