Mexico Cartel Map: Live Cartel Violence Tracker
Updated · 29 Oct 2026
UCDP recorded 235 cartel-related armed-conflict events in Mexico (30 Aug 2026 to 30 Sep 2026), with 262 deaths reported by UCDP. This Mexico cartel map shows where they happened and which groups fought each other; our risk score for Mexico is 50/100. Most of Mexico, including the main tourist areas, saw no recorded event.
235
Conflict events in Mexico (UCDP)
30 Aug 2026 to 30 Sep 2026
262
Deaths, UCDP best estimate
range 199-304
50/100
Mexico risk score (our model)
trend stable
2
Media reports, past 3 days
as of 08:31 UTC
237 UCDP events in view · 08:31 UTCTap a point for details · pinch or ctrl + scroll to zoomTrack this live in the app ›
Cartel news: latest reports
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Deadliest recorded events (UCDP, 30 Aug 2026 to 30 Sep 2026)
- Mexico: XXX70 vs XXX702026-09-09 · best estimate 4 (low 4, high 4) · non-state · reported by UCDPMED
- Mexico: XXX70 vs XXX702026-09-01 · best estimate 4 (low 4, high 4) · non-state · reported by UCDPMED
- Mexico: Jalisco Cartel New Generation, Sinaloa Cartel - Los Chapitos vs Sinaloa Cartel - Los Mayos2026-09-25 · best estimate 3 (low 0, high 3) · non-state · reported by UCDPMED
- Mexico: Jalisco Cartel New Generation, Sinaloa Cartel - Los Chapitos vs Sinaloa Cartel - Los Mayos2026-09-21 · best estimate 3 (low 3, high 3) · non-state · reported by UCDPMED
- Mexico: Jalisco Cartel New Generation vs Santa Rosa de Lima Cartel2026-09-19 · best estimate 3 (low 3, high 3) · non-state · reported by UCDPMED
- Mexico: XXX70 vs XXX702026-09-18 · best estimate 3 (low 3, high 3) · non-state · reported by UCDPMED
- Mexico: XXX70 vs XXX702026-09-13 · best estimate 3 (low 3, high 3) · non-state · reported by UCDPMED
- Mexico: XXX70 vs XXX702026-09-08 · best estimate 3 (low 3, high 3) · non-state · reported by UCDPMED
Key context
Who is fighting whom (UCDP dyads)
| Sides | Events | Deaths (best) |
|---|---|---|
| XXX70 vs XXX70 | 109 | 148 |
| Jalisco Cartel New Generation, Sinaloa Cartel - Los Chapitos vs Sinaloa Cartel - Los Mayos | 64 | 84 |
| Jalisco Cartel New Generation vs Santa Rosa de Lima Cartel | 45 | 12 |
| XXX70 vs Civilians | 11 | 12 |
| Sinaloa Cartel vs Civilians | 5 | 5 |
| Juarez Cartel vs Sinaloa Cartel | 1 | 1 |
The main cartels in 2026
- Sinaloa Cartel: split into rival factions (Los Chapitos and La Mayiza) that have fought each other in Sinaloa since September 2024, after Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada was taken to the US.
- Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG): the fastest-growing cartel, strong in Jalisco, Michoacán, Guanajuato and many other states.
- Gulf Cartel and Cartel del Noreste: rivals in Tamaulipas and the north-east border region.
- La Nueva Familia Michoacana and Cárteles Unidos: active in Michoacán, Guerrero and the State of Mexico.
- In February 2025 the US designated these six cartels as Foreign Terrorist Organizations.
Where violence is concentrated
Violence in Mexico is very local. The US State Department's travel advisory has listed Colima, Guerrero, Michoacán, Sinaloa, Tamaulipas and Zacatecas as "Do not travel" states; check the current version before a trip. Big tourist areas such as Cancún, the Riviera Maya, Mexico City's centre and Los Cabos have far fewer incidents, though not zero.
UCDP counts only organised armed violence between groups or against civilians that meets its criteria, so its numbers are lower than Mexico's total homicide figures.
Questions and answers
Which cartels are active in 2026?
The main ones are the Sinaloa Cartel (now split into warring factions), the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), the Gulf Cartel, the Cartel del Noreste, La Nueva Familia Michoacana and Cárteles Unidos. The table on this page shows which pairs fought each other in the latest UCDP data.
What are the most dangerous states in Mexico?
By the US State Department's travel advisory, the highest-risk states have been Colima, Guerrero, Michoacán, Sinaloa, Tamaulipas and Zacatecas. On this map, the densest cluster of events shows where organised violence was recorded most recently.
Is it safe to travel to Mexico?
Millions of tourists visit Mexico safely every year, and most violence happens between criminal groups in specific states. Check your government's travel advice for the exact state, stay in well-known areas, avoid night driving on highways in high-risk states, and follow local news. MonitorWorld can alert you to incidents near your route.
Is there a live cartel map?
This page is a near-live cartel map: the map uses UCDP events (30 Aug 2026 to 30 Sep 2026), which are published monthly, and the list above adds today's media reports every 10 to 15 minutes. In the latest window UCDP recorded 235 events.
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Sources
- UCDP Candidate Events Dataset: Uppsala Conflict Data Program, CC BY 4.0. Candidate (preliminary) events to 30 Sep 2026, not live. Fatalities are UCDP best / low / high estimates.
- The GDELT Project (DOC 2.0 API): media reports, matched by keyword. Headlines link to the publisher; MonitorWorld does not verify them.
- MonitorWorld news digest: headlines from public news feeds (Reuters, AP, BBC, Al Jazeera and others), severity rated by our model. Each headline links to the publisher.
- MonitorWorld risk index: 0-100 country and global risk scores computed from news activity, conflict data and military activity. An estimate, not an official rating.
Page built 08:31 UTC, 2026-10-29. Full list: data sources and method.