La Jornada: Attendance at museums in Mexico increased from 2024 to 2025, but does not reach pre-covid figures

Influx to museums in Mexico is recovering from the breaking point represented by the covid pandemic. Last year, 52.2 million people attended these venues, a figure higher than the 51.5 million in 2024, revealed the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (Inegi).

According to the Museum Statistics (EM) 2025, which the organization collected in 1,215 venues, museums have recovered influx compared to the 12.8 million people who visited them in 2020, a year marked by the confinement and social distancing measures that the pandemic implied.

However, this return to museums has been gradual; The number of visitors reported for last year is above that registered in 2024 and the 48.4 million in 2023, but the maximum influx of 75.2 million that Inegi registered in 2017 has not yet been reached.

As part of Museum Statistics, Inegi integrates the infrastructure and characteristics of museums, as well as the sociodemographic characteristics of their visitors and the latter’s experience when visiting the venues.

According to the survey carried out by Inegi last year among more than 191 thousand visitors, it is assumed that the main reason why Mexicans do not attend museums is the lack of dissemination, publicity or ignorance of the collection, with 18.2 percent of the responses.

Among other causes they consider for low attendance at art galleries are lack of time, interest, motivation, laziness, remoteness and work.

Mexico City is home to one of the richest cultural offerings in the world and stands out with an influx of 25.8 million visitors to 166 museums, last year alone; They are followed by Nuevo León, with 4.7 million and 47 museums, and Guanajuato, with 2.4 million in 60 museums.

Of the total number of venues that provided information, 59.8 percent are free to access; 21.1 percent charged a fee and in 19.1 percent admission was free some days of the week. The percentages were similar to those of 2024 (59.4, 21.8 and 18.8, respectively).

In 2025, nine out of 10 of the museums had a guided tour service and 49.4 percent had artistic and cultural activities. In addition, 34.9 percent of museum spaces reported infrastructure for people with disabilities and 33.5 percent, Wi-Fi.

Of the visitors, 67 percent received some family encouragement during childhood to visit museums or similar venues; 32.8 percent stated that they had not received it and 0.2 percent (462 cases) did not specify. The percentages were similar to those of the previous year.

Of the people who visited museums in 2025, three out of five had higher education; one in four, high school, and 12.3 percent, basic education (preschool, primary and secondary).

Of the museums, 75.4 percent had public resources for their operation: 40.5 percent had resources only from municipal origin; 30.3 percent, nothing more state; 23.6 percent were federal only, and 5.6 percent operated with financing from more than one of these areas. On the other hand, 14.4 percent carried out their activities with private resources and 11.1 percent with self-generated resources. In 2024, the percentages were similar.