Crime Data Sources

So you want to know where we get our numbers. Good. You should ask that. Any site throwing crime stats at you without sourcing them is not worth your time. Here's exactly where our data comes from.

Primary Data Sources

FBI Uniform Crime Reports (UCR)

This is our primary source for state and city-level crime statistics. The UCR collects data from over 18,000 law enforcement agencies across the country, covering both violent crimes (murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault) and property crimes (burglary, larceny-theft, motor vehicle theft). We use the most recently published annual data, typically reflecting the prior calendar year.

Local Law Enforcement Agencies

For neighborhood-level data that isn't available through the FBI UCR, we supplement with reports published directly by local police departments and sheriff's offices. Many departments publish annual crime reports or maintain public-facing crime mapping tools. These are genuinely useful.

NeighborhoodScout

NeighborhoodScout provides proprietary neighborhood-level crime analytics using a combination of FBI data, local police reports, and demographic modeling. We reference their safety scores as one input to our overall assessment.

AreaVibes

AreaVibes aggregates livability data including crime, cost of living, education, and employment metrics. We use their neighborhood-level crime aggregations as a supplementary data point.

How Safety Scores Are Calculated

Our safety scores run on a 0 to 100 scale based on a weighted combination of violent crime rate (40%), property crime rate (40%), and crime trend direction (20%). A score of 100 is the safest possible rating, while 0 indicates the highest risk. Scores are relative to national averages and get recalculated whenever we update our underlying data.

How Often Data Is Updated

FBI UCR data is published annually, typically with a 6 to 12 month lag. We update our state and city statistics within 30 days of each new FBI release. Neighborhood-level data is reviewed and updated quarterly. The "data year" shown on each page reflects the actual year of the underlying crime statistics, not when we published the page.

Limitations (being honest here)

• Not all crimes are reported to police. Official statistics reflect only reported incidents. That's a real limitation and we won't pretend otherwise.
• Reporting practices vary by jurisdiction. Direct comparisons between cities in different states should be made with caution.
• Neighborhood boundaries are approximations and may not align exactly with police precinct or census tract boundaries.
• Crime rates can change significantly from year to year. A single year of data may not reflect long-term trends.
• Safety scores are estimates intended for general guidance, not guarantees of safety or danger.

If you believe any data on our site is incorrect, please contact us and we'll investigate promptly. We genuinely want to get this right.