US Crime Rates by State: Overview
This page ranks all 50 states by total crime rate per 100,000 residents, using data from the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting Program. Crime rates vary dramatically across the country — understanding where your state falls can help you contextualize local statistics and make informed decisions about relocation, travel, or policy.
Rhode Island has the lowest crime rate at 1,234 per 100K, while New Mexico has the highest at 5,079 per 100K — a 4.1x difference. The average state crime rate is 2,901 per 100K with a violent crime average of 487 per 100K.
Click any state name in the table below to view a detailed breakdown including city-level data, crime trends over time, and comparisons with neighboring states.
All States Ranked
Coverage shows residents covered by reporting agencies. Coverage compares this to US Census estimates. States below 50% (highlighted) have limited data.
| # | State | Coverage | Total Crime Rate | Violent Crime Rate | Property Crime Rate | Murder Rate | Coverage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rhode Island | 1,000,447 | 1,234.0 | 158.2 | 1,075.7 | 2.1 | 91% |
| 2 | Idaho | 1,061,269 | 1,248.2 | 271.4 | 976.9 | 1.7 | 54% |
| 3 | New Hampshire | 769,808 | 1,292.0 | 133.2 | 1,158.9 | 1.2 | 55% |
| 4 | Massachusetts | 6,241,488 | 1,445.7 | 322.0 | 1,123.7 | 1.8 | 89% |
| 5 | New Jersey | 198,429 | 1,457.5 | 248.0 | 1,209.5 | 1.5 | 2% |
| 6 | Connecticut | 2,965,338 | 1,754.1 | 160.0 | 1,594.2 | 2.7 | 82% |
| 7 | Utah | 2,185,098 | 1,864.1 | 267.1 | 1,597.0 | 2.5 | 64% |
| 8 | Maine | 461,733 | 2,037.8 | 156.8 | 1,881.0 | 4.1 | 33% |
| 9 | Wisconsin | 3,092,249 | 2,077.7 | 430.5 | 1,647.2 | 6.0 | 52% |
| 10 | Wyoming | 287,280 | 2,136.2 | 257.6 | 1,878.7 | 3.1 | 49% |
| 11 | Florida | 4,164,864 | 2,247.2 | 376.7 | 1,870.5 | 5.3 | 18% |
| 12 | Mississippi | 558,443 | 2,336.5 | 242.6 | 2,093.9 | 7.9 | 19% |
| 13 | Iowa | 1,595,976 | 2,397.2 | 350.8 | 2,046.4 | 2.5 | 50% |
| 14 | Arizona | 5,727,658 | 2,420.6 | 468.3 | 1,952.3 | 4.9 | 77% |
| 15 | Pennsylvania | 6,487,541 | 2,462.7 | 359.1 | 2,103.7 | 7.1 | 50% |
| 16 | Illinois | 8,170,474 | 2,486.1 | 356.9 | 2,129.2 | 7.9 | 65% |
| 17 | Minnesota | 3,375,491 | 2,549.3 | 342.5 | 2,206.8 | 4.5 | 59% |
| 18 | Georgia | 2,087,841 | 2,564.1 | 385.0 | 2,179.1 | 7.3 | 19% |
| 19 | Ohio | 6,228,512 | 2,575.5 | 438.2 | 2,137.3 | 7.9 | 53% |
| 20 | Michigan | 4,555,457 | 2,589.2 | 637.8 | 1,951.4 | 7.5 | 45% |
| 21 | California | 26,068,738 | 2,679.3 | 518.0 | 2,161.3 | 4.4 | 67% |
| 22 | Kansas | 1,563,895 | 2,717.9 | 483.9 | 2,234.0 | 5.8 | 53% |
| 23 | Virginia | 2,741,984 | 2,725.5 | 338.9 | 2,386.6 | 9.8 | 32% |
| 24 | New York | 12,889,897 | 2,739.6 | 529.5 | 2,210.1 | 3.8 | 66% |
| 25 | Nebraska | 1,144,293 | 2,778.5 | 312.5 | 2,466.0 | 2.6 | 58% |
| 26 | Alabama | 2,393,460 | 2,781.8 | 512.5 | 2,269.3 | 13.1 | 47% |
| 27 | Nevada | 2,801,624 | 2,801.4 | 410.9 | 2,390.5 | 6.4 | 88% |
| 28 | Kentucky | 1,942,613 | 2,816.8 | 380.4 | 2,436.4 | 10.3 | 43% |
| 29 | North Dakota | 450,515 | 2,825.4 | 354.0 | 2,471.4 | 3.1 | 57% |
| 30 | South Dakota | 479,100 | 2,931.1 | 455.0 | 2,476.1 | 4.8 | 52% |
| 31 | Texas | 19,773,418 | 2,965.7 | 467.4 | 2,498.3 | 6.3 | 65% |
| 32 | Oklahoma | 2,496,778 | 2,983.5 | 533.0 | 2,450.4 | 6.5 | 62% |
| 33 | South Carolina | 1,528,681 | 3,209.6 | 501.5 | 2,708.0 | 8.2 | 28% |
| 34 | Montana | 400,115 | 3,449.5 | 576.6 | 2,872.9 | 3.3 | 35% |
| 35 | Vermont | 180,119 | 3,454.9 | 334.2 | 3,120.7 | 1.7 | 28% |
| 36 | West Virginia | 278,028 | 3,489.6 | 498.5 | 2,991.1 | 6.8 | 16% |
| 37 | North Carolina | 4,978,294 | 3,508.0 | 556.7 | 2,951.3 | 9.0 | 46% |
| 38 | Oregon | 2,459,575 | 3,563.0 | 408.2 | 3,154.8 | 4.4 | 58% |
| 39 | Alaska | 371,050 | 3,613.3 | 920.9 | 2,692.4 | 9.2 | 51% |
| 40 | Arkansas | 1,469,443 | 3,626.3 | 777.0 | 2,849.3 | 10.0 | 48% |
| 41 | Missouri | 2,876,885 | 3,640.4 | 683.3 | 2,957.1 | 12.9 | 46% |
| 42 | Colorado | 3,899,640 | 3,866.0 | 609.8 | 3,256.2 | 5.5 | 66% |
| 43 | Washington | 4,571,619 | 3,868.1 | 439.5 | 3,428.6 | 4.7 | 59% |
| 44 | Delaware | 195,083 | 4,097.7 | 778.1 | 3,319.6 | 18.5 | 19% |
| 45 | Indiana | 916,990 | 4,130.6 | 859.9 | 3,270.7 | 19.4 | 13% |
| 46 | Maryland | 1,206,623 | 4,163.0 | 985.4 | 3,177.6 | 18.2 | 20% |
| 47 | Tennessee | 3,624,476 | 4,198.5 | 916.8 | 3,281.7 | 13.0 | 51% |
| 48 | District of Columbia | 702,250 | 4,513.9 | 925.9 | 3,588.0 | 25.5 | 100% |
| 49 | Louisiana | 868,406 | 4,632.6 | 941.0 | 3,691.6 | 16.8 | 19% |
| 50 | New Mexico | 1,060,807 | 5,078.6 | 968.4 | 4,110.2 | 14.0 | 50% |
Understanding State-Level Crime Statistics
State-level crime rates provide a useful overview, but they can mask significant variation between cities. A state with a moderate average rate may contain both very safe suburbs and high-crime urban areas. For a more granular picture, click through to individual state pages where you'll find city-by-city breakdowns.
Several factors influence state crime rates beyond simple geography: urbanization levels, poverty rates, policing strategies, drug policy, and even how consistently local agencies report to the FBI all play a role. States with more urban centers tend to report higher rates, while predominantly rural states often appear safer in aggregate.
The data in this table covers a combined population of 167,549,795 residents across all reporting agencies. All rates are sourced from the FBI UCR dataset. For details on how we process and present this data, see our methodology page.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which state has the lowest crime rate?
Rhode Island has the lowest total crime rate at 1,234 per 100,000 residents. This is 57% below the average state crime rate of 2,901.
Which state has the highest crime rate?
New Mexico has the highest total crime rate at 5,079 per 100,000 residents — 1.8x the average state rate. However, state-level rates can mask significant variation between cities within the state.
How are state crime rates calculated?
State crime rates are computed by aggregating crime reports from all law enforcement agencies within the state that participate in the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting Program. The total number of crimes is divided by the state's population and multiplied by 100,000 to produce a per-capita rate. This allows fair comparison between states of different population sizes.
Why do some states have higher crime rates than others?
Many factors influence state crime rates, including urbanization levels, poverty rates, unemployment, policing strategies, drug policies, demographics, and climate. States with more large cities tend to report higher rates. Reporting consistency also matters — some states have more complete FBI participation than others.