While it's true that crime rates have plummeted in recent decades, according to the most recent data from the Bureau of Justice Statistics and the FBI (via Pew Research), there are still places in our country where violent and non-violent crimes occur. is considerably higher than the average.
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GOBankingRates studied data from City-Data.com, which uses both government and private sources to generate a crime index value for each city. GOBankingRates also looked at the cost of crime, according to a 2024 study from MoneyGeek, based on FBI statistics, “to estimate the cost of crime for each city.”
Based on all this, here are 10 cities you might not want to call home without investing in some strong locks.
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Known for its great barbecue and jazz, Kansas City is also known for its crime, with a per capita crime cost of $6,398, more than 17 times higher than the safest big city in the country, Irvine, which has a crime cost of $ 364. The City-Data crime index value is equally intimidating at 675.1.
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Known for its breweries and beer history, Milwaukee may be a great place to have a beer, but it might cost you. The city has a crime cost of $7,029 and a City-Data crime index value of 663.2.
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Home to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Cleveland is also in the spotlight on this list for its high crime cost of $7,397, according to MoneyGeek's analysis. It scores a similarly flat note with a City-Data crime index value of 752.9.
Little Rock, Arkansas' capital and largest municipality, isn't so small when it comes to the cost of crime, with a registration fee of $7,781 and a City-Data crime index value of 796.9.
Buy a house in Baltimore and things may not be so cheerful, as the per capita cost of crime is $8,160. That coincides with a City-Data crime index value of 656.6.
Home to the King of Rock & Roll Elvis Presley's Graceland and still a hotbed for top blues, soul and other music, Memphis is not entirely harmonious. It has a high crime cost of $9,056 and a whopping City-Data crime index value of 1,022.4.
