Area Safety Data

State hub ยท NC

Safest cities in North Carolina? Lowest and highest property-crime candidates

Use this hub to compare validated North Carolina city candidates by reported selected property-offense rate. It is a cautious city-page index, not a statewide safety ranking or personal-risk score.

Candidate-city rate 26.69 per 1,000 residents across listed cities; not a statewide risk score
Validated cities114Current candidate pages
Candidate population4,549,966Sum of listed city estimates
Selected offenses121,439FBI NIBRS offense records

Highest-rate city candidates

Use the city pages for source notes, trend handling, and offense mix. Small or ambiguous places remain outside automatic publication.

18,955 residents Lumberton 101.61 selected property offenses per 1,000 residents 11,591 residents Pineville 82.22 selected property offenses per 1,000 residents 5,088 residents Williamston 66.43 selected property offenses per 1,000 residents 15,033 residents Henderson 58.34 selected property offenses per 1,000 residents 34,898 residents Goldsboro 58.11 selected property offenses per 1,000 residents 8,792 residents Dunn 57.78 selected property offenses per 1,000 residents

Lowest-rate city candidates

Searchers often ask for the safest cities in a state. This section answers that intent carefully by showing the lowest reported selected property-offense rates among validated city candidates only.

5,857 residents Nashville 0.34 selected property offenses per 1,000 residents 5,403 residents Whispering Pines 2.78 selected property offenses per 1,000 residents 48,508 residents Holly Springs 3.01 selected property offenses per 1,000 residents 11,286 residents Elon 3.19 selected property offenses per 1,000 residents 18,487 residents Pinehurst 3.25 selected property offenses per 1,000 residents 75,762 residents Apex 3.96 selected property offenses per 1,000 residents

Home-security guides

City data pages point into practical guides for renters, no-subscription setups, package areas, cameras, and entry alerts.

Buying guide Door and window alarms for renters Compare simple entry alarms for apartments, rented homes, garages, and windows before moving into heavier systems. Buying guide No-subscription home security starter kit Build a basic home-security setup with local alarms, lighting, locks, and cameras without starting with a monthly plan. Buying guide Package theft camera checklist Check porch visibility, driveway angles, storage, Wi-Fi, and evidence needs before buying a camera for package areas. Buying guide Security camera checklist Evaluate exterior visibility, entry coverage, storage needs, and placement before choosing a camera system. Buying guide Smart lock and entry sensor checklist Start with reliable locks, entry sensors, lighting, and backup access before adding convenience features. Buying guide Basic home-security checklist A balanced setup can cover entries, packages, motion, lighting, and alerts without overbuying.

North Carolina city candidates

City Population Selected offenses Rate per 1,000 Trend
Lumberton 18,955 1,926 101.61 Increasing
Pineville 11,591 953 82.22 Decreasing
Williamston 5,088 338 66.43 Roughly stable
Henderson 15,033 877 58.34 Increasing
Goldsboro 34,898 2,028 58.11 Increasing
Dunn 8,792 508 57.78 Decreasing
Kinston 19,605 988 50.40 Roughly stable
Shallotte 5,170 252 48.74 Increasing
Laurinburg 14,929 704 47.16 Roughly stable
Hillsborough 9,742 456 46.81 Decreasing
Rockingham 8,869 384 43.30 Decreasing
Garner 39,306 1,684 42.84 Increasing
Salisbury 36,651 1,503 41.01 Roughly stable
Rocky Mount 55,201 2,224 40.29 Increasing
Asheville 95,149 3,804 39.98 Decreasing
Marion 7,497 297 39.62 Decreasing
Durham 300,834 11,686 38.85 Increasing
Oxford 9,024 339 37.57 Increasing
Spring Lake 11,174 414 37.05 Increasing
Smithfield 12,806 471 36.78 Decreasing
Roxboro 8,311 301 36.22 Roughly stable
Gastonia 85,872 3,076 35.82 Roughly stable
Wilmington 125,438 4,466 35.60 Increasing
Roanoke Rapids 14,588 501 34.34 Decreasing
Greensboro 306,355 10,490 34.24 Roughly stable
Aberdeen 9,595 328 34.18 Increasing
Lexington 19,933 674 33.81 Roughly stable
Washington 9,974 336 33.69 Roughly stable
Clinton 8,433 279 33.08 Roughly stable
Mebane 20,683 684 33.07 Roughly stable
Monroe 40,154 1,328 33.07 Decreasing
Lenoir 18,330 606 33.06 Decreasing
Hendersonville 15,730 510 32.42 Decreasing
Kernersville 28,688 914 31.86 Roughly stable
Burlington 61,523 1,959 31.84 Decreasing
Fayetteville 209,047 6,636 31.74 Roughly stable
Winston-Salem 255,646 7,610 29.77 Decreasing
Waynesville 10,731 317 29.54 Decreasing
Tarboro 10,963 316 28.82 Roughly stable
Hickory 45,222 1,300 28.75 Decreasing
Greenville 95,255 2,716 28.51 Increasing
Belmont 16,195 455 28.10 Decreasing
Raleigh 499,017 13,941 27.94 Increasing
Knightdale 21,803 609 27.93 Increasing
Reidsville 14,703 409 27.82 Decreasing
Eden 15,473 403 26.05 Increasing
Zebulon 10,474 271 25.87 Decreasing
Chapel Hill 63,379 1,633 25.77 Mixed
Selma 7,224 186 25.75 Roughly stable
Matthews 32,068 812 25.32 Decreasing
Shelby 22,829 574 25.14 Decreasing
High Point 118,341 2,964 25.05 Decreasing
Cherryville 6,436 159 24.70 Roughly stable
Morrisville 32,544 799 24.55 Increasing
Albemarle 17,451 425 24.35 Decreasing
Wilson 49,411 1,173 23.74 Roughly stable
Mount Airy 10,676 253 23.70 Decreasing
Asheboro 28,038 664 23.68 Decreasing
Thomasville 27,644 645 23.33 Roughly stable
Kings Mountain 11,965 276 23.07 Roughly stable
Statesville 31,142 705 22.64 Decreasing
Hope Mills 18,058 405 22.43 Decreasing
Lincolnton 12,345 268 21.71 Decreasing
Mooresville 55,500 1,201 21.64 Roughly stable
Southern Pines 17,027 365 21.44 Increasing
Newton 13,600 285 20.96 Decreasing
Dallas 6,300 129 20.48 Roughly stable
Carrboro 20,958 423 20.18 Roughly stable
Carolina Beach 6,873 134 19.50 Roughly stable
Graham 19,320 357 18.48 Decreasing
Kannapolis 60,731 1,094 18.01 Decreasing
New Bern 34,210 583 17.04 Decreasing
Morganton 17,830 298 16.71 Mixed
Kill Devil Hills 7,755 128 16.51 Decreasing
Fletcher 8,294 135 16.28 Decreasing
Creedmoor 5,061 81 16.00 Increasing
Boiling Spring Lakes 6,699 107 15.97 Increasing
Havelock 17,448 265 15.19 Decreasing
Ayden 5,219 79 15.14 Increasing
Jacksonville 72,656 1,093 15.04 Mixed
Wake Forest 56,614 770 13.60 Increasing
Butner 8,127 110 13.54 Decreasing
Cary 182,173 2,443 13.41 Increasing
Clayton 31,642 407 12.86 Decreasing
Cramerton 5,631 72 12.79 Increasing
Huntersville 67,037 815 12.16 Roughly stable
Woodfin 8,226 99 12.04 Roughly stable
Black Mountain 8,573 103 12.01 Decreasing
King 7,763 93 11.98 Decreasing
Archdale 12,197 137 11.23 Decreasing
Concord 112,733 1,226 10.88 Roughly stable
Gibsonville 9,741 105 10.78 Roughly stable
Leland 34,350 369 10.74 Increasing
Cornelius 34,325 366 10.66 Decreasing
Wendell 16,786 179 10.66 Increasing
Mount Holly 18,762 198 10.55 Decreasing
Brevard 8,105 82 10.12 Mixed
Boone 20,042 189 9.43 Decreasing
Angier 8,314 75 9.02 Decreasing
Holly Ridge 5,773 52 9.01 Increasing
Mint Hill 28,841 236 8.18 Decreasing
Winterville 10,892 80 7.34 Increasing
Stallings 17,622 129 7.32 Decreasing
Oak Island 9,313 63 6.76 Decreasing
Fuquay-Varina 46,224 291 6.30 Decreasing
Rolesville 11,838 53 4.48 Mixed
Waxhaw 23,205 103 4.44 Decreasing
Davidson 16,332 66 4.04 Decreasing
Apex 75,762 300 3.96 Decreasing
Pinehurst 18,487 60 3.25 Decreasing
Elon 11,286 36 3.19 Decreasing
Holly Springs 48,508 146 3.01 Mixed
Whispering Pines 5,403 15 2.78 Decreasing
Nashville 5,857 2 0.34 Decreasing

Important context

These figures are based on reported selected property offenses and Census population context for validated city candidates. Agency reporting boundaries can differ from municipal boundaries, so the methodology page explains why ambiguous or tiny-denominator rows stay out of automatic publication.

Read methodology