Data on this report is based on areas within the legal city boundary, outlined in black on the map. Any additional neighborhoods shown on the map are associated with the city by name and are included for reference only.
Raw data sources:
18,000 local law enforcement agencies in the U.S.
Date(s) & Update Frequency:
Reflects 2024 calendar year; released from FBI in October 2025 (latest available). Updated annually.
Where is 2025 data?
Methodology:
Our nationwide meta-analysis overcomes the issues inherent in any crime database, including non-reporting and reporting errors. This is possible by associating the 9.4 million reported crimes in the U.S, including over 2 million geocoded point locations….
Read more about Scout's Crime Data
With a crime rate of 28 per one thousand residents, Boston has one of the highest crime rates in America compared to all communities of all sizes - from the smallest towns to the very largest cities. One's chance of becoming a victim of either violent or property crime here is one in 36. Within Massachusetts, more than 98% of the communities have a lower crime rate than Boston.
However, compared to other communities of similar population size, Boston has a crime rate that is noticeably lower than the average. This means that for comparably sized cities all across America, Boston is actually safer than most according to NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis of FBI crime data.
Now let us turn to take a look at how Boston does for violent crimes specifically, and then how it does for property crimes. This is important because the overall crime rate can be further illuminated by understanding if violent crime or property crimes (or both) are the major contributors to the general rate of crime in Boston.
For Boston, we found that the violent crime rate is one of the highest in the nation, across communities of all sizes (both large and small). Violent offenses tracked included rape, murder and non-negligent manslaughter, armed robbery, and aggravated assault, including assault with a deadly weapon. According to NeighborhoodScout's analysis of FBI reported crime data, your chance of becoming a victim of one of these crimes in Boston is one in 161.
NeighborhoodScout's analysis also reveals that Boston's rate for property crime is 21 per one thousand population. This makes Boston a place where there is an above average chance of becoming a victim of a property crime, when compared to all other communities in America of all population sizes. Property crimes are motor vehicle theft, arson, larceny, and burglary. Your chance of becoming a victim of any of these crimes in Boston is one in 47.
Boston Crime
Data
FAQ on NeighborhoodScout's Crime Data
NeighborhoodScout® provides exclusive crime risk analytics for every neighborhood in America with up to 98% predictive accuracy. Crime risk indices are nationally comparable on a 1 – 100 scale, where 100 means safer than 100% of U.S. neighborhoods.
Crime risk data are updated annually. Raw crime incidents are sourced from all 18,000+ local law enforcement agencies – municipal, county, transit, park, port, university, tribal and more, assigned to localities, then built into NeighborhoodScout’s proprietary predictive models to provide a comprehensive crime risk profile for every neighborhood and address-vicinity in the U.S.
