The crime rate in Harrisburg is considerably higher than the national average across all communities in America from the largest to the smallest, although at 22 crimes per one thousand residents, it is not among the communities with the very highest crime rate. The chance of becoming a victim of either violent or property crime in Harrisburg is 1 in 44. Based on FBI crime data, Harrisburg is not one of the safest communities in America. Relative to Pennsylvania, Harrisburg has a crime rate that is higher than 89% of the state's cities and towns of all sizes.

How does the crime rate in Harrisburg compare to similar sized communities across America? When NeighborhoodScout compared Harrisburg with other communities its size, we found that the crime rate was near the average for all other communities of similar size. So, whether Harrisburg's crime rate is high or low compared to all places in the US, when we control for population size and compare it to places that are similar in size, it is near the middle of the pack in crime rate; not much more or less dangerous, and about what we would expect from the statistics.

Now let us turn to take a look at how Harrisburg 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 Harrisburg.

For Harrisburg, 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 Harrisburg is one in 162.

NeighborhoodScout's analysis also reveals that Harrisburg's rate for property crime is 16 per one thousand population. This makes Harrisburg 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 Harrisburg is one in 61.

Importantly, we found that Harrisburg has one of the highest rates of motor vehicle theft in the nation according to our analysis of FBI crime data. This is compared to communities of all sizes, from the smallest to the largest. In fact, your chance of getting your car stolen if you live in Harrisburg is one in 300.