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 2022 calendar year; released from FBI in Oct. 2023 (latest available). Updated annually.
Where is 2023 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
The crime rate in San Diego is considerably higher than the national average across all communities in America from the largest to the smallest, although at 23 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 San Diego is 1 in 43. Based on FBI crime data, San Diego is not one of the safest communities in America. Relative to California, San Diego has a crime rate that is higher than 68% of the state's cities and towns of all sizes.
However, NeighborhoodScout analyzed all cities and towns in America with a similar population size to San Diego, and we found that the crime rate in San Diego is one of the lowest in the nation for its size. This means San Diego is one of the safest places in America in which to live for its size, a very important finding.
Now let us turn to take a look at how San Diego 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 San Diego.
From our analysis, we discovered that violent crime in San Diego occurs at a rate higher than in most communities of all population sizes in America. The chance that a person will become a victim of a violent crime in San Diego; such as armed robbery, aggravated assault, rape or murder; is 1 in 229. This equates to a rate of 4 per one thousand inhabitants.
NeighborhoodScout's analysis also reveals that San Diego's rate for property crime is 19 per one thousand population. This makes San Diego 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 San Diego is one in 53.
Importantly, we found that San Diego 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 San Diego is one in 200.
San Diego 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.
