Boston, MA, is one of the most important cities in American history. Not only is it one of the oldest cities in the New World, but it is also the site of many historically significant events.
Although the city itself is not one of the largest in the country, it still has a significant population. The city’s population is 654,776. However, the urban area has about 4.3 million people. As is the case with any large city, it has both advantages and disadvantages.
Today, I want to walk you through Boston’s crime rate and other related statistics.
Bottom line:
- Boston’s crime rate in 2024 is 6.6 per 1,000 residents.
- With 4,293 violent crimes reported, the rate is more than double that of Massachusetts.
- Boston hit record low murder rate in 2023 with 37 murders, below the five-year average of 49.
Is Boston considered a safe city?
In 2023, Boston was voted the second safest city in the country, after Dallas, according to CBS News. I would like to point out that the source cited by CBS is a Gallup survey, which focuses on the opinions of ordinary people across the country.
In reality, whether a city is considered safe depends on many different factors, including the specific area of the city, the type of crime being considered (violent crime and assets) and the individual’s personal experience or perception of safety.
When it comes to Boston, the current landscape looks like this:
Boston’s crime rate in 2024 is at 6.6 per 1,000 residents, or 4,293 violent crimes, more than double that of Massachusetts. At the same time, the number of property crimes is 14,489 in 2023.
The city has something to be proud of as 2023 was the year the murder rate here hit a record low. There were only 37 murders committed in the past year. At the same time, the District Attorney’s office stated that it also resulted
- 24 arrests
- 19 pleas
- 12 sentences
37 is well below the five-year average of 49, according to the 2023 Boston Police report. Additionally, both fatal and non-fatal shootings decreased in 2023 compared to the previous year. Fatal from 32 to 26 and non-fatal from 148 to 118.
Unfortunately, the same report also said that the number of rapes had increased, from 186 to 194, as well as the number of robberies, from 778 to 845.
What about different neighborhoods?
Placing all neighborhoods in a city into the same category is practically impossible, for many reasons such as development, average income, and of course crime rates. Let’s see what’s the most dangerous and safest out there:
According to Areavibes, the most dangerous areas are as follows:
| Neighbor | Violent crime | Compare that to the Boston average |
|---|---|---|
| Center | 1,468 | Crime is 137% more than the city average |
| Roxbury | 1.162 | The crime rate is 88% higher than the city average |
| Southern end | 864 | Crime is 40% more than the city average |
| Mattapan | 829 | Crime is 34% more than the city average |
| South Dorchester | 773 | The crime rate is 25% more than the city average |
| North Dorchester | 678 | Crime is 10% more than the city average |
| Back Bay-Beacon Hill | 537 | Crime is 13% less than the city average |
| South Boston | 449 | The crime rate is 27% less than the city average |
| Hyde Park | 419 | The crime rate is 32% less than the city average |
| Jamaica Plain | 416 | The crime rate is 33% less than the city average |
Meanwhile, MovingWaldo talks about the safest areas of the city:
| Neighbor | Population | Crime rate |
|---|---|---|
| Winchester | 22,827 | 6.53 |
| Brookline | 59,057 | 18.13 |
| Somerville | 81,552 | 25,28 |
| Malden | 60,231 | 27.84 |
| Quincy | 94,519 | 38,33 |
How does it compare to other major cities?
As Forbes writes, this city is currently the 13th safest city if we focus on cities with a population of over 300 thousand people. But how does this compare to violent crime in other major cities in the country, according to Neighborhoodscout:
- Houston, TX – 11.35 / 26,149
- Los Angeles, CA – 8.38 / 32,042
- Phoenix, AZ – 8.23 / 13,529
- Chicago, IL – 5.38 / 14,344
- New York, NY – 4.29 / 84,469
Boston vs. Massachusetts
In Massachusetts, the violent crime rate stands at 3.0 crimes per 1,000 people. This statistic remains relatively stable from 2018 to 2023, with a significant spike in 2020.
Despite the state’s sizeable population of about 6.9 million, the motor vehicle theft rate in 2022 was relatively low, with 7,211 reported violations and an arrest rate of 12.29 per 1,000, marking a slight increase of 3.02% compared to 2021.
But how does Boston compare to other cities in the state, according to Gitnux:
| City | Violent crime rate | Property crime rate |
|---|---|---|
| Autumn River | 1055 | 3383 |
| Holyoke | 1038 | 2858 |
| Brockton | 865 | 2118 |
| Springfield | 1060 | 2706 |
| New Bedford | 822 | 2310 |
| Lynn | 704 | 2255 |
| Worcester | 648 | 2269 |
| Randolph | 501 | 1971 |
| Chelsea | 489 | 1653 |
| Lowell | 371 | 2086 |
Police force in Boston, MA
A few years ago, the Boston police force experienced a crisis in numbers due to the retirement of many police officers. This situation raises concerns about the department’s ability to maintain public safety and effectively respond to the needs of the city. However, a concerted effort to address these concerns has resulted in improvements in staffing and operational capacity.
According to the Vera Institute, the city’s policing budget is $431,731,291, accounting for 16% of the city’s funds.
This significant allocation of resources underscores the city’s commitment to public safety, which equates to $595 per resident spent on policing. The police department’s officer-to-resident ratio is 1 to 229, indicating a significant investment in law enforcement personnel relative to population size.
Funding sources for BPD are diverse, mainly coming from Boston’s general fund. This fund is the city’s primary operating fund and is supplemented by additional financial support from local, federal and state sources.
The funding structure supports the department’s operations, including staffing costs, training, equipment and community policing initiatives.
The strength of police unions often makes it difficult to reallocate funding from policing to other areas, although such changes are likely to reflect evolving priorities and needs. community development.
Methodology
Every year, the FBI releases two sets of crime data: an initial report focusing on the country’s largest cities and a more detailed report later in the year. We used the latest data available from the FBI’s 2022 Crime Report in the United States. We plan to update our findings with new data expected in September 2024.
Our research focuses on two key indicators:
- Violent crime rate per capita
- Property crime rate per capita
We aimed for a balanced analysis by looking primarily at Boston and other cities in Massachusetts.
Final thoughts
As you can see, Boston is a safe city by US standards, especially when it comes to big cities.
The city’s crime rate is only slightly higher than the national average, which says a lot.
At the same time, the police force has a high budget to ensure people’s safety.
Lazar Bojic
I’m Lazar Bojic, an established professional in the field of digital marketing with nearly a decade of experience. Specializing in multiple areas of expertise is my main strength as a content creator. In addition to being a content writer, I’m also involved in creating many other types of content, including infographics and scripting for video content creators, across a variety of industries. Among my outstanding works, content creation at wikibiography.in certainly holds a special place.
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