Despite the tragic incidences you see highlighted on the news, Charlotte is actually a very safe place to live (compared to the rest of the country).
The website safewise.com recently ranked the safest places to live in North Carolina – their results were surprisingly optimistic.
7 of the safest cities in the state reported zero incidents of rape, and only one reported more than three incidents, according to the FBI’s crime data report.
Most cities also reported statistically low numbers of murder and nonnegligent manslaughter – so much so that every city on the top 20 list had a lower violent crime rate than the national average. North Carolina as a state even beat the national violent crime average, ranking 24th in the nation.
The top cities in our state were ranked by comparing the most recent FBI Crime Report statistics to current population data. Any city with fewer than 4,000 residents or cities that didn’t submit a crime report to the FBI were excluded from the rankings.
According to SafeWise, these are the top 20 safest places to live in North Carolina:
1. Pinehurst ↑
Previous Rank: 2
Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.70
Property Crime per 1,000: 5.83
2. Waxhaw ↑
Previous Rank: 5
Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.74
Property Crime per 1,000: 7.72
3. Holly Springs
Previous Rank: 3
Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.57
Property Crime per 1,000: 9.07
4. Trent Woods ↓
Previous Rank: 1
Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.24
Property Crime per 1,000: 10.16
5. Havelock ↑
Previous Rank: 18
Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.24
Property Crime per 1,000: 10.54
6. Stallings ↑
Previous Rank: 9
Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.79
Property Crime per 1,000: 10.49
7. Davidson ↓
Previous Rank: 6
Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.82
Property Crime per 1,000: 10.53
8. Cary
Previous Rank: 8
Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.51
Property Crime per 1,000: 11.87
9. Valdese ↑
Previous Rank: 17
Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.22
Property Crime per 1,000: 12.36
10. Woodfin ↑
Previous Rank: 14
Violent Crime per 1,000: 2.05
Property Crime per 1,000: 10.56
11. Black Mountain ↑
Previous Rank: 12
Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.73
Property Crime per 1,000: 11.92
12. Wendell ↑
Previous Rank: 26
Violent Crime per 1,000: 1.28
Property Crime per 1,000: 12.62
13. Cornelius ↓
Previous Rank: 10
Violent Crime per 1,000: 1.24
Property Crime per 1,000: 13.79
14. Fletcher ↓
Previous Rank: 11
Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.53
Property Crime per 1,000: 15.74
15. Morrisville ↑
Previous Rank: 22
Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.67
Property Crime per 1,000: 16.24
16. Leland ↑
Previous Rank: 23
Violent Crime per 1,000: 1.17
Property Crime per 1,000: 16.11
17. Gibsonville ↓
Previous Rank: 13
Violent Crime per 1,000: 2.66
Property Crime per 1,000: 15.23
18. Huntersville ↑
Previous Rank: 21
Violent Crime per 1,000: 1.38
Property Crime per 1,000: 17.01
19. Mint Hill ↑
Previous Rank: 24
Violent Crime per 1,000: 1.21
Property Crime per 1,000: 17.38
20. Winterville ↓
Previous Rank: 16
Violent Crime per 1,000: 1.88
Property Crime per 1,000: 16.72
The top 100 list shows city of Charlotte coming in at number 66, meaning that we’re officially safer than Raleigh, Durham, Greensboro, and even Asheville:
21. Rolesville | 22. Boone | 23. Clayton |
24. Wake Forest | 25. Cramerton | 26. Brevard |
27. Mount Holly | 28. Bessemer City | 29. Carrboro |
30. Creedmoor | 31. Kannapolis | 32. Archdale |
33. Newport | 34. King | 35. Matthews |
36. Jacksonville | 37. Concord | 38. Pittsboro |
39. Cherryville | 40. Beaufort | 41. Butner |
42. Kings Mountain | 43. Waynesville | 44. Burgaw |
45. Tarboro | 46. Rutherfordton | 47. Lexington |
48. Farmville | 49. Edenton | 50. Belmont |
51. Southern Pines | 52. High Point | 53. Carolina Beach |
54. New Bern | 55. Conover | 56. Lincolnton |
57. Mebane | 58. Garner | 59. Greensboro |
60. Greenville | 61. Newton | 62. Graham |
63. Burlington | 64. Erwin | 65. Mocksville |
66. Charlotte-Mecklenburg | 67. Raeford | 68. Aberdeen |
69. Shelby | 70. Spring Lake | 71. Thomasville |
72. Wilson | 73. Lenoir | 74. Mount Airy |
75. Albemarle | 76. Rocky Mount | 77. Durham |
78. Morehead City | 79. Wallace | 80. Mount Olive |
81. Hickory | 82. Wilmington | 83. Salisbury |
84. Long View | 85. Selma | 86. Asheville |
87. Clinton | 88. Hamlet | 89. Siler City |
90. Granite Falls | 91. Gastonia | 92. Hope Mills |
93. Roxboro | 94. Ahoskie | 95. Wadesboro |
96. Laurinburg | 97. Smithfield | 98. Reidsville |
99. Washington | 100. Zebulon |
In spite of these rankings, as Charlotte continues to grow, so does its crime.
How safe do you think Charlotte is?