Charleston, MO has a F safety grade (16/100) with a violent crime rate of 810 per 100,000, 130% above the national average.

FBI UCR 2024 Per-capita rates FBI UCR + NIBRS

Charleston, MO Crime Rate & Safety

Violent and property crime rates per 100,000 residents, drawn directly from FBI Uniform Crime Reporting data. Compare against state and national averages.

PlainCrime home → About this data
F
Safety grade
High Risk
809.5
Violent / 100K
1551.6
Property / 100K
4K
Population
+130%
vs U.S. avg

The verdict

Charleston earns an F safety grade: violent crime runs 130% above the U.S. average, placing it among the highest-crime cities in the country.

F
PlainCrime safety grade
+130%
violent crime vs. U.S. average
4th
percentile of 8,986 U.S. cities
1,551.6
property crimes per 100K

Crime data sourced from the FBI Uniform Crime Reporting program, covering violent crime, property crime, and individual offense categories. Safety grades reflect a composite analysis of violent and property crime rates benchmarked against national averages. For context on how crime statistics are collected and what they mean for community safety, read our guide to understanding FBI crime data.

Is Charleston, MO safe? Charleston has a violent crime rate of 809.5 per 100,000 residents in 2024, according to FBI Uniform Crime Report (UCR) data, 130% higher than the national average and 75% above the Missouri average. The city receives a safety grade of F (High Risk). Property crime rate: 1551.6/100K. Population: 4,447.

FBI UCR Data Snapshot: Charleston, MO

Charleston, MO, reporting population 4,447 in 2024, recorded 36 violent crimes and 69 property crimes in the FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program's Table 8 city-level submissions. The city's violent crime rate works out to 809.5 per 100,000 residents, while the property crime rate reaches 1551.6 per 100,000. Combining those two rates against national benchmarks yields a composite safety grade of F (High Risk), scoring 16 out of 100.

Within the violent crime count, aggravated assault accounted for 34 incidents, robbery 0, murder 1, and rape 1 in 2024. Property crime splits into larceny-theft (48), burglary (8), motor vehicle theft (13), and arson (0). Larceny-theft and other property offenses typically dominate city crime counts, and larceny-theft leads Charleston's mix at 45.7% of all Part I offenses.

Against the national violent crime average, Charleston runs 130% above the US benchmark, and 75% above the Missouri statewide rate. Translated to per-capita risk, the 2024 figures imply roughly a 1 in 42 statistical chance of being named in a crime report that year, narrowing to 1 in 124 for a violent offense. UCR figures reflect offenses reported to and submitted by local law enforcement and may undercount unreported crime.

These figures come from the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) program, which compiles offenses voluntarily submitted by local law enforcement agencies. Rates are expressed per 100,000 residents so a small town and a large city sit on the same scale, 50 burglaries mean something very different in a town of 2,000 than in a city of 500,000. Two caveats matter when reading any city's numbers. First, a year with missing or partial agency reporting can understate true crime, so a sudden drop sometimes reflects a reporting gap rather than a real safety gain. Second, UCR counts reported offenses, not convictions, and many crimes are never reported at all. Treat a grade as one input among several, not a final verdict on a place.

Is Charleston, MO Safe? Safety Assessment

Based on 2024 FBI crime data, Charleston, MO receives a safety grade of F (High Risk) with a composite safety score of 16/100. Violent crime is 130% above the national average, indicating substantially higher risk than most US cities.

Your statistical chance of being a crime victim in Charleston is approximately 1 in 42 , with a 1 in 124 chance of being a violent crime victim. The most common crime type is larceny-theft, accounting for 46% of all reported offenses.

Safety assessments are based on FBI UCR reported crime statistics. Actual safety varies by neighborhood, time of day, and individual circumstances. Crime reporting rates differ across jurisdictions.

Safety Overview

F 16/100
High Risk
Composite safety score
based on FBI UCR data
Violent Crime Rate
809.5/100K
violent crimes per 100K residents
+130% vs US
Property Crime Rate
1551.6/100K
property crimes per 100K residents
-9% vs US
Total Crimes
105
reported in 2024
Population
4,447
2024 Census-based estimate

Crime Rate Breakdown, How Each Offense Compares

Each offense category's rate per 100,000 residents, benchmarked against the national average. Bars show the rate relative to the highest-rate offense in this city.

Murder 22.5/100K
Rape 22.5/100K
Robbery 0.0/100K
Aggravated Assault 764.6/100K
Burglary 179.9/100K
Larceny-Theft 1079.4/100K
Motor Vehicle Theft 292.3/100K
Arson 0.0/100K

How this works: Each bar shows the offense rate per 100,000 residents relative to the most frequent offense in this city. ▲▼ indicators compare against the FBI UCR national rate for that offense category. A longer bar means a higher per-capita rate, it does not imply the city is dangerous; use it to understand the mix of crime types. Full methodology →

Crime Breakdown (2024)

Category Count Rate /100K
Violent Crime 36 809.5
Murder 1 22.5
Rape 1 22.5
Robbery 0 0
Aggravated Assault 34 764.6
Property Crime 69 1551.6
Burglary 8 179.9
Larceny-Theft 48 1079.4
Motor Vehicle Theft 13 292.3
Arson 0 0

Per-Capita Risk Assessment

Overall Crime Risk
1 in 42
Statistical chance of being a crime victim based on 2024 data
Violent Crime Risk
1 in 124
Statistical chance of being a violent crime victim

These are statistical averages based on reported crimes. Actual risk varies significantly by neighborhood, time of day, and individual circumstances.

Crime Type Distribution (2024)

Larceny-Theft 48 (45.7%)
Aggravated Assault 34 (32.4%)
Motor Vehicle Theft 13 (12.4%)
Burglary 8 (7.6%)
Murder 1 (1.0%)
Rape 1 (1.0%)

Charleston vs Missouri vs National Average

Charleston
Violent809.5/100K
Property1551.6/100K
GradeF
Missouri
Violent463.3/100K
Property1971.6/100K
National Average
Violent352/100K
Property1711/100K

How Charleston ranks nationally

Charleston vs. every U.S. city

Violent crime per 100,000 residents, FBI UCR 2024. Lower is safer.

810 4th percentile lower than 4% of 8,986 U.S. cities

0–100: 3,427 U.S. cities (38%). Below this entry. 100–200: 2,003 U.S. cities (22%). Below this entry. 200–300: 1,232 U.S. cities (14%). Below this entry. 300–400: 742 U.S. cities (8%). Below this entry. 400–500: 511 U.S. cities (6%). Below this entry. 500–600: 325 U.S. cities (4%). Below this entry. 600–700: 199 U.S. cities (2%). Below this entry. 700–800: 134 U.S. cities (1%). Below this entry. 800–900: 94 U.S. cities (1%). This entry sits in this band. 900–1,000: 77 U.S. cities (1%). Above this entry. 1,000–1,100: 59 U.S. cities (1%). Above this entry. 1,100–1,200: 38 U.S. cities (0%). Above this entry. 1,200–1,300: 27 U.S. cities (0%). Above this entry. 1,300–1,400: 24 U.S. cities (0%). Above this entry. 1,400–1,500: 12 U.S. cities (0%). Above this entry. 1,500–1,600: 16 U.S. cities (0%). Above this entry. 1,600–1,700: 10 U.S. cities (0%). Above this entry. 1,700–1,800: 12 U.S. cities (0%). Above this entry. 1,800–1,900: 11 U.S. cities (0%). Above this entry. 1,900–2,000: 4 U.S. cities (0%). Above this entry. 2,000+: 29 U.S. cities (0%). Above this entry. Charleston 0 2,000+ every reporting city, bucketed by value

Each bar is a band of values; taller bars hold more U.S. cities. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program · 2024

Charleston vs. nearby cities — violent vs. property crime. X axis violent crime per 100K, Y axis property crime per 100K, split by the national averages. 9 cities; the anchor city is ringed. Charleston vs. nearby cities — violent vs. property crime SAFEST HIGHEST CRIME 53 1,671 Violent crime per 100K → 431 6,163 Property crime per 100K → Charleston: 810 violent · 1,552 property per 100K · grade F Charleston Kansas City: 1,547 violent · 4,676 property per 100K · grade F St. Louis: 1,367 violent · 5,707 property per 100K · grade F Springfield: 1,178 violent · 4,185 property per 100K · grade F Columbia: 348 violent · 2,318 property per 100K · grade C Independence: 571 violent · 3,524 property per 100K · grade F Lee's Summit: 149 violent · 2,294 property per 100K · grade B O'Fallon: 59 violent · 479 property per 100K · grade A+ St. Charles: 135 violent · 887 property per 100K · grade A Safety grade A / B C D / F
Source: FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program · split lines are the U.S. national averages

Nearby Cities in Missouri

Compare Charleston against neighboring cities in the same state, or use our side-by-side compare tool to benchmark two cities directly.

Kansas City
F
Pop: 511,535
Violent: 1547.1/100K
Property: 4676.1/100K
St. Louis
F
Pop: 277,294
Violent: 1367.1/100K
Property: 5706.9/100K
Springfield
F
Pop: 170,527
Violent: 1178.1/100K
Property: 4184.7/100K
Columbia
C
Pop: 130,354
Violent: 347.5/100K
Property: 2317.5/100K
Independence
F
Pop: 120,271
Violent: 571.2/100K
Property: 3523.7/100K

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the crime rate in Charleston, MO? ▼
Charleston has a violent crime rate of 809.5 per 100,000 residents and a property crime rate of 1551.6 per 100,000, based on 2024 FBI UCR data.
Is Charleston, MO safe? ▼
Charleston receives a safety grade of F (High Risk), with a safety score of 16/100. The violent crime rate is 130% above the national average and 75% above the Missouri average.
What is the population of Charleston, MO? ▼
The reporting population for Charleston is 4,447 as of 2024.
How many crimes were reported in Charleston? ▼
In 2024, Charleston reported 36 violent crimes and 69 property crimes, for a total of 105 reported offenses.
What are the odds of being a crime victim in Charleston? ▼
Based on 2024 data, the statistical chance of being a crime victim in Charleston is approximately 1 in 42, with a 1 in 124 chance of being a violent crime victim. These are statistical averages and actual risk varies by neighborhood and circumstance.
What is the most common crime in Charleston? ▼
The most common crime type in Charleston is larceny-theft, accounting for 45.7% of all reported crimes (48 incidents in 2024).

Understanding Crime Data

►
Understanding Crime Rates
How per-capita rates are calculated and what they mean
 ►
Violent vs Property Crime
Key differences between crime categories
 ►
FBI Crime Stats Explained
How the FBI collects and reports UCR data
 ►
Crime, Housing & Schools
How safety connects to housing costs and school quality

Data as of 2024. Source: FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program.

Crime rates are calculated per 100,000 population. Not all agencies report complete data. FBI Crime in the United States (CIUS) Table 8. Population figures referenced from U.S. Census Bureau estimates where noted; state-level comparisons cross-check against state UCR programs. Verify with FBI.gov UCR, Census.gov QuickFacts, and HUD.gov fair-market rents.

Disclaimer: This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Data is sourced from the FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program. Consult a qualified professional before making decisions based on this data.

Read our methodology , how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

All federal data sources used on this page
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