Crime Data Guides
In-depth articles on understanding FBI crime statistics, interpreting safety data, and using crime information responsibly.
Crime numbers are easy to misread. A city can look dangerous because its police department reports thoroughly, or look safe because a single agency skipped a year. These guides walk through how the figures are built, what they leave out, and how to draw fair conclusions from them. Each one starts from the same federal data behind every ranking on this site, then explains the reasoning in plain language, how a rate per 100,000 residents is calculated, why two towns of different sizes need that adjustment before any comparison makes sense, and when a year-over-year swing reflects real change versus a reporting quirk. Read them before you trust any single statistic, including ours.
FBI Crime Statistics Explained: How to Read UCR Data
Learn how the FBI collects crime data through the Uniform Crime Reporting program, what Part I and Part II offenses mean, and how to calculate and compare crime rates.
Safest States in America 2026
Which states have the lowest crime rates? Explore the top 10 safest states based on FBI UCR violent and property crime data, with our methodology explained and data limits noted.
Property Crime Prevention: Evidence-Based Strategies
Practical, research-backed strategies for preventing burglary, larceny, auto theft, and other property crimes. Covers CPTED, technology, and community approaches.
Violent Crime vs Property Crime: Understanding the Difference
What distinguishes violent crime from property crime in FBI data? Explore definitions, trends, and why the distinction matters for public policy and daily life.
Why Crime Statistics Can Be Misleading
Voluntary reporting gaps, the dark figure of crime, methodology differences, and media distortion. A critical look at what crime data can and cannot tell us.
How Neighborhood Safety Affects Housing Costs, Rents, and Schools
Crime rates directly shape what you pay to live somewhere and the quality of nearby schools. A data-driven look at the connections between FBI crime data, HUD rents, school quality, and cost of living.
Understanding Crime Rates: How to Read FBI Data
What crime rates per 100,000 mean, how to compare cities fairly, the dark figure of unreported crime, and the most common mistakes people make interpreting crime statistics.
Safest Cities in America: How We Rank Them
Our methodology for ranking the safest cities, including safety score formula, population thresholds, data sources, weighting decisions, and important caveats.
How are these guides sourced and reviewed?
Every PlainCrime guide is grounded in the FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program and, where relevant, the FBI Crime Data Explorer (CDE) API. Definitions (Part I offenses, violent vs property crime, UCR vs NIBRS reporting) follow the FBI's published classification rules. Population denominators reference U.S. Census Bureau estimates when FBI-reported populations are unavailable.
Articles are reviewed against primary sources before publication and updated when the FBI releases new annual data. For the data pipeline, grading formula, and limitations, read our full methodology page.
Explore the Data
These guides complement our crime statistics database. Dive into the data for any U.S. city, county, or state.
Explore PlainCrime
Every figure on PlainCrime is rendered directly from FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on FBI Uniform Crime Reporting source data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.