State crime profile · 2024

North Carolina Crime Rates: Safest & Most Dangerous Cities

Crime data for 206 cities and 78 of 100 counties in North Carolina (NC), ranked safest to most dangerous from 536 reporting agencies.

Data updated 2026-09-05

364.6
Violent / 100K
1,929.5
Property / 100K
206
Cities
78
Counties

North Carolina violent crime is 364.6 per 100,000, 4% above the U.S. average

According to the FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program for 2024, North Carolina records 364.6 violent crimes per 100,000 residents, 4% above the national average (about the 30th-safest of 51 states and D.C.). Statewide averages hide city and county variation; UCR participation is voluntary.

  • 364.6 violent crimes per 100K
  • +4% vs. the U.S. average
  • 7,355 Charlotte-Mecklenburg violent-crime reports, volume #1 of 36
  • 1,076.4/100K Goldsboro rate #1 (volume #14)

How safe is North Carolina? FBI UCR data snapshot

North Carolina (NC) reported 40,271 violent crimes and 213,138 property crimes in 2024, based on FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program submissions from 536 law enforcement agencies. That translates to a statewide violent crime rate of 364.6 per 100,000 residents and a property crime rate of 1929.5 per 100,000 against a reporting population of 11,046,024. The PlainCrime dataset indexes 206 North Carolina cities and 78 counties, each with their own detail pages and local crime figures drawn from FBI UCR Tables 8 and 10.

The FBI's state-level summary reports violent and property crime as aggregate totals rather than broken out by individual offense type (murder, rape, robbery, assault, burglary, larceny, motor vehicle theft, arson). For an offense-by-offense breakdown, see the individual city and county pages for North Carolina below, which draw on FBI UCR Tables 8 and 10 and do report each offense type separately.

Across 11 years of state-level UCR history (2014–2024), the violent crime rate moved from 304.6 to 364.6 per 100,000, a rise of 19.7%. City-level detail pages within North Carolina include safety grades (A+ to F), benchmarks against national averages, per-capita risk estimates, and multi-year trend tables for users comparing specific jurisdictions. All figures above are drawn from FBI UCR 2024 submissions; reporting completeness varies by agency, and the FBI periodically restates prior-year figures as late submissions arrive.

How North Carolina ranks nationally

North Carolina vs. every U.S. state

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

365 41st percentile among 51 U.S. states

NC 0 1,100+ every state & DC, bucketed by value

Each bar is a band of values; taller bars hold more U.S. states. 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

Safest cities · Most dangerous cities · Crime trends

Crime Trends

Year Population Violent Crime Rate Property Crime Rate
2024 11,046,024 40,271 364.6 213,138 1929.5
2023 10,835,491 41,870 386.4 221,449 2043.7
2022 10,698,973 42,547 397.7 218,322 2040.6
2021 10,551,162 43,650 413.7 217,575 2062.1
2020 10,600,823 44,871 423.3 231,270 2181.6
2019 10,488,084 37,696 359.4 231,848 2210.6
2018 10,383,620 33,060 318.4 221,998 2138
2017 10,273,419 32,918 320.4 234,769 2285.2
2016 10,146,788 32,644 321.7 245,019 2414.7
2015 10,042,802 30,348 302.2 244,376 2433.3
2014 9,943,964 30,285 304.6 272,619 2741.6

Cities in North Carolina

Safest cities in North Carolina

Cities with 25,000+ residents, lowest violent crime per 100,000, FBI UCR 2024. Hover a bar for the exact rate.

/100K

What this shows Fuquay-Varina is the safest sizeable city in North Carolina, at 69.6 violent crimes per 100,000.

Source FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program As of 2024

Highest violent-crime cities in North Carolina

Cities with 25,000+ residents, highest violent crime per 100,000, FBI UCR 2024. Hover a bar for the exact rate.

/100K

What this shows Goldsboro reports the highest big-city violent-crime rate in North Carolina, at 1,076.4 per 100,000.

Source FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program As of 2024

Charlotte-Mecklenburg recorded 7,355 violent-crime reports (#1 of 36) at 733.2 per 100,000 (rate #9). Goldsboro recorded 360 (#14) at 1,076.4 per 100,000 (#1). These are FBI UCR 2024 agency submissions, not a personal risk forecast.

Volume #1 is not rate #1 among North Carolina cities

Violent-crime rate per 100,000 for the count leader and the rate leader among cities with 25,000+ residents, FBI UCR 2024. Each tooltip identifies the relevant rate or volume rank; chart row is not a state rank.

/100K

What this shows Charlotte-Mecklenburg recorded 7,355 violent-crime reports (#1 of 36) at 733.2 per 100,000 (rate #9). Goldsboro recorded 360 (#14) at 1,076.4 per 100,000 (#1). These are FBI UCR 2024 agency submissions, not a personal risk forecast.

Source FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program As of 2024
North Carolina's largest cities, violent vs. property crime. X axis violent crime per 100K, Y axis property crime per 100K, split by the national averages. 14 cities; the anchor is ringed. North Carolina's largest cities, violent vs. property crime 64 998 Violent crime per 100K → 995 4,207 Property crime per 100K → Charlotte-Meckl… Raleigh Greensboro Durham SAFEST HIGHEST CRIME PROPERTY-HEAVY VIOLENT-HEAVY Safety grade A / B C D / F
Source: FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program · split lines are North Carolina's statewide averages · the four largest cities are labeled
Read the chart as a list
  • Charlotte-Mecklenburg: 733 violent, 3705 property per 100,000 (grade F)
  • Raleigh: 489 violent, 2819 property per 100,000 (grade D)
  • Greensboro: 924 violent, 3383 property per 100,000 (grade F)
  • Durham: 619 violent, 3800 property per 100,000 (grade F)
  • Winston-Salem: 810 violent, 2921 property per 100,000 (grade F)
  • Fayetteville: 660 violent, 3095 property per 100,000 (grade F)
  • Cary: 71 violent, 1317 property per 100,000 (grade A)
  • Wilmington: 483 violent, 3515 property per 100,000 (grade F)
  • High Point: 455 violent, 2456 property per 100,000 (grade D)
  • Concord: 159 violent, 1105 property per 100,000 (grade B)
  • Asheville: 796 violent, 3895 property per 100,000 (grade F)
  • Greenville: 453 violent, 2914 property per 100,000 (grade D)
  • Gastonia: 850 violent, 3514 property per 100,000 (grade F)
  • Huntersville: 143 violent, 1364 property per 100,000 (grade B)
D

North Carolina safety livability score: 38/100

Percentile-benchmarked against all 51 tracked states, 2024 FBI UCR data.

  • Violent crime rate

    364.6/100K · D (41th percentile)

  • Property crime rate

    1929.5/100K · F (33th percentile)

  • Murder rate

    N/A, dropped from score, weight redistributed

City Population Violent / 100K Grade
Charlotte-Mecklenburg 1,003,130
733.2
F
Raleigh 488,085
488.8
D
Greensboro 304,306
923.7
F
Durham 300,208
619.2
F
Winston-Salem 254,041
809.7
F
Fayetteville 209,945
660.2
F
Cary 181,793
71
A
Wilmington 125,101
482.8
F
High Point 117,629
454.8
D
Concord 111,922
159
B
Asheville 95,219
796.1
F
Greenville 90,871
453.4
D
Gastonia 85,112
849.5
F
Huntersville 65,752
143
B
Chapel Hill 63,906
172.1
B
Burlington 60,906
952.3
F
Kannapolis 60,725
168
B
Wake Forest 55,872
146.8
B
Mooresville 54,823
217.1
B
Rocky Mount 54,223
765.4
F
Wilson 47,825
579.2
F
Fuquay-Varina 47,436
69.6
A
Hickory 44,682
407.3
D
Monroe 38,903
652.9
F
Garner 36,720
356.8
D
Salisbury 36,564
960
F
Cornelius 33,699
103.9
A
Goldsboro 33,444
1,076.4
F
Leland 33,162
96.5
A
New Bern 32,548
362.5
C
Morrisville 32,336
99
B
Clayton 31,494
168.3
B
Matthews 31,422
184.6
C
Kernersville 28,522
227.9
C
Mint Hill 28,259
99.1
A
Thomasville 27,525
330.6
C
Waxhaw 23,893
58.6
A+
Shelby 22,028
1,044.1
F
Carrboro 21,045
180.6
B
Mebane 20,920
305.9
C
Knightdale 20,557
194.6
C
Boone 20,024
89.9
A
Lexington 19,899
437.2
D
Kinston 19,298
958.6
F
Lumberton 19,087
1,676.5
F
Elizabeth City 19,064
341
C
Graham 18,772
346.3
C
Pinehurst 18,716
58.8
A+
Mount Holly 18,581
107.6
A
Lenoir 18,201
258.2
C
Stallings 17,564
51.2
A
Southern Pines 17,092
368.6
C
Havelock 16,574
205.1
B
Wendell 16,281
135.1
A
Belmont 15,672
382.8
D
Hendersonville 15,561
263.5
C
Eden 15,307
411.6
D
Laurinburg 14,994
1,894.1
F
Henderson 14,791
1,791.6
F
Reidsville 14,584
596.5
F
Roanoke Rapids 14,497
896.7
F
Davidson 14,332
41.9
A+
Newton 13,479
400.6
C
Smithfield 12,852
490.2
F
Lincolnton 12,478
360.6
C
Archdale 12,143
107.1
A
Kings Mountain 12,045
647.6
F
Rolesville 11,884
33.7
A+
Elon 11,585
77.7
A+
Spring Lake 11,459
541.1
F
Pineville 11,330
723.7
F
Winterville 10,926
82.4
A
Tarboro 10,920
668.5
F
Waynesville 10,813
499.4
D
Mount Airy 10,590
311.6
C
Zebulon 10,356
328.3
C
Morehead City 9,960
361.4
D
Aberdeen 9,795
245
C
Hillsborough 9,788
378
D
Gibsonville 9,619
176.7
B
Washington 9,616
520
F
Oxford 9,032
841.5
F
Rockingham 8,786
614.6
F
Dunn 8,633
903.5
F
Black Mountain 8,564
58.4
A
Clinton 8,300
566.3
F
Roxboro 8,235
1,007.9
F
Fletcher 8,219
73
A
Butner 8,156
245.2
B
Siler City 8,142
479
D
Woodfin 8,031
174.3
B
Angier 7,902
151.9
A
Kill Devil Hills 7,817
217.5
B
King 7,680
78.1
A
Marion 7,435
242.1
C
Forest City 7,391
527.7
F
Selma 7,244
1,049.1
F
Carolina Beach 6,917
332.5
C
Boiling Spring Lakes 6,903
289.7
C
Cherryville 6,342
173.4
C
Showing the 100 largest of 206 reporting cities. Browse all 206 cities → Or see the safest and most dangerous rankings.

Counties in North Carolina

78 of 100 Census county-equivalents (78%) appear in FBI Table 10 for this vintage. Missing counties are absent from the FBI source for this year, not dropped by PlainCrime. See national county coverage and methodology.

Largest counties in North Carolina, violent crime per 100K

The 7 of the 8 largest counties with complete FBI agency coverage, violent crime per 100,000 residents. Hover a bar for the exact rate.

/100K
Source FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program As of 2024

Not charted (Incomplete report): Gaston. Its 2024 FBI agency coverage fails this site's completeness screen, so a rate here would read as unusually safe only because agencies did not report.

Alamance
Alexander
Anson
Ashe
Avery
Bertie
Bladen
Brunswick
Buncombe
Burke
Cabarrus
Caldwell
Camden
Carteret
Caswell
Chatham
Cherokee
Chowan
Clay
Cleveland
Craven
Currituck
Dare
Davie
Durham
Edgecombe
Forsyth
Gaston
Gates
Granville
Guilford
Halifax
Harnett
Haywood
Henderson
Hertford
Hoke
Iredell
Jackson
Johnston
Lee
Lincoln
Madison
Martin
McDowell
Montgomery
Moore
New Hanover
Northampton
Onslow
Orange
Pamlico
Pasquotank
Pender
Perquimans
Person
Pitt
Polk
Richmond
Robeson
Rockingham
Rowan
Rutherford
Sampson
Scotland
Surry
Swain
Transylvania
Tyrrell
Union
Wake
Warren
Watauga
Wayne
Wilkes
Wilson
Yadkin
Yancey

Nationwide peers for North Carolina

Similar violent rate (~364.6/100K)

Similar property rate (~1,929.5/100K)

Nearby States

New Mexico
NM
New York
NY
North Dakota
ND
Ohio
OH
Oklahoma
OK

Safest cities · Most dangerous · Trends · National rankings · Crime grades · Compare · Methodology

Primary source: FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program, Crime in the United States annual release. State-level trends cross-check against the FBI Crime Data Explorer (CDE) API.

Population figures for rate calculations reference U.S. Census Bureau estimates where FBI-reported populations are unavailable. Verify with Census.gov QuickFacts.

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

Put this to use

Put the North Carolina FBI UCR state file to work: open a city, a county, or a national ranking built from the same vintage.

Look up a city Municipal rates inside North Carolina Safest states ranking How this state sits on the national violent-rate ladder Compare cities Side-by-side rates for up to 4 cities

A statewide average hides city and county variation: open a local profile before treating the state figure as a place-level verdict.

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.