Safest Cities in North Carolina
Top 50 safest cities in North Carolina ranked by lowest violent crime rate per 100,000 residents. Includes cities with 10,000+ population.
FBI UCR Safest-Cities Snapshot: North Carolina
North Carolina's 50 safest cities for 2024 rank from Rolesville (violent crime rate 33.7/100K) at the top of the list to Raleigh (violent crime rate 488.8/100K) at the bottom of this top-50 selection. Rankings are drawn directly from FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program submissions and include only cities with reporting populations of 10,000 or more residents, which keeps per-capita rate calculations statistically stable. The average violent crime rate across these 50 cities is 228.1 per 100,000 residents — well below the US national benchmark commonly cited in the 350–400 range.
At the top of the list, Rolesville recorded 4 violent crimes and 52 property crimes against a reporting population of 11,884 in 2024. That works out to a property crime rate of 437.6 per 100,000 residents alongside the 33.7/100K violent rate — both well below typical US municipal benchmarks. The top five safest North Carolina cities on this list are Rolesville, Davidson, Stallings, Waxhaw, Pinehurst, each submitting Part I offense counts to the FBI UCR Program for 2024.
Violent crime rate is used as the primary ranking metric because the four Part I violent offenses (murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault) have higher reporting consistency than property offenses, which vary with local policing priorities and insurance-driven reporting. North Carolina cities that missed this list either fell below the 10,000-population threshold, had incomplete 2024 UCR submissions, or were consolidated into county agency totals rather than reporting individually. For context on how the FBI collects and publishes these statistics, consult the UCR Program documentation; agency participation is voluntary and coverage can shift from year to year.
| # | Grade | City | Population | Violent Crime Rate | Property Crime Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | B | Rolesville | 11,884 | 33.7/100K | 437.6/100K |
| 2 | B | Davidson | 14,332 | 41.9/100K | 446.6/100K |
| 3 | C | Stallings | 17,564 | 51.2/100K | 671.8/100K |
| 4 | C | Waxhaw | 23,893 | 58.6/100K | 422.7/100K |
| 5 | C | Pinehurst | 18,716 | 58.8/100K | 277.8/100K |
| 6 | C | Fuquay-Varina | 47,436 | 69.6/100K | 579.7/100K |
| 7 | D | Cary | 181,793 | 71/100K | 1317.4/100K |
| 8 | C | Elon | 11,585 | 77.7/100K | 310.7/100K |
| 9 | D | Winterville | 10,926 | 82.4/100K | 723/100K |
| 10 | D | Boone | 20,024 | 89.9/100K | 908.9/100K |
| 11 | F | Leland | 33,162 | 96.5/100K | 983.1/100K |
| 12 | F | Morrisville | 32,336 | 99/100K | 2433.8/100K |
| 13 | F | Mint Hill | 28,259 | 99.1/100K | 835.1/100K |
| 14 | F | Cornelius | 33,699 | 103.9/100K | 1035.6/100K |
| 15 | F | Archdale | 12,143 | 107.1/100K | 1120/100K |
| 16 | F | Mount Holly | 18,581 | 107.6/100K | 1646.8/100K |
| 17 | F | Wendell | 16,281 | 135.1/100K | 1074.9/100K |
| 18 | F | Huntersville | 65,752 | 143/100K | 1364.2/100K |
| 19 | F | Wake Forest | 55,872 | 146.8/100K | 1304.8/100K |
| 20 | F | Concord | 111,922 | 159/100K | 1105.2/100K |
| 21 | F | Kannapolis | 60,725 | 168/100K | 1785.1/100K |
| 22 | F | Clayton | 31,494 | 168.3/100K | 1282.8/100K |
| 23 | F | Chapel Hill | 63,906 | 172.1/100K | 2514.6/100K |
| 24 | F | Carrboro | 21,045 | 180.6/100K | 1929.2/100K |
| 25 | F | Matthews | 31,422 | 184.6/100K | 2654.2/100K |
| 26 | F | Knightdale | 20,557 | 194.6/100K | 2923.6/100K |
| 27 | F | Havelock | 16,574 | 205.1/100K | 1574.8/100K |
| 28 | F | Mooresville | 54,823 | 217.1/100K | 2152.4/100K |
| 29 | F | Kernersville | 28,522 | 227.9/100K | 3148.4/100K |
| 30 | F | Lenoir | 18,201 | 258.2/100K | 3219.6/100K |
| 31 | F | Hendersonville | 15,561 | 263.5/100K | 3058.9/100K |
| 32 | F | Mebane | 20,920 | 305.9/100K | 3212.2/100K |
| 33 | F | Mount Airy | 10,590 | 311.6/100K | 2436.3/100K |
| 34 | F | Zebulon | 10,356 | 328.3/100K | 2452.7/100K |
| 35 | F | Thomasville | 27,525 | 330.6/100K | 2296.1/100K |
| 36 | F | Elizabeth City | 19,064 | 341/100K | 2386.7/100K |
| 37 | F | Graham | 18,772 | 346.3/100K | 1880.5/100K |
| 38 | F | Garner | 36,720 | 356.8/100K | 4507.1/100K |
| 39 | F | Lincolnton | 12,478 | 360.6/100K | 2123.7/100K |
| 40 | F | New Bern | 32,548 | 362.5/100K | 1616.1/100K |
| 41 | F | Southern Pines | 17,092 | 368.6/100K | 2030.2/100K |
| 42 | F | Belmont | 15,672 | 382.8/100K | 2833.1/100K |
| 43 | F | Newton | 13,479 | 400.6/100K | 1906.7/100K |
| 44 | F | Hickory | 44,682 | 407.3/100K | 2824.4/100K |
| 45 | F | Eden | 15,307 | 411.6/100K | 2534.8/100K |
| 46 | F | Lexington | 19,899 | 437.2/100K | 3020.3/100K |
| 47 | F | Greenville | 90,871 | 453.4/100K | 2914/100K |
| 48 | F | High Point | 117,629 | 454.8/100K | 2456/100K |
| 49 | F | Wilmington | 125,101 | 482.8/100K | 3514.8/100K |
| 50 | F | Raleigh | 488,085 | 488.8/100K | 2819.2/100K |
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Top Safest Cities in North Carolina
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Methodology
Rankings are based on FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program data for 2024. The violent crime rate is calculated as the number of violent crimes (murder, rape, robbery, and aggravated assault) per 100,000 residents. Only cities in North Carolina with a population of 10,000 or more are included. Cities that did not report crime data are excluded.
Source: FBI Crime in the United States, Table 8. Population figures cross-check against U.S. Census Bureau estimates where FBI populations are unavailable. Data reflects reported offenses and may not capture all criminal activity.
Read our methodology — how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.