State crime profile · 2024
Wisconsin Crime Rates: Safest & Most Dangerous Cities
Crime data for 222 cities and 67 counties in Wisconsin (WI), ranked safest to most dangerous from 461 reporting agencies.
- 279.6
- Violent / 100K
- 1,156.8
- Property / 100K
- 222
- Cities
- 67
- Counties
The verdict
Wisconsin's 279.6 violent crimes per 100,000 runs 21% below the U.S. average, making it safer than most states.
- 279.6
- violent crimes per 100K
- -21%
- vs. the U.S. average
- 21st
- safest of 51 states & DC
- 1,156.8
- property crimes per 100K
How safe is Wisconsin? FBI UCR data snapshot
Wisconsin (WI) reported 16,669 violent crimes and 68,956 property crimes in 2024, based on FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program submissions from 461 law enforcement agencies. That translates to a statewide violent crime rate of 279.6 per 100,000 residents and a property crime rate of 1156.8 per 100,000 against a reporting population of 5,960,975. The PlainCrime dataset indexes 222 Wisconsin cities and 67 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 Wisconsin 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 283.5 to 279.6 per 100,000, a decline of 1.4%. City-level detail pages within Wisconsin 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.
State figures roll up the FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) submissions from local and county agencies across the state, then express them per 100,000 residents so one state can be compared with another. Statewide averages hide a great deal of variation: a handful of large cities often account for much of a state's reported violent crime, while most of its land area and population live with markedly lower rates. Reporting completeness also differs between states, so a year-over-year change can reflect which agencies filed data as much as any real shift on the ground. Read a state number as the broad backdrop, then drill into the city and county pages for the local detail that actually shapes day-to-day decisions.
How Wisconsin ranks nationally
Wisconsin vs. every U.S. state
Violent crime per 100,000 residents, FBI UCR 2024. Lower is safer.
280 Safer than 59% among 51 U.S. states
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
Top 50 by lowest violent crime rate
Most Dangerous Cities
Top 50 by highest violent crime rate
Crime Trends
Multi-year charts & analysis
Crime Trends
| Year | Population | Violent Crime | Rate | Property Crime | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 5,960,975 | 16,669 | 279.6 | 68,956 | 1156.8 |
| 2023 | 5,910,955 | 17,695 | 299.4 | 73,255 | 1239.3 |
| 2022 | 5,892,539 | 17,934 | 304.4 | 80,844 | 1372 |
| 2021 | 5,895,908 | 18,914 | 320.8 | 88,960 | 1508.8 |
| 2020 | 5,832,655 | 18,999 | 325.7 | 86,684 | 1486.2 |
| 2019 | 5,822,434 | 17,149 | 294.5 | 84,858 | 1457.4 |
| 2018 | 5,813,568 | 17,374 | 298.9 | 91,561 | 1575 |
| 2017 | 5,795,483 | 18,601 | 321 | 105,179 | 1814.8 |
| 2016 | 5,778,708 | 17,464 | 302.2 | 111,906 | 1936.5 |
| 2015 | 5,771,337 | 17,080 | 295.9 | 110,430 | 1913.4 |
| 2014 | 5,757,564 | 16,325 | 283.5 | 117,677 | 2043.9 |
Cities in Wisconsin
Safest cities in Wisconsin
Cities with 25,000+ residents, lowest violent crime per 100,000, FBI UCR 2024. Hover a bar for the exact rate.
- Muskego 11.8
Muskego
11.8 /100K
- Mequon
Mequon
39.1 /100K
- Franklin
Franklin
50.7 /100K
- New Berlin
New Berlin
62.2 /100K
- Caledonia
Caledonia
63.2 /100K
- Menomonee Falls
Menomonee Falls
67.4 /100K
- De Pere
De Pere
75 /100K
- Brookfield
Brookfield
83.3 /100K
What this shows Muskego is the safest sizeable city in Wisconsin, at 11.8 violent crimes per 100,000.
Highest violent-crime cities in Wisconsin
Cities with 25,000+ residents, highest violent crime per 100,000, FBI UCR 2024. Hover a bar for the exact rate.
- Milwaukee
Milwaukee
1,430.9 /100K
- Green Bay 495.1
Green Bay
495.1 /100K
- Sheboygan 427.3
Sheboygan
427.3 /100K
- Beloit 391.9
Beloit
391.9 /100K
- La Crosse 391
La Crosse
391 /100K
- Fond du Lac 387.2
Fond du Lac
387.2 /100K
- Racine 383
Racine
383 /100K
- Wausau 295.4
Wausau
295.4 /100K
What this shows Milwaukee reports the highest big-city violent-crime rate in Wisconsin, at 1,430.9 per 100,000.
| City | Population | Violent / 100K | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|
| Milwaukee | 560,416 | 1,430.9 | F |
| Madison | 282,045 | 256 | C |
| Green Bay | 105,240 | 495.1 | D |
| Kenosha | 97,652 | 285.7 | B |
| Racine | 76,243 | 383 | C |
| Appleton | 74,394 | 201.6 | B |
| Eau Claire | 70,891 | 162.2 | B |
| Waukesha | 70,202 | 114 | A |
| Janesville | 66,247 | 143.4 | B |
| Oshkosh | 65,994 | 231.8 | B |
| West Allis | 58,862 | 256.5 | C |
| La Crosse | 50,893 | 391 | D |
| Sheboygan | 49,610 | 427.3 | C |
| Wauwatosa | 46,968 | 206.5 | C |
| Fond du Lac | 44,164 | 387.2 | C |
| Brookfield | 42,019 | 83.3 | A |
| New Berlin | 40,186 | 62.2 | A |
| Menomonee Falls | 40,076 | 67.4 | A |
| Wausau | 39,949 | 295.4 | B |
| Sun Prairie | 38,519 | 184.3 | B |
| Oak Creek | 37,665 | 146 | B |
| Greenfield | 36,919 | 92.1 | B |
| Beloit | 36,231 | 391.9 | C |
| Franklin | 35,535 | 50.7 | A |
| Manitowoc | 34,546 | 208.4 | B |
| Fitchburg | 32,727 | 275 | B |
| West Bend | 31,947 | 237.9 | B |
| Mount Pleasant | 27,731 | 111.8 | B |
| Neenah | 27,480 | 156.5 | B |
| Superior | 26,310 | 220.4 | C |
| Stevens Point | 25,784 | 162.9 | A |
| Mequon | 25,586 | 39.1 | A+ |
| Muskego | 25,389 | 11.8 | A |
| Caledonia | 25,323 | 63.2 | A+ |
| De Pere | 25,319 | 75 | A |
| Grand Chute | 24,397 | 233.6 | C |
| Fox Valley Metro | 23,754 | 176.8 | A |
| Middleton | 23,353 | 107.1 | A |
| Watertown | 22,612 | 190.2 | B |
| Pleasant Prairie | 21,981 | 313.9 | C |
| Germantown | 21,066 | 61.7 | A |
| South Milwaukee | 20,178 | 158.6 | B |
| Onalaska | 19,068 | 36.7 | A |
| Fox Crossing | 18,926 | 89.8 | A |
| Oconomowoc | 18,830 | 15.9 | A+ |
| Marshfield | 18,669 | 214.3 | B |
| Wisconsin Rapids | 18,602 | 532.2 | D |
| Hobart-Lawrence | 18,035 | 44.4 | A+ |
| Menasha | 18,008 | 177.7 | A |
| Cudahy | 17,683 | 113.1 | A |
| Kaukauna | 17,622 | 102.1 | A |
| River Falls | 17,171 | 128.1 | A |
| Ashwaubenon | 16,992 | 235.4 | C |
| Menomonie | 16,595 | 132.6 | A |
| Beaver Dam | 16,473 | 145.7 | A |
| Verona | 16,443 | 48.7 | A |
| Hartford | 15,959 | 131.6 | A |
| Hudson | 15,714 | 114.5 | B |
| Whitewater | 15,473 | 200.3 | B |
| Waunakee | 15,227 | 105.1 | A |
| Chippewa Falls | 14,626 | 218.8 | B |
| Whitefish Bay | 14,537 | 13.8 | A+ |
| Greendale | 14,461 | 83 | A |
| Plover | 14,306 | 21 | A |
| Shorewood | 13,629 | 22 | A |
| Stoughton | 12,996 | 192.4 | B |
| Port Washington | 12,888 | 38.8 | A+ |
| Glendale | 12,877 | 295.1 | C |
| Grafton | 12,788 | 78.2 | A |
| Cedarburg | 12,649 | 47.4 | A+ |
| Brown Deer | 12,636 | 348.2 | C |
| Fort Atkinson | 12,274 | 236.3 | B |
| Holmen | 11,889 | 50.5 | A+ |
| Oregon | 11,833 | 42.3 | A+ |
| Deforest | 11,195 | 80.4 | A |
| Two Rivers | 11,138 | 215.5 | B |
| Burlington | 11,042 | 99.6 | A |
| Marinette | 11,023 | 172.4 | B |
| Platteville | 10,907 | 366.7 | C |
| New Richmond | 10,890 | 110.2 | A |
| Waupun | 10,873 | 285.1 | B |
| Monroe | 10,373 | 28.9 | A |
| Hartland | 10,259 | 68.2 | A+ |
| Reedsburg | 10,243 | 126.9 | B |
| Elkhorn | 10,218 | 58.7 | A |
| Delavan | 10,091 | 188.3 | B |
| Portage | 9,978 | 80.2 | B |
| Sturgeon Bay | 9,928 | 90.7 | A |
| Sparta | 9,781 | 316.9 | C |
| Altoona | 9,623 | 31.2 | A |
| McFarland | 9,602 | 62.5 | A |
| St. Francis | 9,524 | 105 | A |
| Cottage Grove | 9,518 | 115.6 | A |
| Tomah | 9,414 | 350.5 | C |
| Shawano | 9,236 | 216.5 | B |
| Merrill | 9,006 | 199.9 | C |
| Rice Lake | 8,997 | 244.5 | B |
| Plymouth | 8,897 | 22.5 | A |
| Lake Geneva | 8,816 | 102.1 | A |
| Kronenwetter | 8,597 | 46.5 | A+ |
Counties in Wisconsin
Largest counties in Wisconsin, violent crime per 100K
Top 8 counties by population, violent crime per 100,000 residents. Hover a bar for the exact rate.
- Milwaukee 16.7
Milwaukee
16.7 /100K
- Dane 9.3
Dane
9.3 /100K
- Waukesha 12
Waukesha
12 /100K
- Brown
Brown
23.8 /100K
- Racine 19.2
Racine
19.2 /100K
- Outagamie 19.9
Outagamie
19.9 /100K
- Winnebago 15.1
Winnebago
15.1 /100K
- Kenosha
Kenosha
50.8 /100K
Nearby States
Compare Wisconsin with neighboring states, or use the compare tool for side-by-side jurisdiction benchmarking.
Explore Wisconsin crime data
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.
Using PlainCrime rankings responsibly
Crime rankings are most useful when they sit alongside other community-quality signals, school performance, housing affordability, employment, and access to healthcare. A safer-than-average violent-crime rate in a small commuter suburb does not by itself make a city a better place to live; it is one data point among many. Likewise, a higher-than-average rate in a dense urban center may reflect that residents and visitors interact with police more often, not that the city is necessarily unsafe for its residents. We provide cross-links from each city profile to neighboring jurisdictions, state averages, and national benchmarks so you can read each number in context rather than in isolation.
For news outlets, researchers, and concerned residents who cite our rankings, the most defensible approach is to quote the per-100,000 rate, the reporting year, and the source agency in the same sentence. Avoid framing crime statistics as predictive, UCR data describes what was reported in a past year, not what will happen tomorrow. Where possible, pair our rankings with longitudinal trend data on the relevant city's profile page to show whether the rate is moving up, holding steady, or falling year over year.
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.