Kentucky’s Safest Cities of 2026

See crime rates for the safest cities.

Official statewide crime rates reveal that violent and property crime is on the rise in Kentucky, but Kentuckians reported a more hopeful reality in our State of Safety survey. According to our report, The Bluegrass State has seen some dramatic changes in violent crime and gun violence over the last year. Package theft held steady, but overall property crime experiences decreased.

The violent crime rate in Kentucky is 3.31 incidents per 1,000 people, which is lower than the national average of 4.43. We weren't able to report a statewide violent crime rate last year due to insufficient data, but in our 2024 report, Kentucky reported a lower violent crime rate of 2.7.

Property crime in The Bluegrass State has also increased in recent years, jumping from 16 incidents per 1,000 people in 2024 to 23.06 incidents in this year's report. That's higher than the national property crime rate of 22.89. 

Despite an increase in crime rates, Kentuckians who took our State of Safety survey report a surge of confidence. About two-thirds (67%) say they feel safe in the state, which is a staggering increase from 39% the last two years in a row. That's the fourth highest percentage in the nation.

Concern about property crime has decreased among Kentuckians, but they're more likely to have use property protections like security cameras and guard dogs. Kentuckians also reported the same level of package theft experiences as the year before, but they're less worried about it now.

• The percentage of Kentuckians concerned about property crime decreased from 58% to 44% year over year (US 46%).
• Property crime is the least of Kentuckians' concerns.
• Concern about package theft fell from 57% to 47% year over year.
• 32% said they experienced package theft in the 12 months prior to our survey, which is the same percentage as the year before (US 31%).
• The percentage of Kentuckians who experienced property crime decreased from 28% to 18% year over year (US 21%).
• 42% of Kentucky respondents increased their security measures in the 12 months prior to our survey. That's the third highest percentage in the nation.
• Kentuckians prefer to protect their property with security cameras (61%), guard dogs (43%), and firearms (41%).
• Kentuckians are among those most likely to use security cameras. Only Floridians report a higher level of use.
• Kentuckians use guard dogs for property protection more than any other Americans.

Last year, Kentuckians who took our State of Safety survey reported the highest levels of violent crime experience in the nation. This year's report paints a much less volatile portrait of the state, one where violent crime experiences and concerns fall below national averages.

• 11% of Kentuckians said they experienced a violent crime in the 8 months prior to our survey, down from 28% the year before (US 12%).
• The percentage of Kentuckians who worry about violent crime on a daily basis fell significantly from 70% to 48% year over year (US 55%).
• 47% of Kentuckians use some form of personal protection. 
• Kentuckians prefer to protect themselves with firearms (49%), pepper spray (40%), and pocket knives (36%).

• 55% of Kentuckians worry about gun violence on a daily basis, which matches the national average.
• The percentage of Kentuckians who worry about gun violence is down from 65% last year.
• 7% of survey respondents experienced gun violence in the 12 months prior to our survey, which is a significant drop from 19% the previous year (US 9%).
• 2 mass shooting events occurred in Kentucky during 2025, which is a dramatic decrease from 12 in 2024.

For the purposes of this report, the terms “dangerous” and “safest” refer explicitly to crime rates as calculated from FBI crime data—no other characterization of any community is implied or intended.

• 116 Kentucky cities met the criteria for ranking this year.
• Eddyville is the safest city in Kentucky this year, and it's also new to the list.
• The top three cities reported zero violent crimes: Eddyville, Paintsville, and Providence.
• Wilmore has reported the same violent crime rate (0.2 incidents per 1,000 people) for three years in a row.
• 5 cities saw year-over-year decreases in both violent crime and property crime: Vine Grove, Independence, Springfield, West Liberty, and Flatwoods. Springfield's crime rates have actually decreased two years in a row.
• West Liberty reduced its property crime rate by 80%.
• Independence has the largest population of any city on this year's list (more than 29,000).
• Kentucky's 10 safest cities consist of small towns scattered throughout the state and suburbs of large cities like Cincinnati and Lexington.
• Each of the safest cities reported less than 1 violent crime per 1,000 people. 
• No murders were reported in Kentucky's safest cities.
• The one robbery that was reported in Kentucky's safest cities occurred in Independence.
• West Liberty reported no burglaries.
• Eddyville, Paintsville, and West Liberty reported no motor vehicle thefts. 

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