With a violent crime rate 42% lower than the national average, Connecticut is lauded as one of the safest states in America—but its leaders aren’t sitting idle. They continue to seek ways to further reduce crime, including those based on race, religion, disability, and gender. Last spring, lawmakers passed House Bill 5743, An Act Concerning Hate Crimes, which touts the strongest hate crime legislation in the country. State Senator Gayle Slossberg (a resident of Milford, the thirteenth safest city on our list) praised the legislation, saying it “makes a strong statement about Connecticut’s values.” We applaud Senator Slossberg and the other senators representing the cities on our list—all of whom voted in favor of the bill.
Given Connecticut’s proactive approach to crime fighting, we weren’t surprised that the state’s top five safest cities are also some of the safest in the nation. Darien, Ridgefield, Newtown, Cheshire, and South Windsor all appear on our 100 Safest Cities in America list, while other safe cities ranked on the 30 Safest Cities to Raise a Child. Equally impressive, no city on our list reported more than one violent crime per 1,000 people in 2016. And the average property crime rate among these cities was 50% less than the US norm, with safe cities such as Greenwich and Simsbury experiencing substantially lower rates of property crime.
Analyzing the recent FBI crime report further, we found the majority of Connecticut’s safest cities aren’t small towns—helping to prove that even larger cities like fourteenth-ranked West Hartford (with almost 63,000 residents) can be safe places when citizens, leaders, and law enforcement work together.
Read on and find out if your city made our list of Connecticut’s twenty safest. And check out our Connecticut Safety Directory, where you’ll find resources on everything from crime prevention and emergency preparedness to a list of the best home security systems in the state.
The 20 Safest Cities in Connecticut
- Darien
Population: 21,995
Violent crimes per 1,000: 0.05
Property crimes per 1,000: 11.00
Total crime: 0.41% violent, 99.59% property - Ridgefield
Population: 25,358
Violent crimes per 1,000: 0.08
Property crimes per 1,000: 2.84
Total crime: 2.78% violent, 97.22% property - Newtown
Population: 28,105
Violent crimes per 1,000: 0.11
Property crimes per 1,000: 2.95
Total crime: 3.61% violent, 96.39% property - Cheshire
Population: 29,295
Violent crimes per 1,000: 0.14
Property crimes per 1,000: 8.34
Total crime: 1.64% violent, 98.36% property - South Windsor
Population: 25,803
Violent crimes per 1,000: 0.16
Property crimes per 1,000: 13.76
Total crime: 1.13% violent, 98.87% property - Greenwich
Population: 62,970
Violent crimes per 1,000: 0.22
Property crimes per 1,000: 6.40
Total crime: 3.47% violent, 96.53% property - Westport
Population: 28,198
Violent crimes per 1,000: 0.25
Property crimes per 1,000: 8.79
Total crime: 2.82% violent, 97.18% property - Simsbury
Population: 24,519
Violent crimes per 1,000: 0.29
Property crimes per 1,000: 6.77
Total crime: 4.22% violent, 95.78% property - Branford
Population: 28,168
Violent crimes per 1,000: 0.36
Property crimes per 1,000: 19.28
Total crime: 1.84% violent, 98.16% property - Guilford
Population: 22,343
Violent crimes per 1,000: 0.36
Property crimes per 1,000: 8.95
Total crime: 4.00% violent, 96.00% property - Wallingford
Population: 44,840
Violent crimes per 1,000: 0.54
Property crimes per 1,000: 14.30
Total crime: 3.74% violent, 96.26% property - Fairfield
Population: 61,889
Violent crimes per 1,000: 0.61
Property crimes per 1,000: 16.19
Total crime: 3.79% violent, 96.21% property - Milford
Population: 53,752
Violent crimes per 1,000: 0.63
Property crimes per 1,000: 22.60
Total crime: 2.80% violent, 97.20% property - West Hartford
Population: 62,979
Violent crimes per 1,000: 0.64
Property crimes per 1,000: 25.23
Total crime: 2.52% violent, 97.48% property - Farmington
Population: 25,684
Violent crimes per 1,000: 0.66
Property crimes per 1,000: 25.39
Total crime: 2.61% violent, 97.39% property - Shelton
Population: 41,638
Violent crimes per 1,000: 0.67
Property crimes per 1,000: 10.45
Total crime: 6.44% violent, 93.56% property - Vernon
Population: 28,915
Violent crimes per 1,000: 0.69
Property crimes per 1,000: 11.72
Total crime: 5.90% violent, 94.10% property - Bristol
Population: 60,445
Violent crimes per 1,000: 0.91
Property crimes per 1,000: 15.77
Total crime: 5.77% violent, 94.23% property - North Haven
Population: 23,777
Violent crimes per 1,000: 0.925
Property crimes per 1,000: 24.48
Total crime: 3.78% violent, 96.22% property - Southington
Population: 43,948
Violent crimes per 1,000: 0.93
Property crimes per 1,000: 21.43
Total crime: 4.35% violent, 95.65% property
How We Chose the Safest Cities in Connecticut
To identify the twenty safest cities in Connecticut, we reviewed the 2016 FBI crime report statistics and population data. Cities that fell below identified population thresholds or that failed to submit a complete crime report to the FBI were excluded from the ranking system.
Our evaluation is based on the number of reported violent crimes (aggravated assault, murder, rape, and robbery) in each city. If there was a tie, we also factored in the number of property crimes (burglary, arson, larceny-theft, and motor vehicle theft). To level the playing field, we calculated the rate of crimes per 1,000 people in each city. This makes it easier to directly compare the likelihood of these crimes occurring in cities with vastly different populations.
Learn more about how we rank our Safest Cities reports.
How to Make a Safe Home Anywhere
Wherever you live, feeling safe in your home can bring greater peace of mind and happiness. Whether your city made our list or not, we recommend adding extra security to your home with monitored security services provided by the nation’s leading home security providers.
To learn more about the home security options available to you, check out SafeWise’s picks for Best Home Security Systems of 2018.
If you would like to contact a SafeWise Safest Cities Analyst, please email info@safewise.com.
Written by Alexia Chianis
Wanderlust junky and mom of two, Alexia is a former police officer and U.S. Army Captain who draws on her experiences to write about a myriad of safety topics. Learn more