Indiana’s 10 Safest Cities of 2023

The SafeWise Team is pleased to release the ninth annual Safest Cities report.

See if your city made the full list.

Indiana has plenty to be proud of this year thanks to decreasing violent crime and property crime. However, our State of Safety survey results show that most Hoosiers think crime is increasing, and fewer than half feel safe in the state.

Indiana is 1 of just 17 states that experienced decreases in both violent crime and property crime this reporting year. Both its violent crime and property crime rates fall below the national averages.

According to our latest State of Safety survey, Hoosiers’ level of concern about safety and security is lower than the national average (IN 44% vs. US 50%). 

About 61% of Indiana residents feel concerned about package theft, and property crime comes in second at 53%. Hoosiers worry less about violent crime (49%) and gun violence (49%), which makes sense because our survey respondents were more likely to have experienced property crime than violent crime.

Less than half of the Hoosiers we surveyed felt safe in their state (44%), which is lower than the US average of 50%. Indiana residents are also the third-most likely Americans to believe crime is increasing (IN 80% vs. US 71%).

For our 2023 State of Safety Survey, we asked participants about their natural disaster concerns, preparations, and experiences. Most Hoosiers worried about strong or high winds (62% IN, 62% US). Hurricanes (33%) and earthquakes (34%) were of least concern.

Compared to the average American, Hoosiers were more likely to have an emergency kit (45% IN, 44% US) but less likely to use every other disaster preparedness strategy on our survey.

About 7% of Indiana residents said they evacuated due to a natural disaster in the 12 months prior to the survey, which is lower than the national average of 11%.

We asked Indiana residents which crimes they worry may happen to them. See if Hoosiers are concerned about the same crime issues as the rest of the country.

View the complete 2023 State of Safety report.

Indiana’s violent crime rate of 3.1 is below the national average of 4.0 and represents a 13% decrease year over year. The nationwide violent crime rate decreased by less than 1% during the same period.

Our State of Safety Survey results also reflected this decrease, with 11% of Indiana residents claiming to have experienced a violent crime in the 12 months prior to the survey (a 15% decrease year over year).

That said, 49% of the Hoosiers we surveyed felt concerned about violent crime, which represents a 5% increase compared to the previous year's survey. Gun violence concerns rose by 8%.

• Compared to its regional neighbors (Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin), Indiana saw the most significant decrease in violent crime year over year. 
• 42% of Indiana residents use some form of personal protection (US 39%).
• Of the Hoosiers who use personal protection, most (57%) prefer pocket knives.

• 49% of Hoosiers worry about gun violence (47% US).
• 10% experienced gun violence in the 12 months prior to the survey.
• Hoosiers' level of gun violence experience hasn't changed year over year.
• Of the Indiana residents who use some form of personal protection, 48% use concealed firearms (41% US).
• 15 mass shooting events occurred in Indiana during the 2022 reporting year, which is the eleventh-highest rate in the nation.

Indiana’s property crime rate of 16.6 is lower than the national average (19.3) but above the East North Central regional average (16.2). Property crime in Indiana decreased by nearly 7% year over year.

The Hoosiers we surveyed felt more concerned about property crime than the average American, with 53% reporting daily levels of concern (US 50%). That said, 26% of Hoosiers claimed to have experienced property crime in the 12 months prior to the survey, which is lower than the national average of 27%.

• Of the Hoosiers who use some form of property protection, most preferred guard dogs (41%) followed by firearms and security cameras (33% each).
• Package theft concerns 61% of Indiana residents (US 53%).
• 42% of Hoosiers claimed to have experienced a package theft in the 12 months prior to the survey, which is higher than the national average of 34% and represents an increase of 112% year over year.
• "None of the above" was the most common response (34%) among Hoosiers when asked about their package theft prevention strategies, followed by verified delivery (30%).

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.

• 43 Indiana cities met the criteria for ranking this year.
• Only 3 of Indiana's 10 safest cities saw a decrease in both violent and property crime rates: St. John, Brownsburg, and Greenfield.
• St. John reported 1 violent crime in the 2023 reporting year: a robbery.
• All 3 of Dyer's violent crimes were aggravated assaults.
• Carmel and Fishers were also featured in our list of the Safest Cities to Raise a Family.
• Dyer, St. John, and Zionsville also appeared on our most recent list of Safest Cities in America

Click on the state image or dropdown menu below to check out the safest cities for each state.

• Best Home Security Systems
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• Burglary Stats & Facts
• The Most Burglarized City in Every State
• The Best Personal Safety Devices for Every Situation
• The State of Safety in America in 2022

FBI Crime Data Explorer, "Documents & Downloads." Accessed February 6, 2023.

• 2021 and 2020 Crime in the United States Annual Reports
  • Offenses Known to Law Enforcement
• 2021 NIBRS Estimation Tables

FBI Uniform Crime Reporting Program, "Offenses Known to Law Enforcement [2019]." Accessed February 6, 2023.

Bureau of Justice Statistics, "National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS)." Accessed February 6, 2023.

US Census Bureau, "2021: ACS 5-Year Estimates Subject Tables." Accessed February 6, 2023.

US Census Bureau, "2021: ACS 5-Year Estimates Detailed Tables." Accessed February 6, 2023.

SafeWise, "2022 State of Safety survey." Accessed February 6, 2023.

Gun Violence Archive, "General Methodology." Accessed February 6, 2023.

Gun Violence Archive, "Past Summary Ledgers." Accessed January 3, 2023.

Gun Violence Archive, "Congress."

• 2022 totals: Accessed January 3, 2023.
• 2021 and 2020 totals: Accessed December 19, 2022.