Michigan's 20 Safest Cities of 2019

SafeWise is happy to release our fifth annual Safest Cities report. Here are the 20 Safest Cities in Michigan for 2019. See if your city made the list.

This year we welcome a number of newbies—50% of 2019’s safest cities in Michigan are new compared to 2018. But number one, Grosse Ile Township, is both a repeat and a champ, moving up from number six last year.

Statewide, Michigan sees higher violent crime rates than the national average, but its property crime numbers are on the lower end. Michigan came out with 5.53 violent crimes per 1,000 people, while the national rate is 4.49. But our safest cities buck that trend—75% of them kept violent crime below 10 total incidents.

Michigan beat the national rate for property crime, boasting just 21.47 incidents per 1,000, versus 27.11 nationwide. Among the safest cities in the state, 90% saw fewer than 10 property crimes per 1,000 people, with no city exceeding more than 21.

Interesting Findings

There was only one murder reported among the safest cities.
35% of the cities reported no incidents of rape.
Six cities reported zero counts each of murder, rape, and robbery.
Violent crime is the top concern in Michigan, with 56% of State of Safety participants rating it a top concern. That’s the same as the national average.
Being robbed was the number one violent crime worry, even though 55% of the state’s safest cities reported zero robberies and none had more than five.
Only three of the safest cities are in the Upper Peninsula, but 40% of the top five hail from there: Houghton and Kinross Township.

pie chart showing percentage of safest cities in the U.P. vs the Mitten

The 20 Safest Cities in Michigan

Population 10,084

Median Income $100,278

Violent Crime Rate (per 1,000) 0.00

Property Crime Rate (per 1,000) 2.88

Population 10,504

Median Income $111,765

Violent Crime Rate (per 1,000) 0.10

Property Crime Rate (per 1,000) 6.57

Population 8,031

Median Income $41,458

Violent Crime Rate (per 1,000) 0.12

Property Crime Rate (per 1,000) 20.67

Population 7,396

Median Income $38,696

Violent Crime Rate (per 1,000) 0.14

Property Crime Rate (per 1,000) 2.03

Population 6,656

Median Income $49,216

Violent Crime Rate (per 1,000) 0.15

Property Crime Rate (per 1,000) 1.80

Population 16,726

Median Income $78,156

Violent Crime Rate (per 1,000) 0.24

Property Crime Rate (per 1,000) 4.72

Population 7,397

Median Income $45,575

Violent Crime Rate (per 1,000) 0.27

Property Crime Rate (per 1,000) 0.54

Population 35,857

Median Income $91,820

Violent Crime Rate (per 1,000) 0.28

Property Crime Rate (per 1,000) 6.86

Population 6,727

Median Income $55,150

Violent Crime Rate (per 1,000) 0.30

Property Crime Rate (per 1,000) 5.80

Population 6,542

Median Income $48,908

Violent Crime Rate (per 1,000) 0.31

Property Crime Rate (per 1,000) 3.97

Population 42,291

Median Income $123,086

Violent Crime Rate (per 1,000) 0.33

Property Crime Rate (per 1,000) 8.51

Population 19,241

Median Income $139,542

Violent Crime Rate (per 1,000) 0.36

Property Crime Rate (per 1,000) 2.96

Population 10,537

Median Income $66,453

Violent Crime Rate (per 1,000) 0.38

Property Crime Rate (per 1,000) 8.45

Population 19,912

Median Income $78,946

Violent Crime Rate (per 1,000) 0.40

Property Crime Rate (per 1,000) 6.83

Population 15,322

Median Income $77,772

Violent Crime Rate (per 1,000) 0.46

Property Crime Rate (per 1,000) 6.79

Population 21,162

Median Income $114,537

Violent Crime Rate (per 1,000) 0.47

Property Crime Rate (per 1,000) 9.17

Population 11,812

Median Income $125,180

Violent Crime Rate (per 1,000) 0.51

Property Crime Rate (per 1,000) 16.51

Population 73,827

Median Income $87,475

Violent Crime Rate (per 1,000) 0.53

Property Crime Rate (per 1,000) 6.38

Population 7,466

Median Income $51,524

Violent Crime Rate (per 1,000) 0.54

Property Crime Rate (per 1,000) 7.63

Population 38,342

Median Income $89,034

Violent Crime Rate (per 1,000) 0.55

Property Crime Rate (per 1,000) 7.35

How We Determined the Safest Cities

Learn how we identified the safest cities on our methodology page.

Beyond Safest Cities: What Are the Biggest Safety Concerns in Your State?

Crime statistics are one thing, but do they line up with what people are really worried about when it comes to safety? To find out, SafeWise conducted a nationwide survey. See what the biggest safety concern is in your state—and learn more about what your neighbors are nervous about—in our State of Safety report.

If you would like to contact a SafeWise Safest Cities Analyst, please email info@safewise.com.

Didn’t Find Your City in the Top 20?

See how the remaining cities ranked in the list below.

Rank	City	Population	Violent Crime (per 1,000)	Property Crime (per 1,000)
21	Grosse Pointe Farms	9,106	0.55	12.41
22	South Lyon	11,777	0.59	4.67
23	Lyon Township	19,890	0.6	6.23
24	Argentine Township	6,544	0.61	9.17
25	Independence Township	36,836	0.62	6.3
26	Spring Arbor Township	7,974	0.63	4.14
27	Huntington Woods	6,343	0.63	3.63
28	Hamburg Township	21,897	0.64	3.24
29	Holly	6,156	0.65	12.83
30	Troy	84,086	0.65	15.16
31	White Lake Township	31,016	0.71	9.25
32	West Bloomfield Township	65,948	0.71	7.58
33	St. Joseph Township	9,813	0.71	11.21
34	Tittabawassee Township	9,776	0.72	5.52
35	Novi	59,895	0.72	10.3
36	Adrian Township	6,289	0.8	2.86
37	Gaines Township	6,139	0.81	4.56
38	Plymouth Township	26,779	0.82	8.44
39	Brandon Township	15,752	0.83	3.81
40	Petoskey	5,764	0.87	8.85
41	Oxford Township	18,365	0.87	3.92
42	Thomas Township	11,450	0.87	9.17
43	Berrien Springs-Oronoko Township	9,039	0.89	8.08
44	Royal Oak	59,303	0.91	9.16
45	Richfield Township, Genesee County	8,270	0.97	7.74
46	Lincoln Township	14,460	0.97	11.27
47	Flushing Township	10,172	0.98	3.74
48	Northville	5,981	1	8.03
49	Northville Township	28,751	1.01	10.78
50	Grand Ledge	7,809	1.02	15.62
51	Shelby Township	79,217	1.04	7.31
52	Brighton	7,631	1.05	13.89
53	Sumpter Township	9,215	1.09	11.18
54	Trenton	18,161	1.1	7.1
55	Grand Blanc	7,904	1.14	13.66
56	Farmington Hills	81,359	1.14	11.25
57	Livonia	93,603	1.15	15.29
58	Northfield Township	8,634	1.16	5.1
59	Green Oak Township	18,839	1.17	7.96
60	Springfield Township	14,341	1.19	4.6
61	New Baltimore	12,401	1.21	7.02
62	Grosse Pointe Woods	15,566	1.22	13.23
63	Cambridge Township	5,643	1.24	6.73
64	Flushing	7,972	1.25	9.41
65	Midland	42,131	1.26	12.06
66	St. Johns	7,938	1.26	8.69
67	Canton Township	90,294	1.3	12.67
68	Grosse Pointe Park	11,061	1.36	15.01
69	Metro Police Authority of Genesee County	20,001	1.4	10.5
70	Saline	9,207	1.41	5.87
71	Dewitt Township	14,799	1.42	8.99
72	Plymouth	9,072	1.43	7.83
73	Bath Township	12,759	1.49	9.64
74	Clawson	11,994	1.5	5.34
75	Fenton	11,306	1.5	20.87
76	Davison Township	19,029	1.52	8.41
77	Grand Haven	11,004	1.54	17.72
78	Walled Lake	7,104	1.55	8.73
79	Chesterfield Township	45,212	1.59	15.97
80	Rochester	13,068	1.61	5.51
81	Waterford Township	73,060	1.62	11.43
82	Madison Heights	30,152	1.66	16.91
83	Allen Park	27,062	1.66	23.13
84	East Lansing	48,920	1.68	15.96
85	Tecumseh	8,345	1.68	10.31
86	Hampton Township	9,522	1.68	17.54
87	Clayton Township	7,113	1.69	5.48
88	Raisin Township	7,619	1.71	2.49
89	Coloma Township	6,362	1.73	19.02
90	Rockford	6,316	1.74	9.66
91	Norton Shores	24,402	1.76	27.58
92	Sterling Heights	132,882	1.84	11.32
93	Grand Blanc Township	36,630	1.86	13.38
94	Grandville	16,108	1.86	38.61
95	St. Clair Shores	59,782	1.89	11.63
96	Fraser	14,645	1.91	20.69
97	Walker	24,987	1.92	22.09
98	Marquette	20,442	1.96	12.57
99	Meridian Township	42,878	1.98	24.58
100	Madison Township	8,470	2.01	18.06
101	Ishpeming	6,471	2.01	13.29
102	Fruitport Township	14,138	2.05	36.92
103	St. Joseph	8,276	2.05	13.65
104	Southfield	73,324	2.06	27.71
105	Hillsdale	8,147	2.09	14.36
106	Carrollton Township	5,728	2.09	11.17
107	Ann Arbor	121,930	2.12	17.29
108	Clay Township	8,845	2.15	10.18
109	Marysville	9,702	2.16	13.5
110	Ferndale	20,131	2.19	20.71
111	Pittsfield Township	39,061	2.2	16.36
112	Portage	48,876	2.21	30.04
113	Wyandotte	24,817	2.26	16.84
114	Big Rapids	10,437	2.3	13.7
115	Columbia Township	7,379	2.3	10.98
116	Howell	9,538	2.31	12.06
117	Flat Rock	9,821	2.34	15.48
118	Mount Pleasant	26,366	2.35	14.03
119	Riverview	12,045	2.41	12.45
120	Wixom	13,801	2.46	16.88
121	Sturgis	10,858	2.49	31.68
122	Huron Township	15,636	2.49	11.64
123	Zeeland	5,594	2.5	17.52
124	Saginaw Township	39,319	2.57	22.33
125	Charlotte	9,053	2.65	23.2
126	Manistee	6,030	2.65	22.22
127	Escanaba	12,280	2.69	36.97
128	Chocolay Township	5,948	2.69	5.55
129	Dearborn	93,889	2.73	24.2
130	Mason	8,418	2.73	20.08
131	Brownstown Township	31,102	2.73	10.71
132	Auburn Hills	23,034	2.74	28.48
133	Belding	5,772	2.77	14.73
134	Southgate	28,939	2.8	26.75
135	Marshall	7,028	2.85	16.93
136	Ontwa Township-Edwardsburg	6,487	2.93	18.5
137	Van Buren Township	27,911	2.94	23.14
138	Lapeer	8,735	2.98	38.47
139	Ionia	11,287	3.01	14
140	Hastings	7,272	3.03	16.5
141	Muskegon Township	17,842	3.14	40.02
142	Westland	81,158	3.18	17.1
143	Richmond	5,893	3.22	10.18
144	Kentwood	52,197	3.28	23.1
145	St. Louis	6,994	3.29	7.72
146	Alma	9,113	3.29	12.4
147	Garden City	26,571	3.31	14.9
148	Center Line	8,304	3.37	27.1
149	Kalamazoo Township	24,590	3.38	23.55
150	Oak Park	29,698	3.4	18.72
151	Menominee	8,230	3.4	15.43
152	Blackman Township	36,908	3.44	30.89
153	Sault Ste. Marie	13,630	3.45	18.12
154	Holland	33,613	3.54	23.29
155	Clinton Township	100,999	3.65	15.16
156	Ludington	8,068	3.84	21.19
157	Coldwater	10,750	4	24.84
158	Hazel Park	16,551	4.05	22.6
159	Genesee Township	20,253	4.1	10.91
160	Oscoda Township	6,831	4.1	17.27
161	Dearborn Heights	55,454	4.11	20.67
162	Bridgeport Township	9,909	4.14	11
163	Forsyth Township	6,189	4.2	11.63
164	Milan	6,044	4.3	15.88
165	Roseville	47,651	4.3	34.06
166	Emmett Township	11,619	4.3	50.95
167	Greenville	8,418	4.4	37.66
168	Wyoming	76,153	4.67	21.88
169	Burton	28,439	4.68	23.03
170	Alpena	10,066	4.77	23.74
171	Warren	135,303	5.03	21.43
172	Monroe	19,868	5.39	19.58
173	Owosso	14,587	5.42	17.14
174	Traverse City	15,617	5.57	18.95
175	Taylor	60,882	5.72	24.31
176	Muskegon	38,375	5.97	53.65
177	Three Rivers	7,695	5.98	37.95
178	Niles	11,202	5.98	23.66
179	Melvindale	10,262	6.24	24.46
180	Lansing Township	8,150	6.63	44.66
181	Redford Township	46,867	6.83	27.27
182	Mount Morris Township	20,365	6.87	20.87
183	Lincoln Park	36,502	7.07	31.04
184	Grand Rapids	197,868	7.12	20.73
185	Bay City	33,286	7.27	29.98
186	Harper Woods	13,653	7.47	50.61
187	Eastpointe	32,712	8.01	33.26
188	Hamtramck	21,654	8.08	28.45
189	Cadillac	10,473	8.12	21.77
190	Ypsilanti	21,267	8.65	28.49
191	Romulus	23,174	9.06	32.62
192	Port Huron	29,092	9.07	23.17
193	Wayne	16,857	9.43	20.29
194	Battle Creek	60,852	9.53	36.99
195	Flint Township	30,284	10.1	51.12
196	River Rouge	7,417	10.25	28.58
197	Pontiac	59,731	10.78	25.28
198	Buena Vista Township	8,084	10.89	21.52
199	Jackson	32,822	11.3	41.77
200	Lansing	116,302	11.36	30.52
201	Kalamazoo	76,263	11.97	41.62
202	Benton Township	14,354	12.54	58.31
203	Albion	8,293	12.54	37.62
204	Inkster	24,324	14.55	27.22
205	Ecorse	9,132	15.33	35.81
206	Saginaw	48,589	15.68	18.79
207	Highland Park	10,757	17.01	36.35
208	Muskegon Heights	10,786	18.08	60.08
209	Flint	96,605	19.45	27.24
210	Detroit	670,792	20.57	45.41
211	Benton Harbor	9,899	22.02	39.6

How to Make a Safe Home Anywhere

Wherever you reside, 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 find out about the home security options available to you, check out SafeWise’s picks for Best Home Security Systems of 2019.

Find the Safest Cities in Each State

Click on the state image below to check out our “Safest City” winners for each state.

Sources:

FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, “2017 Crime in the United States”
SafeWise’s, “2019 State of Safety”
US Census Bureau, “2013-2017 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates“

Written by Rebecca Edwards

Rebecca has honed her safety and security skills as both a single mom and a college director. Being responsible for the well-being of others helped her learn how to minimize risk and create safe environments. Learn more

Tim Simmons

Also, home owners should keep in mind that if they have a dog as part of their security system, the dog need not be vicious. The dog should only be alert and a good listener. Remember the dog should not be dangerous. That’s your job. He or she’s job is only to alert you to the danger.

Michigan’s 20 Safest Cities of 2019