New York’s Safest Cities of 2024

John Carlsen
Mar 18, 2024
bullet3 min read
SafeWise is pleased to release the 10th annual Safest Cities report.

Here are the 10 Safest Cities in New York for 2024

See crime rates for the safest cities.

According to our most recent State of Safety report, New York is more worried about safety and crime than most states. Six in 10 respondents to our survey told us they have high levels of concern every day—the third-highest in the nation. Alternatively, survey participants noted a dip in personal experiences with crime compared to the previous reporting year.

In this report

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NOTE: If your city is missing from our full report, it means that it was below the population threshold or didn’t submit a complete crime report to the FBI in 2022.

2024 New York crime rates

We didn't have enough viable data to calculate statewide crime rates for New York this year or last. But if the safest cities are any indication, it looks like crime rates may be on the decline statewide.

The collective property crime rate of New York's safest cities is 6.6 incidents per 1,000 people—a huge decline from 18.0 last year. The collective violent crime rate of the state's safest cities is 0.5 incidents per 1,000 people, compared to 3.4 last year. 

Crime rates shared below reflect New York's statewide crime rates from our 2022 report, the last year the FBI received enough data to assess the state's crime rates.

Bar chart of violent and property crime rates per 1,000 people where the national average of 4.0 violent crimes per 1,000 people and 19.6 property crimes per 1,000 people.

Image: SafeWise
Crime rates reflect per capita crime rates for New York and nationwide averages from our 2022 report. Not enough statewide data to calculate for the 2023 or 2024 report.

Property crime in New York: Fear vs. reality

While New Yorkers worry more about property crime than the average American, it doesn't concern them as much as violent crime and gun violence.

  • Worry about property crime held steady year over year, with 53% of survey respondents worrying about it every day (US 52%).
  • Fewer New Yorkers (20%) reported personal experiences with property crime this survey year as they did in the last survey (25%).
  • New York respondents' experience with property crime is the fifth-lowest in the US.
  • 65% of New York residents use some form of property protection (US 75%) with security cameras on top at 36%.
  • 31% of New Yorkers said they added or increased security measures in the 12 months prior to the survey (US 35%). That's the fifth-lowest level of increased security measures in the country.

Attitudes about package theft in New York

  • 32% of survey respondents in New York reported experiencing package theft in the 12 months prior to the survey (US 35%)—that represents a 27% decline year over year.
  • 50% of participants expressed a high level of concern about package theft (US 53%).
  • The preferred methods of package protection in New York are video doorbells (33%) and verified delivery (29%).

What security measures do New Yorkers use most?

Security measures used most in New York: security cameras, security systems, and guard dogs.

Image: SafeWise

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What crimes are New York residents most concerned about?

Bar chart showing percentages of how concerned state residents are about crime compared to the national averages for violent crime, property crime, package theft and gun violence.

Image: SafeWise

Violent crime in New York: Fear vs. reality

Reports of personal experience with violent crime in The Empire State fell from 24% to 16% year over year. New York residents also had fewer experiences with gun violence this survey year.

  • 68% of survey respondents reported a high level of concern about violent crime—the second-highest percentage in the country behind Louisiana.
  • Just 3 in 10 New York residents (31%) reported feeling safe in their home state (US 45%)—this is the eighth-lowest level of confidence in the US.
  • 28% of survey participants use some kind of personal protection like a stun gun or pepper spray, compared to 36% nationally.
  • The most popular types of personal protection used by New York respondents this survey year were pepper spray (46%) and pocket knives (32%).

Attitudes about gun violence in New York

  • 7 in 10 respondents said gun violence is the safety concern they worry about most on a daily basis (US 53%). This is the second highest in the nation behind Louisiana.
  • The number of respondents with a personal gun violence experience (13%) dropped by 19% since the previous survey year (US 12%).
  • There were 16 mass shooting incidents in New York in 2023, a 48% decrease from 31 incidents in 2022.
  • Concealed firearms are the least-used form of personal protection in The Empire State, with just 7% using them, versus 41% nationwide. 
  • Just 10% of respondents use a firearm to protect their property, compared to 28% nationwide.

A closer look at the safest cities in New York

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.

  • We couldn’t rank the safest cities in New York last year due to limited information reported to the FBI, so we don't have any year over year comparisons.
  • 44 cities met criteria for ranking.
  • Bedford Town is the safest city in New York—there were zero violent crimes reported and just 16 property crimes.
  • 3 cities reported zero robberies: Bedford Town, East Fishkill, and Lewiston Town and Village.
  • Every safest city reported less than 1 violent crime per 1,000 people. 
  • 3 cities reported 6 or fewer burglaries: East Fishkill, the Town of Carmel, and Lewiston Town and Village.
  • Every safest city reported fewer than 9 property crime incidents per 1,000 people.

The 10 safest cities in New York

Silhouette of New York state with pins indicating the location of the safest cities.

Image: SafeWise

Bedford, New York
Bedford Town
(
New
)
  • bullet
    Population
    16,989
  • bullet
    VC Rate 2024, 2023, 2022
    0.0, 0.1, 0.1
  • bullet
    PC Rate 2024, 2023, 2022
    0.9, 0.9, 2.4
  • bullet
    VC=Violent crime, PC=Property crime
East Fishkill Town
(
New
)
  • bullet
    Population
    29,769
  • bullet
    VC Rate 2024, 2023, 2022
    0.2, N/A, 0.4
  • bullet
    PC Rate 22024, 2023, 2022
    5.2, N/A, 4.6
  • bullet
    VC=Violent crime, PC=Property crime
Hyde Park Town
(
New
)
  • bullet
    Population
    21,071
  • bullet
    VC Rate 2024, 2023, 2022
    0.4, 0.2, N/A
  • bullet
    PC Rate 2024, 2023, 2022
    4.9, 3.0, N/A
  • bullet
    VC=Violent crime, PC=Property crime
Carmel Town, New York
Town of Carmel
(
New
)
  • bullet
    Population
    33,868
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    VC Rate 2024, 2023, 2022
    0.6, 0.4, 0.1
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    PC Rate 2024, 2023, 20221
    4.7, 4.3, 3.3
  • bullet
    VC=Violent crime, PC=Property crime
Lewiston Town and Village
(
New
)
  • bullet
    Population
    15,781
  • bullet
    VC Rate 2024, 2023, 2022
    0.3, N/A, N/A
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    PC Rate 2024, 2023, 2022
    7.6, N/A, N/A
  • bullet
    VC=Violent crime, PC=Property crime
Yorktown Town, New York
Yorktown Town
  • bullet
    Population
    35,529
  • bullet
    VC Rate 2024, 2023, 2022
    0.3, 0.1, 0.2
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    PC Rate 2024, 2023, 2022
    7.5, 6.1, 5.4
  • bullet
    VC=Violent crime, PC=Property crime
Geographic location of Orangetown, NY
Orangetown Town
(
New
)
  • bullet
    Population
    39,317
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    VC Rate 2024, 2023, 2022
    0.6, 0.8, 0.4
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    PC Rate 2024, 2023, 2022
    7.8, 5.9, 7.7
  • bullet
    VC=Violent crime, PC=Property crime
New Rochelle, New York
New Rochelle
(
New
)
  • bullet
    Population
    82,628
  • bullet
    VC Rate 2024, 2023, 2022
    0.8, 1.6, N/A
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    PC Rate 2024, 2023, 2022
    7.0, 9.5, N/A
  • bullet
    VC=Violent crime, PC=Property crime
Webster Town and Village, New York
Webster Town and Village
(
New
)
  • bullet
    Population
    45,230
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    VC Rate 2024, 2023, 2022
    0.4, 0.5, 0.6
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    PC Rate 2024, 2023, 2022
    8.6, 7.8, 8.0
  • bullet
    VC=Violent crime, PC=Property crime
Ogden Town, New York
Ogden Town
(
New
)
  • bullet
    Population
    20,293
  • bullet
    VC Rate 2024, 2023, 2022
    0.7, 0.8, 0.5
  • bullet
    PC Rate 2024, 2023, 2022
    8.3, 7.9, 7.5
  • bullet
    VC=Violent crime, PC=Property crime

How we determined the safest cities

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

How to make a safe home anywhere

Over 6 in 10 Americans surveyed don't have a home security system, despite over 50% of all burglaries being residential. Unfortunately, a majority of people who have a security system added it after they had a break-in. One of the best ways to stop a burglary before it happens—and get immediate help if a break-in is detected—is to add a monitored home security system.

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Get a home security system

Find out which companies we recommend for every budget and lifestyle in our roundup of the Best Home Security Systems—and learn the basics with our guide on Everything You Need to Know About Home Security

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Find the safest cities in each state

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

Related articles on SafeWise


Endnotes and sources

Find all endnotes and sources in our full methodology.

FBI Crime Data Explorer, "Documents & Downloads." Accessed March 18, 2024.

  • 2022 and 2021 Crime in the United States Annual Reports
    • Offenses Known to Law Enforcement
  • 2022 NIBRS Estimation Tables

Bureau of Justice Statistics, "National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS)." Accessed March 18, 2024.

Gun Violence Archive, "Mass Shootings." Accessed March 18, 2023.

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John Carlsen
Written by
John Carlsen
John is a technology journalist specializing in smart home devices, security cameras, and home security systems. He has over a decade of experience researching, testing, and reviewing the latest tech—he was the Smart Home Editor for Top Ten Reviews and wrote for ASecureLife before joining SafeWise as a Staff Writer in 2020. John holds a Bachelor's degree in Communications, Journalism emphasis from Utah Valley University. In his spare time, he enjoys hiking, photography, cooking, and starting countless DIY projects he has yet to complete.

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