The Most Burglarized City in Every State

We dug into the numbers to find the most-burglarized city in every state (measured by burglary rate per capita) — and the results may surprise you. Burglars clearly don’t play favorites when it comes to city size.

Among the hot spots, 16 cities (33%) have populations over 15,000, while nine (18%) have fewer than 1,000 residents. No place is too big — or too small — for a break-in. These data underscore the need for security measures, as no place is immune to a potential burglary.

While burglary was the third-most common property crime in 2024, accounting for 12% of all reported incidents, it's important to note that this is only the second consecutive year in which motor vehicle theft has outpaced burglary. However, with 53% of all burglaries targeting residential properties, remaining vigilant against this threat is a must.

Now that you know the score, you can take proactive steps to protect your property. Want to know where burglars are busiest in your state (and where a security system might earn its keep)? Check out the the full list below and start planning your home defense strategy.

• The top 5 cities with the most burglaries per capita are Vernon, California; Sauget, Illinois; Haworth, Oklahoma; Black Hawk, Colorado; and Pembroke, North Carolina.
• Vernon, California is a major outlier, with 67 burglaries reported among a population of 205. That works out to nearly 33 burglaries per 100 people — about 3 times more than the next most-burglarized city, Sauget, Illinois, with about 11 burglaries per 100 people.
• 44 (89%) of the cities on the list had fewer than 2 burglaries per 100 people.
• 32 cities (65%) reported fewer than 1 burglary per 100 people.
• Only 6 cities report more than 2 burglaries per 100 residents.
• Black Hawk, Colorado is the smallest city on the list with 128 residents. Las Vegas, Nevada is the most populous with 1.7 million — but Black Hawk has 6 times as many burglaries per 100 people as Las Vegas (3.13 versus 0.47, respectively).
• 4 cities have more than 100,000 residents, but each of those reports fewer than 1 burglaries per 100 people. (Las Vegas NV; Lincoln, NE; New Haven, CT; and Fargo, ND)
• 67% of the cities (33) have populations below 15,000, but that's still 3 times larger than the majority of U.S. incorporated places — 76% have fewer than 5,000 residents.
• Hawaii is the only state not included in this listing, due to limited crime reporting from that state. You can learn more about crime in Hawaii in our State of Safety in Hawaii report.

Our first-ever State of Home Security Survey gives us a snapshot of how Americans are protecting their homes against break-ins — whether they live in a burglary hot spot or not.

With burglary rates varying widely across U.S. cities, these insights reveal not only which systems households trust the most, but also the main reasons people invest in home security. They show a clear picture of consumer behavior — who is buying security systems, what features matter most, and how satisfied they are with their protection.

• Decision triggers: Nearly 1 in 3 (29%) people install a security system to prevent a future break-in, with another 18% purchasing because of worries about neighborhood crime, and 10% adding one after falling victim to a crime.
• Top home security brands: Ring (27%) and ADT (22%) account for nearly half the market, far outpacing other brands. Brands like SimpliSafe, Brinks, and Vivint carve out smaller shares, while 20% of users turn to local providers or “other” options.
• Cost counts: The vast majority of households (55%) spend $50 or less per month for professional monitoring, and most (56%) invest $500 or less on equipment and installation. With the average loss from a burglary floating around $6,000, an annual cost of $1,100 (or less) for protection seems worth it.
• User profiles: Homeowners (78%) are more likely to use a security system than renters  (22%), which is unsurprising given that people who live in a single-family house are about 6 times more likely to have a system than apartment-dwellers. It's important to note that apartments may have other security measures provided by the property management.
• Favorite devices: Security cameras lead the way as the most common security add-on (65% use an outdoor camera and 43% have an indoor one), often paired with motion and entrance sensors for layered protection.
• Pro vs. DIY: Consumers are split down the middle when it comes to installation, but self-monitoring edges out professional monitoring 55% to 45%.
• How people buy: Recommendations from friends and family is the number one consideration when choosing a security system, followed by recommendations from online marketplaces and comparison sites like SafeWise.
• Customer satisfaction: Most people are satisfied or very satisfied with their home security experience — from customer service (71%) to installation (82%), equipment (89%),  and home security apps (82%).

To find the most-burglarized city in each state, we analyzed the most recent FBI burglary statistics and population data.¹ We excluded cities with populations below 100 and any that didn’t report complete data to the FBI in 2023 (the most recent year for which complete data was available). 

To even the playing field, we calculated the number of burglaries reported per 100 people in each city that qualified in every state. The city with the highest number of burglaries per 100 people for each state landed on our list.

Hawaii was excluded because there weren’t enough city data to analyze; only one city provided burglary data in 2023. Washington, D.C. was also excluded.

Find out more about how we analyze crime data on our methodology page.

1. FBI Crime Data Explorer, "Documents & Downloads."

• 2024 Crime in the United States Annual Reports
  • Offenses Known to Law Enforcement
• 2024 NIBRS Estimation Tables

2. Bureau of Justice Statistics, "National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS)."

3. SafeWise, "The State of Safety in America 2025," July 2025.