Gaithersburg is a city of 112,100 in Montgomery County, about 20 miles northwest of downtown Washington · Updated November 2026
How common is property crime in Gaithersburg?
Gaithersburg earns an A- for property crime, with more property crime than the neighborhoods where 52% of Americans live. Theft makes up 65% of it. Burglary, the crime most likely to reach into a home, grades A, and vehicle theft grades A-.
A-
Property crime CrimeGrade™
Safety score 811 of 1,000About as much property crime as the typical US neighborhoodi What this means
48% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more property crime than Gaithersburg as a whole, and 52% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a property crime safety score of 823, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. Gaithersburg scores 811.
Crime is concentrated in a small share of places, so most neighborhoods score high on the 0 to 1,000 scale. That is why a score in the 800s can still mean more property crime than most US neighborhoods.
How to read the map: each area's color compares its property crime with the homes, parked cars and people there, on one national scale, from green for the least to red for the most. Each area gets its own color, so a busy shopping center can show red while the homes beside it stay green. The interactive maps load faster on a strong connection. Compare high speed internet in Gaithersburg, MD at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in Gaithersburg, and anyone thinking about buying or renting a home there.
Business and enterprise customers: this free map shows neighborhood areas. CrimeGrade™ business reports map crime at about 66-meter detail and estimate it for one address and type of business. See business reports
What stands out about property crime in Gaithersburg
Car thefts happen in parking lots and garages far more often than nationally. In Gaithersburg, 55% of reported car thefts happen in parking lots and garages, against 23% nationally.
Acts of vandalism are uncommon. Gaithersburg has acts of vandalism at less than half the US rate: 2.2 a year per 1,000 residents, against 5.5 nationally.
Where property crime is lowest and highest in Gaithersburg
Most of Gaithersburg grades well for property crime: 87% of residents live in areas graded A or B, and 5% in areas graded D or F. Property crime grades across Gaithersburg run from A+ to F.
87%
A or B 87%C 8%D or F 5%
Share of residents, by the property crime CrimeGrade™ of the area they live in.
Property crime rates and types in Gaithersburg
CrimeGrade™ estimates Gaithersburg has about 16 reported property crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 34% less than the US as a whole and 43% less than Maryland.
All property crime
Burglary
Vehicle theft
Reported crimes a year, per 1,000 residents. Property crime here includes vandalism, which the FBI's property crime rate leaves out.
Theft is the most common property crime in Gaithersburg, about 65% of the total, followed by vandalism and vehicle theft.
Each CrimeGrade™ here compares a property crime with what it affects: homes for burglary and arson, parked cars for vehicle theft, people and parking for theft, homes and businesses for vandalism. Rates count crimes per 1,000 residents.
Select a crime's name to see its map above. CrimeGrade™ business reports map each crime at about 66-meter detail.
Property crime in Gaithersburg and nearby cities
Gaithersburg has more property crime than 5 of its 9 nearest cities. Laytonsville and Boyds have the least property crime nearby.
Nearest first, with each place's distance from Gaithersburg. Beside each property crime CrimeGrade™ is its safety score, from 0 to 1,000 (higher is safer).
Compared with cities of similar size and density, Gaithersburg is safer than 94% of them.
Among the traits that tend to go with property crime, two set Gaithersburg apart: it has 13 buses and trains an hour at the evening rush, where most Americans have none nearby, and 51% of its residents in dense blocks, against 24% nationally. It also combines many jobs with busy transit: places with both tend to report more theft than places with only one of them; here theft sits near the national middle.
Transit serviceBuses and trains an hour at the evening rush. Places with busy transit tend to report more theft. BestNeighborhood's Transit Grade for Gaithersburg: C- (25 of 100).13 trips an hourUS: noneHigher than for 88% of US city residents
Residents in dense blocksBlocks of 10,000 or more people per square mile. Dense neighborhoods tend to report more car theft.51% of residentsUS: 24%Higher than for 84% of US city residents
Walk GradeBestNeighborhood's grade for getting through daily life on foot, traced along real walking routes to shops, schools and parks. Walkable places tend to report more theft. 62% of residents here live in car-dependent areas.C- (28 of 100)US: 21Higher than for 78% of US city residents
Show all 6
Empty homesSeasonal and vacation homes are left out. Places with many empty homes tend to report more burglary, vandalism and arson.3.6% of homesUS: 7.1%Lower than for 79% of US city residents
Parking lotsBig lots at stores, offices and apartment complexes. Places with more lot space tend to report more theft.1.0 spaces per residentUS: 2.0Lower than for 77% of US city residents
JobsJobs draw daytime crowds. Places with many jobs tend to report more theft.56 for every 100 residentsUS: 45Higher than for 71% of US city residents
These traits tend to go with more or less crime; none of them causes it on its own. Sources: Census job counts and housing figures, OpenStreetMap and Overture business listings, CrimeGrade™ parking estimates, NASA night-light imagery, US Forest Service tree cover, EPA transit data and BestNeighborhood's Walk Grade.
What property crime costs Gaithersburg
Property crime costs Gaithersburg about $12 million a year, or $110 per resident and about $318 per household: the value of what is stolen or damaged, plus the police, courts and prisons that respond.
Cost of property crime per resident, per year
How the cost breaks down
Pain and suffering add little to the cost of property crime, so this is close to its full cost.
Crime
Cost a year
Per resident
Burglary
$1.4 million
$13
Theft
$5.9 million
$53
Vehicle theft
$3.1 million
$28
Arson
$61,000
$1
Vandalism
$1.8 million
$16
Total
$12 million
$110
How CrimeGrade™ works
The property crime CrimeGrade™ covers burglary, theft, car theft, arson and vandalism, from A+ for the least crime to F for the most, on one scale for the whole country.
It weighs each property crime against what it affects: homes for burglary and arson, parked cars for car theft, and the people and parking around stores for theft.
The rates on this page count crimes for every 1,000 people who live here, the way police departments report them.
Comparisons with US neighborhoods use the Census Bureau's block groups, small areas of about 1,400 residents, and count the people who live in each. The figures count crimes reported to police; many crimes, shoplifting above all, never are. Behind the grades, CrimeGrade™ tested 21,607 factors from 125 data families. For business owners, paid CrimeGrade™ location reports estimate crime at a single address for each type of business.
Where the numbers come from
Crime reports that police departments file with the FBI
State crime records and city crime data, where they are published
Published research on what crime costs victims and communities
These are estimates of reported crime for whole areas, not a record of what happened on any one street. CrimeGrade™ updates them once a year and provides them free and without guarantee. Check local sources before you rely on them for a decision.
