Hillsborough is a town of 28,600 in Orange County, about 11 miles north of downtown Chapel Hill · Updated November 2026
How common is property crime in Hillsborough?
Hillsborough earns an A- for property crime, safer than the neighborhoods where 51% of Americans live. Theft makes up 63% 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 827 of 1,000About as much property crime as the typical US neighborhoodi What this means
51% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more property crime than Hillsborough as a whole, and 49% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a property crime safety score of 823, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. Hillsborough scores 827.
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 Hillsborough, NC at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in Hillsborough, 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 Hillsborough
Thefts run high for a city with an A for property crime. Hillsborough has 16.6 thefts a year per 1,000 residents; for the typical resident of a US city graded A for property crime, the figure is 8.1.
Thefts from cars happen at night far more often than nationally. In Hillsborough, 38% of reported thefts from cars happen at night (midnight to 6 am), against 18% nationally.
Where property crime is lowest and highest in Hillsborough
Every part of Hillsborough where people live grades A or B for property crime on the national scale. Property crime grades across Hillsborough run from A+ to B-.
100%
A or B 100%
Share of residents, by the property crime CrimeGrade™ of the area they live in.
Property crime rates and types in Hillsborough
CrimeGrade™ estimates Hillsborough has about 26 reported property crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 11% more than the US as a whole and close to North Carolina.
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 Hillsborough, about 63% of the total, followed by vandalism and burglary.
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.
Where and when property crime happens in Hillsborough
Hillsborough has its own police department, and these figures come from its reports, 2022 to 2024.
In Hillsborough, 54% of burglaries hit homes, against 57% nationally. Car thefts happen most often at homes: 48% of them, against 33% nationally.
Crime
Most often at
Busiest time
Burglary
Homes (54%)
Night (midnight to 6 am)
Car theft
Homes (48%)
Night (midnight to 6 am)
Theft from cars
Parking lots and garages (49%)
Night (midnight to 6 am)
Vandalism
Parking lots and garages (42%)
Afternoon (noon to 6 pm)
Shares of the crimes reported to police, 2022 to 2024. Reports with no time recorded are left out of the times.
Property crime in Hillsborough and nearby cities
Hillsborough has less property crime than 4 of its 6 nearest cities; only Cedar Grove and Efland have less.
Nearest first, with each place's distance from Hillsborough. 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, Hillsborough has more property crime than 82% of them.
Night lighting, walkability and density in Hillsborough
Among the traits that tend to go with property crime, two set Hillsborough apart: it has 45% of the land where people live lit at night, against 78% nationally, and a Walk Grade of D- (7 of 100) on BestNeighborhood, against 21 for the US as a whole. Places like that tend to report less theft and vandalism, yet theft and vandalism run higher here than that would suggest.
Lit at nightSatellite images show which neighborhoods are lit at night, a sign of busy streets and businesses. Brightly lit places tend to report more theft and vandalism.45% where people liveUS: 78%Lower than for 89% 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. 96% of residents here live in car-dependent areas.D- (7 of 100)US: 21Lower than for 87% 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.5% of residentsUS: 24%Lower than for 75% of US city residents
Show all 6
Parking lotsBig lots at stores, offices and apartment complexes. Places with more lot space tend to report more theft.1.4 spaces per residentUS: 2.0Lower than for 63% of US city residents
Stores and restaurantsShops and restaurants draw crowds and parked cars. Places with many stores tend to report more theft.9.0 per 1,000 residentsUS: 10.5Lower than for 63% of US city residents
JobsJobs draw daytime crowds. Places with many jobs tend to report more theft.34 for every 100 residentsUS: 45Lower than for 63% 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 Hillsborough
Property crime costs Hillsborough about $4.9 million a year, or $172 per resident and about $426 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
$460,000
$16
Theft
$2.4 million
$85
Vehicle theft
$660,000
$23
Arson
$45,000
$2
Vandalism
$1.3 million
$46
Total
$4.9 million
$172
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.
