San Marcos is a city of 103,400 in San Diego County, about 30 miles north of downtown San Diego · Updated November 2026
How common is property crime in San Marcos?
Property crime in San Marcos sits near the national middle: an A, safer than the neighborhoods where 56% of Americans live. Theft makes up 52% 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 852 of 1,000About as much property crime as the typical US neighborhoodi What this means
56% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more property crime than San Marcos as a whole, and 44% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a property crime safety score of 823, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. San Marcos scores 852.
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 San Marcos, CA at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in San Marcos, 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 San Marcos
Burglaries happen at stores and businesses far more often than nationally. In San Marcos, 55% of reported burglaries happen at stores and businesses, against 28% nationally.
Thefts and car thefts both run low. In San Marcos, each runs at about half the US rate: 6.0 thefts and 1.3 car thefts a year per 1,000 residents, against 13.1 and 2.7 nationally.
Where property crime is lowest and highest in San Marcos
Every part of San Marcos where people live grades A or B for property crime on the national scale. Property crime grades across San Marcos 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 San Marcos
CrimeGrade™ estimates San Marcos has about 11 reported property crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 52% less than the US as a whole and 59% less than California.
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 San Marcos, about 52% 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.
The San Marcos Police Department's 2024 report to the FBI was missing some months of theft; CrimeGrade™ filled them in from the department's own monthly pattern.
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 San Marcos
San Marcos has its own police department, and these figures come from its reports, 2022 to 2024.
Car thefts happen most often in parking lots and garages: 37% of them, against 23% nationally.
Crime
Most often at
Busiest time
Burglary
Stores and businesses (55%)
Night (midnight to 6 am)
Car theft
Parking lots and garages (37%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Theft from cars
Parking lots and garages (50%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Vandalism
Parking lots and garages (28%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Shares of the crimes reported to police, 2022 to 2024. Reports with no time recorded are left out of the times.
Property crime in San Marcos and nearby cities
San Marcos has less property crime than 8 of its 10 nearest cities; only Rancho Santa Fe and Bonsall have less.
Nearest first, with each place's distance from San Marcos. 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, San Marcos is safer than 75% of them.
Transit, empty homes and walkability in San Marcos
Among the traits that tend to go with property crime, two set San Marcos apart: it has 9 buses and trains an hour at the evening rush, where most Americans have none nearby, and 3.3% of its homes standing empty, against 7.1% nationally. Places with busy transit tend to report more theft, yet theft runs lower here than that would suggest.
Transit serviceBuses and trains an hour at the evening rush. Places with busy transit tend to report more theft. BestNeighborhood's Transit Grade for San Marcos: D+ (20 of 100).9 trips an hourUS: noneHigher than for 84% of US city residents
Empty homesSeasonal and vacation homes are left out. Places with many empty homes tend to report more burglary, vandalism and arson.3.3% of homesUS: 7.1%Lower 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. 81% of residents here live in car-dependent areas.D+ (18 of 100)US: 21Higher than for 53% of US city residents
Show all 6
Residents in dense blocksBlocks of 10,000 or more people per square mile. Dense neighborhoods tend to report more car theft.36% of residentsUS: 24%Higher than for 73% of US city residents
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 61% of US city residents
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.94% where people liveUS: 78%Lower than for 54% 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 San Marcos
Property crime costs San Marcos about $8.8 million a year, or $86 per resident and about $256 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
$1.5 million
$15
Theft
$3.2 million
$31
Vehicle theft
$2.1 million
$20
Arson
$250,000
$2
Vandalism
$1.8 million
$18
Total
$8.8 million
$86
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.
