San Rafael is a city of 68,300 in Marin County, about 16 miles north of downtown San Francisco · Updated November 2026
How common is property crime in San Rafael?
San Rafael earns a B for property crime, with more property crime than the neighborhoods where 68% of Americans live. Theft makes up 55% of it. Burglary, the crime most likely to reach into a home, grades A-, and vehicle theft grades B.
B
Property crime CrimeGrade™
Safety score 677 of 1,000More property crime than most US neighborhoodsi What this means
32% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more property crime than San Rafael as a whole, and 68% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a property crime safety score of 823, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. San Rafael scores 677.
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 Rafael, CA at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in San Rafael, 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 Rafael
One part of San Rafael stands out for vehicle theft. Car thefts in Picnic Valley, Downtown San Rafael & Francisco Boulevard West, in south San Rafael, run at more than double the rate in the rest of the city.
Thefts from cars happen in parking lots and garages far more often than nationally. In San Rafael, 70% of reported thefts from cars happen in parking lots and garages, against 31% nationally.
Where property crime is lowest and highest in San Rafael
Property crime varies widely across San Rafael: 71% of residents live in areas graded A or B, and 23% in areas graded D or F. Property crime grades across San Rafael run from A to F.
71%23%
A or B 71%C 6%D or F 23%
Share of residents, by the property crime CrimeGrade™ of the area they live in.
1Peacock Gap & Country Club San Rafael, eastCar thefts run at a small fraction of the rate in the rest of San Rafael.A851
2Santa Venetia & Civic Center San Rafael, northCar thefts run at about half the rate in the rest of San Rafael.A-798
4Sun Valley-San Francisco, westThefts run about 40% higher here than in the rest of San Rafael.B665
5Lincoln & Dominican-Black Canyon, centralCar thefts run about 50% higher here than in the rest of San Rafael.B625
6Montecito, southeastCar thefts run at about double the rate in the rest of San Rafael.C+497
7Picnic Valley, Downtown San Rafael & Francisco Boulevard West, southBurglaries run about 80% higher here than in the rest of San Rafael.C410
Neighborhood areas of San Rafael, ranked by property crime CrimeGrade™; beside each grade is its safety score, from 0 to 1,000 (higher is safer). Each one combines several of the smaller areas on the map.
Is property crime going up in San Rafael?
Reported property crime in San Rafael has fallen 15% since 2019. Burglaries, thefts and vehicle thefts went from about 29 to 24 a year per 1,000 residents (US: 18). In 2024 alone, property crime fell 13%.
Property crime, change since 2019
San RafaelUnited States
Source: crime reports to the FBI from the police department that serves San Rafael. The charts follow crimes per resident.
Data table
Year
Property, San Rafael
Property, US
2016
+1%
+15%
2017
-4%
+12%
2018
+0%
+4%
2019
+0%
+0%
2020
+10%
-8%
2021
-1%
-10%
2022
+6%
-6%
2023
-3%
-7%
2024
-15%
-15%
Property crime rates and types in San Rafael
CrimeGrade™ estimates San Rafael has about 29 reported property crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 20% more than the US as a whole and close to 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 Rafael, about 55% 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.
Where and when property crime happens in San Rafael
San Rafael has its own police department, and these figures come from its reports, 2022 to 2024.
In San Rafael, 23% of burglaries hit homes, against 57% nationally. Car thefts happen most often on streets and sidewalks: 56% of them, against 27% nationally.
Crime
Most often at
Busiest time
Burglary
Stores and businesses (37%)
Night (midnight to 6 am)
Car theft
Streets and sidewalks (56%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Theft from cars
Parking lots and garages (70%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Vandalism
Parking lots and garages (33%)
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 Rafael and nearby cities
Of the 9 cities closest to San Rafael, 8 have less property crime. Corte Madera and Larkspur have the least.
Nearest first, with each place's distance from San Rafael. 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 Rafael has more property crime than 79% of them.
Among the traits that tend to go with property crime, two set San Rafael apart: it has 10 buses and trains an hour at the evening rush, where most Americans have none nearby, and a Walk Grade of C (33 of 100) on BestNeighborhood, against 21 for the US as a whole. Even so, 55% of residents in San Rafael live in car-dependent areas, where most errands take a car. Places like that tend to report more theft, and it runs high here.
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 Rafael: D+ (24 of 100).10 trips an hourUS: noneHigher than for 85% 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.C (33 of 100)US: 21Higher than for 84% of US city residents
Stores and restaurantsShops and restaurants draw crowds and parked cars. Places with many stores tend to report more theft.14.1 per 1,000 residentsUS: 10.5Higher than for 84% of US city residents
Show all 6
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.73% where people liveUS: 78%Lower than for 76% 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.40% of residentsUS: 24%Higher than for 76% 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.4.0% of homesUS: 7.1%Lower than for 74% 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 Rafael
Property crime costs San Rafael about $14 million a year, or $212 per resident and about $542 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
$21
Theft
$5.5 million
$81
Vehicle theft
$3.9 million
$58
Arson
$450,000
$7
Vandalism
$3.1 million
$46
Total
$14 million
$212
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.
