Waterbury is the fifth-largest city in Connecticut, with 114,800 residents in Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, about 18 miles north of downtown New Haven · Updated November 2026
How common is property crime in Waterbury?
Waterbury grades C for property crime, with more of it than the neighborhoods where 82% of Americans live. Theft makes up 50% of it. Burglary, the crime most likely to reach into a home, grades A-, and vehicle theft grades D+.
C
Property crime CrimeGrade™
Safety score 433 of 1,000More property crime than most US neighborhoodsi What this means
18% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more property crime than Waterbury as a whole, and 82% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a property crime safety score of 823, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. Waterbury scores 433.
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 Waterbury, CT at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in Waterbury, 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 Waterbury
One part of Waterbury stands out for vehicle theft. Car thefts in Exchange Place & Cass Gilbert, in central Waterbury, run at more than double the rate in the rest of the city.
Thefts from cars happen in the morning far more often than nationally. In Waterbury, 48% of reported thefts from cars happen in the morning (6 am to noon), against 23% nationally.
Where property crime is lowest and highest in Waterbury
Property crime varies widely across Waterbury: 37% of residents live in areas graded A or B, and 43% in areas graded D or F. Property crime grades across Waterbury run from A- to F.
37%20%43%
A or B 37%C 20%D or F 43%
Share of residents, by the property crime CrimeGrade™ of the area they live in.
1Walnut Orange Walsh, eastCar thefts run about 70% higher here than in the rest of Waterbury.C-309
2North Square, northThefts run about 70% higher here than in the rest of Waterbury.D+248
3Exchange Place & Cass Gilbert, centralBurglaries run about 40% higher here than in the rest of Waterbury.F0
Neighborhood areas of Waterbury, 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 Waterbury?
Reported property crime in Waterbury has held about steady since 2019, within 4%. Burglaries, thefts and vehicle thefts went from about 30 to 29 a year per 1,000 residents (US: 18). Property crime changed little from 2023 to 2024.
Property crime, change since 2019
WaterburyUnited States
Source: crime reports to the FBI from the police department that serves Waterbury. The charts follow crimes per resident.
Data table
Year
Property, Waterbury
Property, US
2016
+27%
+15%
2017
+26%
+12%
2018
+29%
+4%
2019
+0%
+0%
2020
-18%
-8%
2021
-4%
-10%
2022
-6%
-6%
2023
+1%
-7%
2024
-4%
-15%
Property crime rates and types in Waterbury
CrimeGrade™ estimates Waterbury has about 41 reported property crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 72% more than the US as a whole and about double the rate for Connecticut.
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 Waterbury, about 50% 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 Waterbury
Waterbury has its own police department, and these figures come from its reports, 2022 to 2024.
In Waterbury, 66% of burglaries hit homes, against 57% nationally. Car thefts happen most often at homes: 39% of them, against 33% nationally.
Crime
Most often at
Busiest time
Burglary
Homes (66%)
Morning (6 am to noon)
Car theft
Homes (39%)
Morning (6 am to noon)
Theft from cars
Homes (31%)
Morning (6 am to noon)
Vandalism
Homes (47%)
Morning (6 am to noon)
Shares of the crimes reported to police, 2022 to 2024. Reports with no time recorded are left out of the times.
Property crime in Waterbury and nearby cities
Of the 8 cities closest to Waterbury, 7 have less property crime. Prospect and Middlebury have the least.
Nearest first, with each place's distance from Waterbury. 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, Waterbury has more property crime than 96% of them.
Among the traits that tend to go with property crime, two set Waterbury apart: it has a Walk Grade of C (32 of 100) on BestNeighborhood, against 21 for the US as a whole, and 7 buses and trains an hour at the evening rush, where most Americans have none nearby. Even so, 56% of residents in Waterbury live in car-dependent areas, where most errands take a car. Places like that tend to report more theft, and it runs high here.
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 (32 of 100)US: 21Higher than for 83% of US city residents
Transit serviceBuses and trains an hour at the evening rush. Places with busy transit tend to report more theft. BestNeighborhood's Transit Grade for Waterbury: D+ (22 of 100).7 trips an hourUS: noneHigher than for 77% 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
Show all 6
Empty homesSeasonal and vacation homes are left out. Places with many empty homes tend to report more burglary, vandalism and arson.8.2% of homesUS: 7.1%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.1.2 spaces per residentUS: 2.0Lower than for 69% 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 Waterbury
Property crime costs Waterbury about $35 million a year, or $308 per resident and about $800 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
$2.4 million
$21
Theft
$12 million
$106
Vehicle theft
$11 million
$98
Arson
$100,000
$1
Vandalism
$9.4 million
$82
Total
$35 million
$308
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.
