West Plains is a city of 20,700 in Howell County · Updated November 2026
How common is property crime in West Plains?
West Plains earns an A for property crime, safer than the neighborhoods where 69% of Americans live. Theft makes up 56% 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 902 of 1,000Less property crime than most US neighborhoodsi What this means
69% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more property crime than West Plains as a whole, and 31% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a property crime safety score of 823, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. West Plains scores 902.
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 West Plains, MO at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in West Plains, 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 West Plains
Vehicle theft runs low. West Plains has 1.3 car thefts a year per 1,000 residents, about half the US rate of 2.7.
Burglaries happen at stores and businesses far more often than nationally. In West Plains, 49% of reported burglaries happen at stores and businesses, against 28% nationally.
Where property crime is lowest and highest in West Plains
Every part of West Plains where people live grades A or B for property crime on the national scale. Property crime grades across West Plains 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 West Plains
CrimeGrade™ estimates West Plains has about 22 reported property crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 7% less than the US as a whole and 19% less than Missouri.
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 West Plains, about 56% 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 West Plains
West Plains has its own police department, and these figures come from its reports, 2022 to 2024.
Car thefts happen most often at homes: 45% of them, against 33% nationally.
Crime
Most often at
Busiest time
Burglary
Stores and businesses (49%)
Afternoon (noon to 6 pm)
Car theft
Homes (45%)
Afternoon (noon to 6 pm)
Theft from cars
Parking lots and garages (26%)
Afternoon (noon to 6 pm)
Vandalism
Homes (32%)
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 West Plains and nearby cities
West Plains has the most property crime of its 3 nearest cities.
Nearest first, with each place's distance from West Plains. 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, West Plains has more property crime than 52% of them.
Shops, parking lots and walkability in West Plains
Among the traits that tend to go with property crime, two set West Plains apart: it has 17.3 stores and restaurants for every 1,000 residents, against 10.5 nationally, and 3.6 parking-lot spaces per resident, against 2.0 nationally. Places like that tend to report more theft, yet theft runs lower here than that would suggest.
Stores and restaurantsShops and restaurants draw crowds and parked cars. Places with many stores tend to report more theft.17.3 per 1,000 residentsUS: 10.5Higher than for 93% of US city residents
Parking lotsBig lots at stores, offices and apartment complexes. Places with more lot space tend to report more theft.3.6 spaces per residentUS: 2.0Higher than for 92% 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. 88% of residents here live in car-dependent areas.D- (10 of 100)US: 21Lower than for 75% 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.44% where people liveUS: 78%Lower than for 89% 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 West Plains: F (0 of 100).NoneUS: noneLower than for 84% 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.2% of residentsUS: 24%Lower than for 84% 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 West Plains
Property crime costs West Plains about $3.1 million a year, or $151 per resident and about $383 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
$480,000
$23
Theft
$1.3 million
$63
Vehicle theft
$400,000
$19
Arson
$65,000
$3
Vandalism
$860,000
$42
Total
$3.1 million
$151
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.
