Wilkinsburg is a borough of 14,000 in Allegheny County, about 6 miles east of downtown Pittsburgh · Updated November 2026
How common is property crime in Wilkinsburg?
Property crime is high in Wilkinsburg: a C-, with more property crime than the neighborhoods where 86% of Americans live. Theft makes up 34% of it. Burglary, the crime most likely to reach into a home, grades B+, and vehicle theft grades F.
C-
Property crime CrimeGrade™
Safety score 314 of 1,000More property crime than most US neighborhoodsi What this means
14% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more property crime than Wilkinsburg as a whole, and 86% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a property crime safety score of 823, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. Wilkinsburg scores 314.
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 Wilkinsburg, PA at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in Wilkinsburg, 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 Wilkinsburg
Thefts from cars happen on streets and sidewalks far more often than nationally. In Wilkinsburg, 70% of reported thefts from cars happen on streets and sidewalks, against 18% nationally.
Car thefts and acts of vandalism both run high. In Wilkinsburg, each runs at more than double the US rate: 6.7 car thefts and 12.2 acts of vandalism a year per 1,000 residents, against 2.7 and 5.5 nationally.
Where property crime is lowest and highest in Wilkinsburg
High property crime is widespread across Wilkinsburg: 51% of residents live in areas graded D or F, and 8% in areas graded A or B. Property crime grades across Wilkinsburg run from B to F.
41%51%
A or B 8%C 41%D or F 51%
Share of residents, by the property crime CrimeGrade™ of the area they live in.
Is property crime going up in Wilkinsburg?
Reported property crime in Wilkinsburg has held about steady since 2019, within 8%. Burglaries, thefts and vehicle thefts went from about 26 to 24 a year per 1,000 residents (US: 18). In 2024 alone, property crime rose 22%.
Property crime, change since 2019
WilkinsburgUnited States
Source: crime reports to the FBI from the police department that serves Wilkinsburg. The charts follow crimes per resident.
Data table
Year
Property, Wilkinsburg
Property, US
2016
+30%
+15%
2017
+35%
+12%
2018
+17%
+4%
2019
+0%
+0%
2020
-0%
-8%
2021
-7%
-10%
2022
-18%
-6%
2023
-25%
-7%
2024
-8%
-15%
Property crime rates and types in Wilkinsburg
CrimeGrade™ estimates Wilkinsburg has about 34 reported property crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 44% more than the US as a whole and 75% more than Pennsylvania.
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.
Vandalism is the most common property crime in Wilkinsburg, about 36% of the total, followed by theft 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.
The Wilkinsburg Police Department's 2024 report of burglary had a month far out of line with the rest, a sign of a data-entry error or a catch-up month, so CrimeGrade™ set it aside and used the other months.
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 Wilkinsburg
Wilkinsburg has its own police department, and these figures come from its reports, 2022 to 2024.
In Wilkinsburg, 84% of burglaries hit homes, against 57% nationally. Car thefts happen most often on streets and sidewalks: 70% of them, against 27% nationally.
Crime
Most often at
Busiest time
Burglary
Homes (84%)
Afternoon (noon to 6 pm)
Car theft
Streets and sidewalks (70%)
Morning (6 am to noon)
Theft from cars
Streets and sidewalks (70%)
Morning (6 am to noon)
Vandalism
Streets and sidewalks (45%)
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 Wilkinsburg and nearby cities
Wilkinsburg has the most property crime of its 9 nearest cities.
Nearest first, with each place's distance from Wilkinsburg. 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, Wilkinsburg has more property crime than 98% of them.
Empty homes, transit and walkability in Wilkinsburg
Among the traits that tend to go with property crime, two set Wilkinsburg apart: it has 19.6% of its homes standing empty, against 7.1% nationally, and 42 buses and trains an hour at the evening rush, where most Americans have none nearby. Places like that tend to report more burglary, vandalism and arson, and burglary and vandalism run high here.
Empty homesSeasonal and vacation homes are left out. Places with many empty homes tend to report more burglary, vandalism and arson.19.6% of homesUS: 7.1%Higher than for 99% 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 Wilkinsburg: C (34 of 100).42 trips an hourUS: noneHigher than for 97% 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+ (43 of 100)US: 21Higher than for 89% 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.0.3 spaces per residentUS: 2.0Lower than for 95% 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.100% where people liveUS: 78%Higher than for 92% of US city residents
Stores and restaurantsShops and restaurants draw crowds and parked cars. Places with many stores tend to report more theft.6.1 per 1,000 residentsUS: 10.5Lower than for 87% 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 Wilkinsburg
Property crime costs Wilkinsburg about $4.0 million a year, or $285 per resident and about $520 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
$430,000
$30
Theft
$850,000
$61
Vehicle theft
$1.4 million
$103
Arson
$54,000
$4
Vandalism
$1.2 million
$87
Total
$4.0 million
$285
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.
