Anacostia is a neighborhood of 101,500 residents in Washington, about 4 miles southeast of downtown · Updated November 2026
Is Anacostia in Washington safe?
Anacostia is among the higher-crime places in the US: an overall CrimeGrade™ of F, with more crime than the neighborhoods where 99% of Americans live. Violent and property crime both grade F here. Washington as a whole grades F. What matters most is the neighborhood: grades within Anacostia run from B- to F, so check the map below.
F
Overall CrimeGrade™
Safety score 0 of 1,000Less safe than nearly all US neighborhoodsi What this means
1% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime than Anacostia as a whole, and 99% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a safety score of 838, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. Anacostia scores 0.
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 crime than most US neighborhoods.
How to read the map: each area's color compares its crime with the people, homes and cars there, on one national scale, from green for the least crime 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 Anacostia, Washington, DC at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in Anacostia in Washington, 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 in Anacostia
Robberies and acts of vandalism both run high. In Anacostia, each runs at more than triple the US rate: 5.6 robberies and 27.8 acts of vandalism a year per 1,000 residents, against 0.62 and 5.5 nationally.
How Anacostia compares within Washington
High crime is widespread across Anacostia: 98% of residents live in areas graded D or F, and 2% in areas graded A or B. Grades across Anacostia run from B- to F; every part of Anacostia has more crime than the typical US neighborhood.
98%
A or B 2%D or F 98%
Share of residents, by the overall CrimeGrade™ of the area they live in.
Anacostia has less crime than 4 of the 38 neighborhoods in Washington. It covers much of the Anacostia area.
Crime rates and types in Anacostia
CrimeGrade™ estimates Anacostia has about 100 reported crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, more than double the rate for the US as a whole and close to Washington as a whole.
Overall crime
Violent crime
Property crime
Reported crimes a year, per 1,000 residents. These figures include simple assaults and vandalism, which the FBI's violent and property crime rates leave out.
Assault makes up about 39% of crime reported in Anacostia. Murder is less common but costs more, because each one does far more harm.
Each CrimeGrade™ compares a crime with what it affects: people for assaults and robbery, homes for burglary, parked cars for vehicle theft. 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.
How Anacostia compares with nearby neighborhoods
Of the 10 neighborhoods closest to Anacostia, 6 have less crime. South West and Capitol Hill have the least.
Two things set Anacostia apart: it has 2.2 stores and restaurants for every 1,000 residents, against 10.5 nationally, and 50 buses and trains an hour at the evening rush, where most Americans have none nearby. Places with few stores and restaurants tend to report less theft and car theft, yet theft and car theft run higher here than that would suggest.
Stores and restaurantsShops and restaurants draw crowds and parked cars. Places with many stores tend to report more theft and car theft.2.2 per 1,000 residentsUS: 10.5Lower than for 94% of residents of US city neighborhoods
Transit serviceBuses and trains an hour at the evening rush. Places with busy transit tend to report more theft and robbery. BestNeighborhood's Transit Grade for Anacostia: D- (7 of 100).50 trips an hourUS: noneHigher than for 87% of residents of US city neighborhoods
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 and assault.C (34 of 100)US: 21Lower than for 50% of residents of US city neighborhoods
Show all 4
Empty homesSeasonal and vacation homes are left out. Places with many empty homes tend to report more burglary, vandalism and arson.10.8% of homesUS: 7.1%Higher than for 83% of residents of US city neighborhoods
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 crime costs Anacostia
Counting police, courts and prisons as well as victims' losses, crime costs Anacostia about $5,697 a year per household, more than triple the US figure of $1,205. The total is about $223 million a year.
Cost of crime per resident, per year
Counting the pain and suffering of victims, which comes almost entirely from violent crime, the full cost rises to about $1.04 billion a year, or $10,205 per resident.
How CrimeGrade™ works
A CrimeGrade™ shows how much crime an area has compared with the rest of the country, from A+ for the least crime to F for the most. Every neighborhood in the US is graded on the same scale, so a B in Anacostia means the same as a B anywhere else.
CrimeGrade™ starts from the crimes people report to police and measures each kind of crime against what it affects: people for assaults, homes for burglaries, parked cars for car thefts.
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.
Schools in Anacostia, Washington, DC average a SchoolGrade of D-: 12% of students test proficient, against 15% projected for schools like them. Overall, they meet expectations. See schools in Anacostia on SchoolGrade
