The Safest and Most Dangerous Places in Arvada, CO
Arvada is the seventh-largest city in Colorado, with 123,900 residents in Jefferson County, about 9 miles northwest of downtown Denver · Updated November 2026
Is Arvada, CO safe?
Crime in Arvada is moderate, with an overall CrimeGrade™ of B+. Most US neighborhoods have little crime: 63% of Americans live in neighborhoods with less crime than Arvada. Violent crime grades better than property crime here, A against B-. What matters most is the neighborhood: grades within Arvada run from A to C, so check the map or the safest and least safe neighborhoods below.
B+
Overall CrimeGrade™
Safety score 761 of 1,000Less safe than most US neighborhoodsi What this means
37% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime than Arvada as a whole, and 63% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a safety score of 838, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. Arvada scores 761.
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 Arvada, CO at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in Arvada, 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 Arvada
One part of Arvada stands out for vehicle theft. Car thefts in Northwestern Denver, in southeast Arvada, run at more than double the rate in the rest of the city.
Robberies happen at stores and businesses far more often than nationally. In Arvada, 62% of reported robberies happen at stores and businesses, against 33% nationally.
The safest and most dangerous neighborhoods in Arvada
Low crime is the norm across Arvada: 95% of residents live in areas graded A or B, and the rest in areas graded C. Grades across Arvada run from A to C; 36% of residents live in areas with less crime than the typical US neighborhood.
95%
A or B 95%C 5%
Share of residents, by the overall CrimeGrade™ of the area they live in.
1Village of Five Parks & Lakecrest, northwestCar thefts run at a small fraction of the rate in the rest of Arvada.A901
2Wyndhams, westCar thefts run at a small fraction of the rate in the rest of Arvada.A858
3Ralston Valley & Appleridge Estates, southwestCar thefts run at less than half the rate in the rest of Arvada.A-844
4Lakecrest Cluster, northCar thefts run about 40% lower here than in the rest of Arvada.A-834
6Highlands, northeastCar thefts run about 70% higher here than in the rest of Arvada.B+727
7Lamar Heights, eastCar thefts run about 70% higher here than in the rest of Arvada.B+693
8Arvada Plaza, Allendale & Alta Vista, southCar thefts run at more than double the rate in the rest of Arvada.B661
9Northwestern Denver, southeastAggravated assaults run at more than double the rate in the rest of Arvada.B-591
Neighborhood areas of Arvada, ranked by overall 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 crime going up in Arvada?
Since 2019, reported violent crime in Arvada is up 21% and property crime is down 20%. Murders, rapes, robberies and aggravated assaults went from about 2.3 to 2.8 a year per 1,000 residents (US: 3.7); burglaries, thefts and vehicle thefts from about 31 to 25 (US: 18). In 2024 alone, violent crime rose 31%.
Violent crime, change since 2019
Property crime, change since 2019
ArvadaUnited States
Source: crime reports to the FBI from the police department that serves Arvada. The charts follow crimes per resident.
Data table
Year
Violent, Arvada
Violent, US
Property, Arvada
Property, US
2016
-19%
+4%
-13%
+15%
2017
-27%
+4%
-9%
+12%
2018
+0%
+0%
-4%
+4%
2019
+0%
+0%
+0%
+0%
2020
+1%
+4%
+2%
-8%
2021
+24%
+6%
+13%
-10%
2022
+14%
+5%
-0%
-6%
2023
-7%
+2%
-16%
-7%
2024
+21%
-4%
-20%
-15%
Crime rates and types in Arvada
CrimeGrade™ estimates Arvada has about 40 reported crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 8% more than the US as a whole and 15% less than Colorado.
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.
Theft is the most common crime in Arvada, about 41% of everything reported, but assault costs more, because each one does 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.
Where and when crime happens in Arvada
Arvada has its own police department, and these figures come from its reports, 2022 to 2024.
In Arvada, 52% of burglaries hit homes, against 57% nationally. Thefts from cars happen most often at homes: 59% of them, against 34% nationally.
Crime
Most often at
Busiest time
Burglary
Homes (52%)
Night (midnight to 6 am)
Car theft
Homes (60%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Theft from cars
Homes (59%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Vandalism
Homes (48%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Robbery
Stores and businesses (62%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Aggravated assault
Homes (55%)
Afternoon (noon to 6 pm)
Shares of the crimes reported to police, 2022 to 2024. Reports with no time recorded are left out of the times.
How Arvada compares with nearby cities
Arvada has less crime than 7 of its 9 nearest cities; only Fairmount and Applewood have less.
Two things set Arvada apart: it has 7.0 stores and restaurants for every 1,000 residents, against 10.5 nationally, and 26 jobs for every 100 residents, against 45 for the US as a whole. Places like that tend to report less theft, yet theft runs 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.7.0 per 1,000 residentsUS: 10.5Lower than for 81% of US city residents
JobsJobs draw daytime crowds. Places with many jobs tend to report more theft and robbery.26 for every 100 residentsUS: 45Lower than for 78% 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 and assault. 84% of residents here live in car-dependent areas.D (16 of 100)US: 21Lower than for 55% 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.3.9% of homesUS: 7.1%Lower than for 75% of US city residents
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 Arvada: D+ (19 of 100).2 trips an hourUS: noneHigher than for 57% of US city residents
Parking lotsBig lots at stores, offices and apartment complexes. Places with more lot space tend to report more theft.1.5 spaces per residentUS: 2.0Lower than for 56% of US city residents
BestNeighborhood, a sister site of CrimeGrade™, ranks the neighborhoods of Arvada on shops, parks, home prices, getting around and more.
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 Arvada
Crime costs Arvada about $951 a year per household, counting police, courts and prisons as well as victims' losses, 21% less than the US figure of $1,205. The total is about $47 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 $102 million a year, or $824 per resident.
How the cost breaks down
Crime
Cost a year
Per resident
Murder
$1.8 million
$15
Rape
$1.6 million
$13
Robbery
$1.7 million
$14
Assault
$12 million
$94
Burglary
$3.7 million
$30
Theft
$10 million
$84
Vehicle theft
$7.0 million
$57
Arson
$1.1 million
$9
Vandalism
$8.0 million
$65
Total
$47 million
$379
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 Arvada 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 Arvada, CO average a SchoolGrade of B: 43% of students test proficient, against 39% projected for schools like them. Overall, they meet expectations. See schools in Arvada on SchoolGrade
