The Safest and Most Dangerous Places in Benton County, MO: Crime Maps and Statistics

Crime per Capita in Benton County

This overview combines violent, property, and other offenses into a single grade for Benton County. The dedicated violent crime and property crime pages go deeper on each. The map below shows the overall crime rate per 1,000 residents.

 

Benton County, MO Map of Crime Rates
Click the map to explore
A+ B C D F
Safest Highest crime
Colorblind friendly off

C

Overall Crime Grade™

D+
C+
Other Crime Grade
C-

$10.8 million

Cost of Crime™ for Benton County, MO

In 2025, crime will cost $1,342 per household.

More cost data

On the map, green marks the parts of Benton County with the least crime overall and red marks the most. Each area is weighted by the type and severity of every offense, so a place with rare but serious violent crime can grade differently from one with frequent petty theft. The Interpreting the Crime Maps section below explains how to read the colors.

Is Benton County, MO Safe?

The C overall grade blends the violent, property, and other grades shown above into one measure, set against the average US county, where Benton County's combined rate is slightly higher than the norm. Benton County sits in the 44th percentile, ahead of 44% of counties and behind 56%. The grade covers only Benton County's official city boundaries. See the table below for nearby counties.

The overall crime rate in Benton County is 32.47 per 1,000 residents in a typical year. Residents generally consider the northwest part of the county the safest. Your chance of being a victim ranges from 1 in 25 in the northeast areas to 1 in 50 in the northwest.

Counting total incidents instead of per-capita rates, the west parts of Benton County, MO report the most crime, about 113 cases per year. The southeast part reports the fewest, around 32 per year.

The Cost of Crime™ in Benton County, MO

Across all crime types, the projected cost of crime in Benton County for 2025 is $10,844,689, about $545 per resident and $1,342 per household. That equals 1.8% of the median household income. These figures cover tangible costs, which include:
  1. Criminal justice system costs (law enforcement, courts, and imprisonment): 54.1%
  2. Direct costs to victims (damaged property, medical expenses, and lost wages): 33.7%
  3. Lost economic contribution from offenders (time in prison or repeat offenses): 12.2%

How Much Does Crime Cost in Benton County Compared to Other Counties?

Benton County, MO: $545
St. Louis City, MO: $1636
Cass County, MO: $361
Missouri: $660
USA: $464

The overall cost of crime per resident in Benton County is $545 per year, which is $80 more than the national average and $116 less than Missouri's state average. The comparison below uses counties similar to Benton County:
  • In St. Louis City, MO, crime costs $1,636 per person, which is $1,092 more than in Benton County.
  • In Cass County, MO, crime costs $361 per person, which is $184 less than in Benton County

2025 Projected Cost by Type of Crime

The table below shows the total cost of crime to the residents of Benton County for the year 2025 along with the projected cost per resident.
Crime
Cost to Benton County
Cost per Benton County Resident
Murder
$3.57 million
$179
Rape/Sexual Assault
$894,863
$45
Robbery
$364,868
$18
Assault
$1.91 million
$96
Kidnapping
$213,947
$11
Vehicle Theft
$295,263
$15
Burglary
$594,880
$30
Theft
$1.14 million
$57
Arson
$118,234
$6
Vandalism
$792,088
$40
Animal Cruelty
$13,063
$1
Drug Crimes
$766,182
$38
Identity Theft
$172,476
$9
Total Cost of Crime
$10,844,689
$545

The Intangible Cost of Crime in Benton County, MO

The totals above count tangible costs only. Violent crime also carries a human cost, the pain and trauma borne by victims and their families, which research-based methods estimate so it can be compared across places. That intangible cost in Benton County totals $28,591,118 ($1,436 per resident), and all of it comes from violent crime rather than property loss. Added to the tangible costs, the full estimate reaches $39,435,807 ($1,981 per resident). All Cost of Crime figures come from scholarly research on the cost of crime. Read more about our methodology here.

Interpreting the Crime Maps

Crime rates on the map are measured per resident, so areas with heavy visitor traffic can read high because crime follows crowds, even where few people live. The west part of the county holds more retail establishments, which lifts recorded crime around those blocks. A red area does not always mean the neighborhood is unsafe for residents.

Airports, parks, and transit hubs create the same effect. Major airports draw large crowds with few residents nearby, so they read as high-crime spots. Parks and recreational areas, of which Benton County has 7, do the same, and of Benton County's 19,912 residents few live beside them. Before assuming an area is unsafe, weigh both the per-capita rate and the total number of incidents, and note what sits nearby.

The interactive maps load faster on a strong connection. Compare high speed internet in Benton County, MO at ISP Reports.

Benton County Crime Breakdown

The tables below show which crimes are used to calculate the Crime Grades above. All crime rates are shown as the number of crimes per 1,000 Benton County residents in a standard year.

Violent Crime Rates

Crime Type
Crime Rate
Assault
3.337
Robbery
0.5825
Rape
0.7412
Murder
0.0954
Total Violent Crime
4.756 (D+)
 
 

 


Property Crime Rates

Crime Type
Crime Rate
Theft
11.06
Vehicle Theft
0.9576
Burglary
3.294
Arson
0.2459
Total Property Crime
15.56 (C+)
 
 

 


Other Crime Rates

Crime Type
Crime Rate
Kidnapping
0.1772
Drug Crimes
5.202
Vandalism
5.568
Identity Theft
1.119
Animal Cruelty
0.0887
Total "Other" Rate
12.16 (C-)

 


Crime Maps and Rates for Nearby Counties

Compared to surrounding counties, the rate of crime in Benton County is similar. The table below shows Crime Grades for counties close to Benton County.

Nearby County
Overall Crime Grade
Violent Crime Grade
Property Crime Grade
C
C+
B-
B-
C
B+
C
D+
C
C+
C+
C
C+
C-
B-
C
D
C-
B
C+
B-
D+
D+
C-
C+
C+
C
D
D+
D-

Crime Maps and Rates for County with Similar Populations

Benton County is similar versus other counties of the same size for crime. The table below compares crime in counties with comparable overall population in the county‘s boundaries.

Similar County
Overall Crime Grade
Violent Crime Grade
Property Crime Grade
C-
C-
C-
B
A-
A-
A
A-
A-
F
F
F
C+
C
C
D-
D-
D-
D+
B
B
B
B-
B-
C
C-
C-
B+
C+
C+

Considering only the crime rate, Benton County is safer than the Missouri state average and as safe as the national average.

Safety and school performance are separate topics, but both shape moving decisions. Using SchoolGrade data, schools in Benton County, MO average SchoolGrade of C, with 36% actual proficiency versus 36% projected; overall, schools meet expectations. See Benton County schools on SchoolGrade

About the Data

CrimeGrade.org provides highly detailed and accurate crime data, used by insurance companies, home security firms, and other industries. Our data is available for licensing—learn more about our USA crime data and licensing.

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Home Security

A crime occurs on average every 13 hours 33 minutes in Benton County. Want to protect your home?

Home Security Companies in Benton County, MO

All maps and statistics above are projections, not certainties, and provided without guarantee free of charge. Verify all info before making any decisions based on the data.