The Safest and Most Dangerous Places in Big Rapids, MI
Big Rapids is a city of 16,300 in Mecosta County, about 35 miles west of downtown Mount Pleasant · Updated November 2026
Is Big Rapids, MI safe?
Yes. Most US neighborhoods have little crime, and Big Rapids has less than most of them: its overall CrimeGrade™ is A, safer than the neighborhoods where 65% of Americans live. Property crime grades better than violent crime here, A+ against A. Its neighborhoods are much alike, from A+ to A-; see the map below.
A
Overall CrimeGrade™
Safety score 896 of 1,000Safer than most US neighborhoodsi What this means
65% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime than Big Rapids as a whole, and 35% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a safety score of 838, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. Big Rapids scores 896.
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 Big Rapids, MI at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in Big Rapids, 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
The safest and least safe parts of Big Rapids
Every part of Big Rapids where people live grades A or B on the national scale. Grades across Big Rapids run from A+ to A-; 86% of residents live in areas with less crime than the typical US neighborhood.
100%
A or B 100%
Share of residents, by the overall CrimeGrade™ of the area they live in.
Within Big Rapids, the southeast side has the least crime and the center the most.
Is crime going up in Big Rapids?
Reported property crime in Big Rapids has held about steady since 2019, within 1%. Too few violent crimes are reported here each year for a reliable violent crime trend. Burglaries, thefts and vehicle thefts stayed at about 10 a year per 1,000 residents (US: 18). In 2024 alone, property crime rose 13%.
Property crime, change since 2019
Big RapidsUnited States
Source: crime reports to the FBI from the police agencies that serve Big Rapids. The charts follow crimes per resident.
Data table
Year
Property, Big Rapids
Property, US
2016
+13%
+15%
2017
+3%
+12%
2018
-35%
+4%
2019
+0%
+0%
2020
-13%
-8%
2021
-8%
-10%
2022
+2%
-6%
2023
-11%
-7%
2024
+1%
-15%
Crime rates and types in Big Rapids
CrimeGrade™ estimates Big Rapids has about 28 reported crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 25% less than the US as a whole and 19% less than Michigan.
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 is the most common crime in Big Rapids, about 52% of everything reported, and it also accounts for the largest share of what crime costs here.
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 Big Rapids compares with nearby cities
Big Rapids has the most crime of its 7 nearest cities.
Two things set Big Rapids apart: it has 4.3 parking-lot spaces per resident, against 2.0 nationally, and 17.0 stores and restaurants for every 1,000 residents, against 10.5 nationally. Places like that tend to report more theft, yet theft runs lower here than that would suggest.
Parking lotsBig lots at stores, offices and apartment complexes. Places with more lot space tend to report more theft.4.3 spaces per residentUS: 2.0Higher than for 95% of US city residents
Stores and restaurantsShops and restaurants draw crowds and parked cars. Places with many stores tend to report more theft.17.0 per 1,000 residentsUS: 10.5Higher than for 93% 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. 78% of residents here live in car-dependent areas.D+ (18 of 100)US: 21Higher than for 53% 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.58% where people liveUS: 78%Lower than for 84% of US city residents
Empty homesSeasonal and vacation homes are left out. Places with many empty homes tend to report more burglary, vandalism and arson.9.3% of homesUS: 7.1%Higher than for 82% of US city residents
Residents in dense blocksBlocks of 10,000 or more people per square mile. Dense neighborhoods tend to report more robbery and car theft.4% of residentsUS: 24%Lower than for 76% 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 crime costs Big Rapids
Counting police, courts and prisons as well as victims' losses, crime costs Big Rapids about $921 a year per household, 24% less than the US figure of $1,205.
Cost of crime per resident, per year
Counting the pain and suffering of victims, which comes almost entirely from violent crime, the full cost comes to about $19 million a year, or $1,177 per resident.
How the cost breaks down
Crime
Cost a year
Per resident
Murder
$1,000,000
$61
Rape
$530,000
$32
Robbery
$88,000
$5
Assault
$2.6 million
$157
Burglary
$140,000
$8
Theft
$650,000
$40
Vehicle theft
$130,000
$8
Arson
$39,000
$2
Vandalism
$380,000
$24
Total
$5.5 million
$338
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 Big Rapids 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 Big Rapids, MI average a SchoolGrade of C-: 36% of students test proficient, against 33% projected for schools like them. Overall, they meet expectations. See schools in Big Rapids on SchoolGrade
