The Safest and Most Dangerous Places in Dallas, NC

Dallas is a town of 17,800 in Gaston County, about 20 miles west of downtown Charlotte · Updated November 2026

Is Dallas, NC safe?

Yes, crime in Dallas is low, with an overall CrimeGrade™ of A-. Because most US neighborhoods are safe as well, Dallas sits near the middle: safer than the neighborhoods where 41% of Americans live. Property crime grades better than violent crime here, A against B+. What matters most is the neighborhood: grades within Dallas run from A to C, so check the map below.

A-
Overall CrimeGrade™Safety score 784 of 1,000
About as safe as the typical US neighborhood What this means

41% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime than Dallas as a whole, and 59% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a safety score of 838, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. Dallas scores 784.

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.

B+
Violent crimeSafety score 747 of 1,000More violent crime than most US neighborhoods
A
Property crimeSafety score 847 of 1,000About as much property crime as the typical US neighborhood

How it works


Crime map of Dallas

Map of Dallas shaded by overall CrimeGrade™, from green for the least crime to red for the most
Click the map to explore
F D C B A+
Highest crime Safest
Colorblind friendly off

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 Dallas, NC at ISP Reports.

Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in Dallas, 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 Dallas

Burglary is the exception. Dallas grades A for property crime, but burglary grades B+, worse than in the neighborhoods where 75% of Americans live.


The safest and least safe parts of Dallas

Most of Dallas grades well: 85% of residents live in areas graded A or B, and the rest in areas graded C. Grades across Dallas run from A to C; 47% of residents live in areas with less crime than the typical US neighborhood.

A or B 85%C 15%

Share of residents, by the overall CrimeGrade™ of the area they live in.

Within Dallas, the northeast side has the least crime and the southeast side the most.


Crime rates and types in Dallas

CrimeGrade™ estimates Dallas has about 28 reported crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 24% less than the US as a whole and 30% less than North Carolina.

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 Dallas, about 38% of everything reported.

CrimeCrimeGrade™Reported a yearPer 1,000 residentsUS per 1,000
Violent crime
MurderB+20.110.05
RapeA-50.300.38
RobberyA50.290.62
AssaultB+19210.812.3
Property crime
BurglaryB+663.72.4
TheftA-1357.613.1
Vehicle theftA382.12.7
ArsonA20.100.12
VandalismA593.35.5

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 Dallas

Dallas has its own police department, and these figures come from its reports, 2022 to 2024.

In Dallas, 57% of burglaries hit homes, against 57% nationally.

CrimeMost often atBusiest time
BurglaryHomes (57%)Morning (6 am to noon)
VandalismHomes (52%)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 Dallas compares with nearby cities

Dallas has less crime than 4 of its 7 nearest cities.

Nearby cities

PlaceOverallViolentPropertyResidents
DallasA-784B+A17,800
Ranlo 4 milesB+742B+A-4,570
Bessemer City 6 milesA-775B+A13,500
Lowell 6 milesA-803A-A-4,020
Charlotte 22 milesC+497C+C+949,800
Show all 7
PlaceOverallViolentPropertyResidents
Gastonia 6 milesB635BB108,200
Alexis 7 milesA920AA+1,500
Stanley 8 milesA879AA16,800

Nearest first, with each place's distance from Dallas. Beside each overall CrimeGrade™ is its safety score, from 0 to 1,000 (higher is safer).

Compared with cities of similar size and density, Dallas has more crime than 92% of them.

Cities of similar size and density

PlaceOverallViolentPropertyResidents
DallasA-784B+A17,800
Newberry, FLA+938A+A+17,800
Swansea, MAA+926A+A17,800
Thompsons Station, TNA923AA+17,800
Hillsboro, MOA916AA17,800
Show all 10
PlaceOverallViolentPropertyResidents
Fletcher, NCA916A+A17,800
Spearfish, SDA903AA17,800
Rockland, MAA891AA+17,700
Indianola, IAA868AA17,800
Gambrills, MDA861AA-17,800
Taylor, TXA847AA-17,800

Jobs, walkability and transit in Dallas

Two things set Dallas apart: it has 20 jobs for every 100 residents, against 45 for the US as a whole, and a Walk Grade of D- (7 of 100) on BestNeighborhood, against 21 for the US as a whole. Places like that tend to report less theft and robbery, and theft runs low here.

JobsJobs draw daytime crowds. Places with many jobs tend to report more theft and robbery.20 for every 100 residentsUS: 45Lower than for 86% 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. 95% of residents here live in car-dependent areas.D- (7 of 100)US: 21Lower than for 85% 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 Dallas: F (0 of 100).NoneUS: noneLower than for 84% 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
Stores and restaurantsShops and restaurants draw crowds and parked cars. Places with many stores tend to report more theft.6.8 per 1,000 residentsUS: 10.5Lower 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.6% of residentsUS: 24%Lower than for 72% of US city residents

BestNeighborhood, a sister site of CrimeGrade™, ranks the neighborhoods of Dallas 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 Dallas

Counting police, courts and prisons as well as victims' losses, crime costs Dallas about $1,275 a year per household, 6% more 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 $38 million a year, or $2,156 per resident.

How the cost breaks down
CrimeCost a yearPer resident
Murder$3.8 million$213
Rape$320,000$18
Robbery$160,000$9
Assault$2.2 million$124
Burglary$590,000$33
Theft$690,000$39
Vehicle theft$580,000$32
Arson$43,000$2
Vandalism$420,000$24
Total$8.8 million$495

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 Dallas 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. Dallas is the other kind of example: few people work in, shop in or visit it, so its crime per resident looks lower than its CrimeGrade™ suggests.

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
  • Population and housing figures from the US Census Bureau
  • 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.

More about CrimeGrade™ data


Schools in Dallas

Schools in Dallas, NC average a SchoolGrade of C-: 51% of students test proficient, against 44% projected for schools like them. Overall, they meet expectations. See schools in Dallas on SchoolGrade