Glencoe is a city of 5,340 in Etowah County, about 5 miles southeast of downtown Gadsden · Updated November 2026
Is Glencoe, AL safe?
Yes. Crime is low across most of the US, and lower still in Glencoe: an overall CrimeGrade™ of A+, safer than the neighborhoods where 80% of Americans live. Violent crime grades A+ and property crime A. What matters most is the neighborhood: grades within Glencoe run from A+ to B-, so check the map below.
A+
Overall CrimeGrade™
Safety score 935 of 1,000Safer than most US neighborhoodsi What this means
80% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime than Glencoe as a whole, and 20% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a safety score of 838, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. Glencoe scores 935.
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 Glencoe, AL at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in Glencoe, 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
Crime rates and types in Glencoe
CrimeGrade™ estimates Glencoe has about 20 reported crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 47% less than the US as a whole and 51% less than Alabama.
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 Glencoe, about 40% 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.
The Glencoe Police Department's 2024 counts of theft and vandalism fell far below their usual levels, a sign of a reporting gap, so CrimeGrade™ used its own estimates instead. The department's 2024 count of simple assault fell far below its usual level, a sign of a reporting break, so CrimeGrade™ used the department's earlier years instead.
Select a crime's name to see its map above. CrimeGrade™ business reports map each crime at about 66-meter detail.
How Glencoe compares with nearby cities
Glencoe has less crime than 3 of its 6 nearest cities.
Two things set Glencoe apart: it has 17 jobs for every 100 residents, against 45 for the US as a whole, and 44% of the land where people live lit at night, against 78% nationally. Places like that tend to report less theft and robbery, and theft runs low here.
Residents in dense blocksBlocks of 10,000 or more people per square mile. Dense neighborhoods tend to report more robbery and car theft.NoneUS: 24%Lower than for 97% of US city residents
JobsJobs draw daytime crowds. Places with many jobs tend to report more theft and robbery.17 for every 100 residentsUS: 45Lower than for 90% 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. 96% of residents here live in car-dependent areas.D- (7 of 100)US: 21Lower than for 87% 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.44% where people liveUS: 78%Lower than for 89% 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.10.6% of homesUS: 7.1%Higher than for 88% 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 Glencoe: F (0 of 100).NoneUS: noneLower than for 84% of US city residents
BestNeighborhood, a sister site of CrimeGrade™, ranks the neighborhoods of Glencoe 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 Glencoe
Counting police, courts and prisons as well as victims' losses, crime costs Glencoe about $488 a year per household, 60% 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 $3.1 million a year, or $573 per resident.
How the cost breaks down
Crime
Cost a year
Per resident
Murder
$240,000
$45
Rape
$48,000
$9
Robbery
$7,100
$1
Assault
$300,000
$55
Burglary
$4,700
$1
Theft
$210,000
$40
Vehicle theft
$140,000
$27
Arson
$8,000
$1
Vandalism
$130,000
$24
Total
$1.1 million
$204
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 Glencoe 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 Glencoe, AL average a SchoolGrade of B: 42% of students test proficient, against 34% projected for schools like them. Overall, they meet expectations. See schools in Glencoe on SchoolGrade
