The Safest and Most Dangerous Places in Hamden, CT
Hamden is a town of 60,200 in South Central Connecticut Planning Region, about 4 miles north of downtown New Haven · Updated November 2026
Is Hamden, CT safe?
Crime in Hamden is moderate, with an overall CrimeGrade™ of B. Most US neighborhoods have little crime: 74% of Americans live in neighborhoods with less crime than Hamden. Violent crime grades better than property crime here, A- against C. What matters most is the neighborhood: grades within Hamden run from A to F, so check the map or the safest and least safe neighborhoods below.
B
Overall CrimeGrade™
Safety score 642 of 1,000Less safe than most US neighborhoodsi What this means
26% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime than Hamden as a whole, and 74% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a safety score of 838, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. Hamden scores 642.
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 Hamden, CT at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in Hamden, 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 Hamden
One part of Hamden stands out for vehicle theft. Car thefts in Pine Rock & Highwood, in southwest Hamden, run at more than triple the rate in the rest of the city.
Thefts from cars happen in the morning far more often than nationally. In Hamden, 47% of reported thefts from cars happen in the morning (6 am to noon), against 23% nationally.
The safest and most dangerous neighborhoods in Hamden
Most of Hamden grades well: 70% of residents live in areas graded A or B, and 10% in areas graded D or F. Grades across Hamden run from A to F; 23% of residents live in areas with less crime than the typical US neighborhood.
70%20%10%
A or B 70%C 20%D or F 10%
Share of residents, by the overall CrimeGrade™ of the area they live in.
1Spring Glen, eastCar thefts run at about half the rate in the rest of Hamden.B+746
2Hamden Plains, centralThefts run about 40% higher here than in the rest of Hamden.B626
3Pine Rock & Highwood, southwestRobberies run at about triple the rate in the rest of Hamden.D-79
Neighborhood areas of Hamden, 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 Hamden?
Reported crime in Hamden has risen since 2019: violent crime is up 27% and property crime up 38%. Murders, rapes, robberies and aggravated assaults went from about 3.3 to 4.2 a year per 1,000 residents (US: 3.7); burglaries, thefts and vehicle thefts from about 22 to 30 (US: 18). In 2024 alone, violent crime fell 24%.
Violent crime, change since 2019
Property crime, change since 2019
HamdenUnited States
Source: crime reports to the FBI from the police department that serves Hamden. The charts follow crimes per resident.
Data table
Year
Violent, Hamden
Violent, US
Property, Hamden
Property, US
2016
-4%
+4%
+12%
+15%
2017
-9%
+4%
-12%
+12%
2018
+2%
+0%
-12%
+4%
2019
+0%
+0%
+0%
+0%
2020
-1%
+4%
+12%
-8%
2021
+18%
+6%
+8%
-10%
2022
+8%
+5%
+15%
-6%
2023
+67%
+2%
+36%
-7%
2024
+27%
-4%
+38%
-15%
Crime rates and types in Hamden
CrimeGrade™ estimates Hamden has about 61 reported crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 63% more than the US as a whole and more than double the rate for Connecticut.
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 Hamden, about 36% 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 Hamden
Hamden has its own police department, and these figures come from its reports, 2022 to 2024.
In Hamden, 59% of burglaries hit homes, against 57% nationally.
Crime
Most often at
Busiest time
Burglary
Homes (59%)
Morning (6 am to noon)
Car theft
Homes (45%)
Morning (6 am to noon)
Theft from cars
Homes (45%)
Morning (6 am to noon)
Vandalism
Homes (41%)
Morning (6 am to noon)
Robbery
Stores and businesses (38%)
Afternoon (noon to 6 pm)
Aggravated assault
Homes (54%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Shares of the crimes reported to police, 2022 to 2024. Reports with no time recorded are left out of the times.
How Hamden compares with nearby cities
Hamden has more crime than 7 of its 8 nearest cities. Bethany and Northford have the least crime nearby.
Two things set Hamden apart: it has 11 buses and trains an hour at the evening rush, where most Americans have none nearby, and 1.2 parking-lot spaces per resident, against 2.0 nationally. Places with busy transit tend to report more theft and robbery, and they run high here.
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 Hamden: D+ (24 of 100).11 trips an hourUS: noneHigher than for 86% of US city residents
Parking lotsBig lots at stores, offices and apartment complexes. Places with more lot space tend to report more theft.1.2 spaces per residentUS: 2.0Lower than for 70% 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. 79% of residents here live in car-dependent areas.D+ (20 of 100)US: 21Higher than for 60% 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.7.4% of homesUS: 7.1%Higher than for 67% of US city residents
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.86% where people liveUS: 78%Lower than for 65% of US city residents
Stores and restaurantsShops and restaurants draw crowds and parked cars. Places with many stores tend to report more theft.9.1 per 1,000 residentsUS: 10.5Lower than for 62% of US city residents
BestNeighborhood, a sister site of CrimeGrade™, ranks the neighborhoods of Hamden 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 Hamden
Counting police, courts and prisons as well as victims' losses, crime costs Hamden about $1,470 a year per household, 22% 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 $77 million a year, or $1,283 per resident.
How the cost breaks down
Crime
Cost a year
Per resident
Murder
$1.9 million
$32
Rape
$330,000
$5
Robbery
$1.0 million
$17
Assault
$11 million
$190
Burglary
$1.1 million
$19
Theft
$6.7 million
$111
Vehicle theft
$6.7 million
$111
Arson
$60,000
$1
Vandalism
$5.8 million
$96
Total
$35 million
$582
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 Hamden 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 Hamden, CT average a SchoolGrade of D+: 37% of students test proficient, against 37% projected for schools like them. Overall, they meet expectations. See schools in Hamden on SchoolGrade
