The Safest and Most Dangerous Places in Hilton Head Island, SC
Hilton Head Island is a town of 39,100 in Beaufort County and the main city of the Hilton Head Island metro area, home to 227,500 · Updated November 2026
Is Hilton Head Island, SC safe?
Yes, crime in Hilton Head Island is low, with an overall CrimeGrade™ of A-. Because most US neighborhoods are safe as well, Hilton Head Island sits near the middle: safer than the neighborhoods where 52% of Americans live. Property crime grades better than violent crime here, A against A-. What matters most is the neighborhood: grades within Hilton Head Island run from A to C+, so check the map below.
A-
Overall CrimeGrade™
Safety score 845 of 1,000About as safe as the typical US neighborhoodi What this means
52% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime than Hilton Head Island as a whole, and 48% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a safety score of 838, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. Hilton Head Island scores 845.
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 Hilton Head Island, SC at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in Hilton Head Island, 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 Hilton Head Island
Aggravated assaults run high for an A-graded city. Hilton Head Island has 2.7 aggravated assaults a year per 1,000 residents; for the typical resident of an A-graded US city, the figure is 1.2.
Thefts from cars happen at homes far more often than nationally. In Hilton Head Island, 73% of reported thefts from cars happen at homes, against 34% nationally.
The safest and least safe parts of Hilton Head Island
Low crime is the norm across Hilton Head Island: 96% of residents live in areas graded A or B, and the rest in areas graded C. Grades across Hilton Head Island run from A to C+; 68% of residents live in areas with less crime than the typical US neighborhood.
96%
A or B 96%C 4%
Share of residents, by the overall CrimeGrade™ of the area they live in.
Within Hilton Head Island, the west side has the least crime and the east side the most.
Is crime going up in Hilton Head Island?
Since 2019, reported violent crime in Hilton Head Island is down 25%, while property crime has held about steady. Murders, rapes, robberies and aggravated assaults went from about 4.6 to 3.4 a year per 1,000 residents (US: 3.7); burglaries, thefts and vehicle thefts from about 17 to 16 (US: 18). In 2024 alone, violent crime fell 21%.
Violent crime, change since 2019
Property crime, change since 2019
Hilton Head IslandUnited States
Source: crime reports to the FBI from the police agencies that serve Hilton Head Island. The charts follow crimes per resident.
Data table
Year
Violent, Hilton Head Island
Violent, US
Property, Hilton Head Island
Property, US
2016
-29%
+4%
+22%
+15%
2017
-12%
+4%
+13%
+12%
2018
+9%
+0%
+15%
+4%
2019
+0%
+0%
+0%
+0%
2020
-20%
+4%
+5%
-8%
2021
-15%
+6%
+23%
-10%
2022
+5%
+5%
+7%
-6%
2023
-6%
+2%
-3%
-7%
2024
-25%
-4%
-8%
-15%
Crime rates and types in Hilton Head Island
CrimeGrade™ estimates Hilton Head Island has about 32 reported crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 14% less than the US as a whole and 28% less than South 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.
The largest share of crime reported in Hilton Head Island is assault, about 39% of the total. It also makes up 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.
Where and when crime happens in Hilton Head Island
The Beaufort County Sheriff's Office polices Hilton Head Island, and these figures cover every place it serves, 2022 to 2024.
In Hilton Head Island, 73% of burglaries hit homes, against 57% nationally.
Crime
Most often at
Busiest time
Burglary
Homes (73%)
Afternoon (noon to 6 pm)
Car theft
Homes (70%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Theft from cars
Homes (73%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Vandalism
Homes (68%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Robbery
Homes (51%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Aggravated assault
Homes (77%)
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 Hilton Head Island compares with nearby cities
Hilton Head Island has more crime than 5 of its 7 nearest cities. Pritchardville and Tybee Island, GA have the least crime nearby.
Nearest first, with each place's distance from Hilton Head Island. Beside each overall CrimeGrade™ is its safety score, from 0 to 1,000 (higher is safer).
Compared with cities of similar size and density, Hilton Head Island has more crime than 71% of them.
Shops, empty homes and walkability in Hilton Head Island
Two things set Hilton Head Island apart: it has 25.6 stores and restaurants for every 1,000 residents, against 10.5 nationally, and 18.2% of its homes standing empty, against 7.1% nationally. Places like that tend to report more theft, yet theft runs lower here than that would suggest.
Stores and restaurantsShops and restaurants draw crowds and parked cars. Places with many stores tend to report more theft.25.6 per 1,000 residentsUS: 10.5Higher than for 99% 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.18.2% of homesUS: 7.1%Higher than for 98% 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. 92% of residents here live in car-dependent areas.D- (9 of 100)US: 21Lower than for 81% 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.36% where people liveUS: 78%Lower than for 92% 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 Hilton Head Island: F (0 of 100).NoneUS: noneLower than for 84% 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.3% of residentsUS: 24%Lower than for 81% 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 Hilton Head Island
Counting police, courts and prisons as well as victims' losses, crime costs Hilton Head Island about $850 a year per household, 29% 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 $54 million a year, or $1,391 per resident.
How the cost breaks down
Crime
Cost a year
Per resident
Murder
$3.6 million
$92
Rape
$730,000
$19
Robbery
$250,000
$6
Assault
$5.8 million
$150
Burglary
$490,000
$13
Theft
$2.5 million
$64
Vehicle theft
$720,000
$18
Arson
$47,000
$1
Vandalism
$1.1 million
$27
Total
$15 million
$390
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 Hilton Head Island 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 Hilton Head Island, SC average a SchoolGrade of B-: 51% of students test proficient, against 43% projected for schools like them. Overall, they meet expectations. See schools in Hilton Head Island on SchoolGrade
