The Safest and Most Dangerous Places in Independence, OR
Independence is a city of 11,300 in Polk County, about 9 miles southwest of downtown Salem · Updated November 2026
Is Independence, OR safe?
Yes. An overall CrimeGrade™ of A- means crime in Independence is low. Most US neighborhoods have little crime too, so Independence sits near the middle: 51% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime, and 49% in neighborhoods with less. Violent crime grades A and property crime A-. What matters most is the neighborhood: grades within Independence run from A+ to B+, so check the map below.
A-
Overall CrimeGrade™
Safety score 842 of 1,000About as safe as the typical US neighborhoodi What this means
51% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime than Independence as a whole, and 49% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a safety score of 838, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. Independence scores 842.
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 Independence, OR at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in Independence, 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 Independence
Aggravated assaults run high for an A-graded city. Independence has 2.6 aggravated assaults a year per 1,000 residents; for the typical resident of an A-graded US city, the figure is 1.2.
The safest and least safe parts of Independence
Every part of Independence where people live grades A or B on the national scale. Grades across Independence run from A+ to B+; 36% 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 Independence, the southwest side has the least crime and the west side the most.
Is crime going up in Independence?
Reported property crime in Independence has fallen 41% since 2019. Too few violent crimes are reported here each year for a reliable violent crime trend. Burglaries, thefts and vehicle thefts went from about 17 to 9.8 a year per 1,000 residents (US: 18). In 2024 alone, property crime fell 12%.
Property crime, change since 2019
IndependenceUnited States
Source: crime reports to the FBI from the police department that serves Independence. The charts follow crimes per resident.
Data table
Year
Property, Independence
Property, US
2016
+15%
+15%
2017
-11%
+12%
2018
+7%
+4%
2019
+0%
+0%
2020
-10%
-8%
2021
-10%
-10%
2022
-11%
-6%
2023
-33%
-7%
2024
-41%
-15%
Crime rates and types in Independence
CrimeGrade™ estimates Independence has about 29 reported crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 23% less than the US as a whole and 31% less than Oregon.
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 Independence, about 35% 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.
The Independence Police Department's 2024 count of vandalism 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.
Where and when crime happens in Independence
Independence has its own police department, and these figures come from its reports, 2022 to 2024.
Crime
Most often at
Busiest time
Vandalism
Homes (54%)
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 Independence compares with nearby cities
Independence has less crime than 1 of its 2 nearest cities; only Monmouth has less.
Two things set Independence apart: it has 2.9% of its homes standing empty, against 7.1% nationally, and 27 jobs for every 100 residents, against 45 for the US as a whole. Places like that tend to report less burglary, vandalism and arson, yet burglary and vandalism run higher here than that would suggest.
Empty homesSeasonal and vacation homes are left out. Places with many empty homes tend to report more burglary, vandalism and arson.2.9% of homesUS: 7.1%Lower than for 88% of US city residents
JobsJobs draw daytime crowds. Places with many jobs tend to report more theft and robbery.27 for every 100 residentsUS: 45Lower than for 76% 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. 77% of residents here live in car-dependent areas.D+ (21 of 100)US: 21Higher than for 62% 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.85% where people liveUS: 78%Lower than for 66% of US city residents
Parking lotsBig lots at stores, offices and apartment complexes. Places with more lot space tend to report more theft.2.2 spaces per residentUS: 2.0Higher than for 66% 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 Independence: D (12 of 100).1 trips an hourUS: noneLower than for 54% 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 Independence
Counting police, courts and prisons as well as victims' losses, crime costs Independence about $951 a year per household, 21% 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 $10 million a year, or $927 per resident.
How the cost breaks down
Crime
Cost a year
Per resident
Murder
$340,000
$31
Rape
$210,000
$18
Robbery
$43,000
$4
Assault
$1.5 million
$129
Burglary
$220,000
$19
Theft
$420,000
$37
Vehicle theft
$170,000
$15
Arson
$58,000
$5
Vandalism
$620,000
$55
Total
$3.5 million
$313
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 Independence 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 Independence, OR average a SchoolGrade of F: 21% of students test proficient, against 29% projected for schools like them. Overall, they underperform expectations. See schools in Independence on SchoolGrade
