The Safest and Most Dangerous Places in Kanawha County, WV
Kanawha County, the most populous county in West Virginia, is home to 176,500 residents and includes Charleston and South Charleston · Updated November 2026
Is Kanawha County, WV safe?
Yes, crime in Kanawha County is low, with an overall CrimeGrade™ of A-. Because most US neighborhoods are safe as well, Kanawha County sits near the middle: safer than the neighborhoods where 41% of Americans live. Violent and property crime both grade A- here. What matters most is the neighborhood: grades within Kanawha County run from A+ to F, so check the map or the safest and least safe places below.
A-
Overall CrimeGrade™
Safety score 783 of 1,000About as safe as the typical US neighborhoodi What this means
41% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime than Kanawha County as a whole, and 59% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a safety score of 838, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. Kanawha County scores 783.
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 Kanawha County, WV at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in Kanawha County, 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 Kanawha County
Robberies are less common than the crime level suggests. Crime overall in Kanawha County runs 35% above the US rate, but robberies run at less than half that rate: 0.25 a year per 1,000 residents, against 0.62 nationally.
Burglaries run high for an A-graded county. Kanawha County has 4.3 burglaries a year per 1,000 residents; for the typical resident of an A-graded US county, the figure is 1.4.
The safest and most dangerous places in Kanawha County
Most of Kanawha County grades well: 92% of residents live in areas graded A or B, and 5% in areas graded D or F. Grades across Kanawha County run from A+ to F; 39% of residents live in areas with less crime than the typical US neighborhood.
92%
A or B 92%C 3%D or F 5%
Share of residents, by the overall CrimeGrade™ of the area they live in.
Cities and towns in Kanawha County with at least 1,000 residents. Ranked by overall CrimeGrade™; beside each grade is its safety score, from 0 to 1,000 (higher is safer), and the other numbers are residents.
Across the county, the Elkview, Clendenin, and Pinch areas have the least crime and the Charleston area the most.
Crime rates and types in Kanawha County
CrimeGrade™ estimates Kanawha County has about 50 reported crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 35% more than the US as a whole and about double the rate for West Virginia.
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 makes up about 38% of crime reported in Kanawha County. Assault is less common but 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 Kanawha County
These figures come from the reports of the police departments across Kanawha County, 2022 to 2024.
In Kanawha County, 61% of burglaries hit homes, against 57% nationally. Thefts from cars happen most often at homes: 32% of them, against 34% nationally.
Crime
Most often at
Busiest time
Burglary
Homes (61%)
Afternoon (noon to 6 pm)
Car theft
Homes (45%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Theft from cars
Homes (32%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Vandalism
Homes (40%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Robbery
Streets and sidewalks (32%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Aggravated assault
Homes (62%)
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; they are over one in five for burglary, car theft, theft from cars, vandalism, robbery, aggravated assault.
How Kanawha County compares with nearby counties
Kanawha County has the most crime of its 10 nearest counties.
Empty homes, jobs and walkability in Kanawha County
One thing sets Kanawha County apart: it has 14.8% of its homes standing empty, against 7.1% nationally. Places like that tend to report more burglary and arson, and they run high here.
Empty homesSeasonal and vacation homes are left out. Places with many empty homes tend to report more burglary and arson.14.8% of homesUS: 7.1%Higher than for 97% of Americans
JobsJobs draw daytime crowds. Places with many jobs tend to report more theft and robbery.59 for every 100 residentsUS: 45Higher than for 87% of Americans
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. 84% of residents here live in car-dependent areas.D (14 of 100)US: 21Lower than for 62% of Americans
Show all 6
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 Kanawha County: F (0 of 100).NoneUS: noneLower than for 86% of Americans
Stores and restaurantsShops and restaurants draw crowds and parked cars. Places with many stores tend to report more theft.11.4 per 1,000 residentsUS: 10.5Higher than for 76% of Americans
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.66% where people liveUS: 78%Lower than for 74% of Americans
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 Kanawha County
Crime costs Kanawha County about $1,305 a year per household, counting police, courts and prisons as well as victims' losses, 8% more than the US figure of $1,205. The total is about $104 million a year.
Cost of crime per resident, per year
Counting the pain and suffering of victims, which comes almost entirely from violent crime, the full cost rises to about $350 million a year, or $1,982 per resident.
How the cost breaks down
Crime
Cost a year
Per resident
Murder
$22 million
$124
Rape
$6.1 million
$35
Robbery
$1.4 million
$8
Assault
$36 million
$204
Burglary
$6.8 million
$39
Theft
$17 million
$98
Vehicle theft
$4.7 million
$26
Arson
$1.1 million
$6
Vandalism
$8.2 million
$47
Total
$104 million
$587
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 Kanawha County 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 Kanawha County, WV average a SchoolGrade of C-: 28% of students test proficient, against 36% projected for schools like them. Overall, they don't meet expectations. See schools in Kanawha County on SchoolGrade
