The Safest and Most Dangerous Places in La Crosse, WI: Crime Maps and Statistics

Overall Crime Grade™

Violent Crime Grade	C-
Property Crime Grade	D
Other Crime Grade	D

Which crimes are included?

$33.1 million

Cost of Crime™ for La Crosse, WI

In 2025, crime will cost $1,242 per household.

More cost data

On the map, green marks the parts of La Crosse with the least crime overall and red marks the most. Each area is weighted by the type and severity of every offense, so a place with rare but serious violent crime can grade differently from one with frequent petty theft. The Interpreting the Crime Maps section below explains how to read the colors.

Is La Crosse, WI Safe?

The D overall grade blends the violent, property, and other grades shown above into one measure, set against the average US city, where La Crosse's combined rate is higher than the norm. La Crosse sits in the 20th percentile, ahead of 20% of cities and behind 80%. The grade covers only La Crosse's official city boundaries. See the table below for nearby cities.

The overall crime rate in La Crosse is 38.13 per 1,000 residents in a typical year. Residents generally consider the east part of the city the safest. Your chance of being a victim ranges from 1 in 16 in the west neighborhoods to 1 in 39 in the east.

Counting total incidents instead of per-capita rates, the west parts of La Crosse, WI report the most crime, about 535 cases per year. The northeast part reports the fewest, around 52 per year.

The Cost of Crime™ in La Crosse, WI

Across all crime types, the projected cost of crime in La Crosse for 2025 is $33,139,390, about $561 per resident and $1,242 per household. That equals 1.5% of the median household income. These figures cover tangible costs, which include:

Criminal justice system costs (law enforcement, courts, and imprisonment): 55.0%
Direct costs to victims (damaged property, medical expenses, and lost wages): 33.5%
Lost economic contribution from offenders (time in prison or repeat offenses): 11.5%

How Much Does Crime Cost in La Crosse Compared to Other Cities?

La Crosse, WI:	$561
Ashland, WI:	$873
Jackson, WI:	$174
Wisconsin:	$419
USA:	$464

The overall cost of crime per resident in La Crosse is $561 per year, which is $97 more than the national average and $142 more than Wisconsin's state average. The comparison below uses cities similar to La Crosse:

In Ashland, WI, crime costs $873 per person, which is $312 more than in La Crosse.
In Jackson, WI, crime costs $174 per person, which is $387 less than in La Crosse

2025 Projected Cost by Type of Crime

The table below shows the total cost of crime to the residents of La Crosse for the year 2025 along with the projected cost per resident.

Crime	Cost to La Crosse	Cost per La Crosse Resident
Murder	$11.2 million	$189
Rape/Sexual Assault	$2.54 million	$43
Robbery	$532,488	$9
Assault	$4.39 million	$74
Kidnapping	$520,021	$9
Vehicle Theft	$2.00 million	$34
Burglary	$1.19 million	$20
Theft	$5.24 million	$89
Arson	$128,185	$2
Vandalism	$2.74 million	$46
Animal Cruelty	$38,721	$1
Drug Crimes	$2.30 million	$39
Identity Theft	$378,549	$6
Total Cost of Crime	$33,139,390	$561

The Intangible Cost of Crime in La Crosse, WI

The totals above count tangible costs only. Violent crime also carries a human cost, the pain and trauma borne by victims and their families, which research-based methods estimate so it can be compared across places. That intangible cost in La Crosse totals $87,285,581 ($1,478 per resident), and all of it comes from violent crime rather than property loss. Added to the tangible costs, the full estimate reaches $120,424,971 ($2,040 per resident). All Cost of Crime figures come from scholarly research on the cost of crime. Read more about our methodology here.

Interpreting the Crime Maps

Crime rates on the map are measured per resident, so areas with heavy visitor traffic can read high because crime follows crowds, even where few people live. The west part of the city holds more retail establishments, which lifts recorded crime around those blocks. A red area does not always mean the neighborhood is unsafe for residents.

Airports, parks, and transit hubs create the same effect. Major airports draw large crowds with few residents nearby, so they read as high-crime spots. Parks and recreational areas, of which La Crosse has 12, do the same, and of La Crosse's 59,044 residents few live beside them. Before assuming an area is unsafe, weigh both the per-capita rate and the total number of incidents, and note what sits nearby.

The interactive maps load faster on a strong connection. Compare high speed internet in La Crosse, WI at ISP Reports.

La Crosse Crime Breakdown

The tables below show which crimes are used to calculate the Crime Grades above. All crime rates are shown as the number of crimes per 1,000 La Crosse residents in a standard year.

Violent Crime Rates

Crime Type	Crime Rate
Assault	2.590
Robbery	0.2867
Rape	0.7092
Murder	0.1005
Total Violent Crime	3.686 (C-)

Property Crime Rates

Crime Type	Crime Rate
Theft	17.13
Vehicle Theft	2.185
Burglary	2.216
Arson	0.0899
Total Property Crime	21.62 (D)

Other Crime Rates

Crime Type	Crime Rate
Kidnapping	0.1453
Drug Crimes	5.263
Vandalism	6.491
Identity Theft	0.8283
Animal Cruelty	0.0887
Total "Other" Rate	12.82 (D)

Individual La Crosse Crime Maps & Stats

Crime Maps and Rates for Nearby Cities

Compared to surrounding cities, the rate of crime in La Crosse is higher. The table below shows Crime Grades for cities close to La Crosse.

Nearby City	Overall Crime Grade	Violent Crime Grade	Property Crime Grade
French Island, WI	C	B	C+
La Crescent, MN	B	B+	B-
Shelby, WI	B+	A	B+
Onalaska, WI	B-	A	B
Brownsville, MN	D+	B	D+
Stoddard, WI	B+	C	A-
St. Joseph, WI	A+	A	A
Hokah, MN	B+	A-	B+
West Salem, WI	A-	A	A-
Holmen, WI	A+	A	A+

Crime Maps and Rates for City with Similar Populations

La Crosse is higher versus other cities of the same size for crime. The table below compares crime in cities with comparable overall population in the city‘s boundaries.

Similar City	Overall Crime Grade	Violent Crime Grade	Property Crime Grade
Elyria, OH	D+	C	C
Kettering, OH	C-	B+	B+
Huntsville, TX	D	D	D
Houma, LA	D	D-	D-
Garner, NC	C-	C+	C+
Florence, AL	D+	C+	C+
Columbia, TN	D+	D	D
Colton, CA	D	D	D
Coconut Creek, FL	B+	B	B
Carson City, NV	D	D	D

Considering only the crime rate, La Crosse is less safe than the Wisconsin state average and less safe than the national average.

Safety and school performance are separate topics, but both shape moving decisions. Using SchoolGrade data, schools in La Crosse, WI average SchoolGrade of C+, with 38% actual proficiency versus 41% projected; overall, schools don't meet expectations. See La Crosse schools on SchoolGrade

About the Data

CrimeGrade.org provides highly detailed and accurate crime data, used by insurance companies, home security firms, and other industries. Our data is available for licensing—learn more about our USA crime data and licensing.

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All maps and statistics above are projections, not certainties, and provided without guarantee free of charge. Verify all info before making any decisions based on the data.