Lajas is an unincorporated community of 19,300 in Lajas Municipio, about 13 miles southeast of Mayaguez · Updated November 2026
Is Lajas, PR safe?
Yes, crime in Lajas is low, with an overall CrimeGrade™ of A-. Because most US neighborhoods are safe as well, Lajas sits near the middle: safer than the neighborhoods where 44% of Americans live. Property crime grades better than violent crime here, A against B+. What matters most is the neighborhood: grades within Lajas run from A to B, so check the map below.
A-
Overall CrimeGrade™
Safety score 802 of 1,000About as safe as the typical US neighborhoodi What this means
44% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime than Lajas as a whole, and 56% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a safety score of 838, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. Lajas scores 802.
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 Lajas, PR at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in Lajas, 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 Lajas
Aggravated assault is a strength. Lajas grades B+ for violent crime, but aggravated assault grades A, better than in the neighborhoods where 67% of Americans live.
Thefts are uncommon. Lajas has thefts at a small fraction of the US rate: 2.8 a year per 1,000 residents, against 13.1 nationally.
The safest and least safe parts of Lajas
Every part of Lajas where people live grades A or B on the national scale. Grades across Lajas run from A to B; 22% 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 Lajas, the southwest side has the least crime and the north side the most.
Crime rates and types in Lajas
CrimeGrade™ estimates Lajas has about 11 reported crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 72% less than the US as a whole and close to Puerto Rico.
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.
Vandalism is the most common crime in Lajas, about 30% of everything reported.
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.
How Lajas compares with nearby cities
Lajas has less crime than 6 of its 10 nearest cities.
Empty homes, parking lots and walkability in Lajas
Two things set Lajas apart: it has 19.4% of its homes standing empty, against 7.1% nationally, and 0.2 parking-lot spaces per resident, against 2.0 nationally. Places with many empty homes tend to report more burglary, vandalism and arson, yet vandalism runs lower 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.19.4% of homesUS: 7.1%Higher than for 99% of US city residents
Parking lotsBig lots at stores, offices and apartment complexes. Places with more lot space tend to report more theft.0.2 spaces per residentUS: 2.0Lower than for 96% 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. 82% of residents here live in car-dependent areas.D (16 of 100)US: 21Lower than for 57% 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.45% where people liveUS: 78%Lower than for 89% of US city residents
Stores and restaurantsShops and restaurants draw crowds and parked cars. Places with many stores tend to report more theft.8.9 per 1,000 residentsUS: 10.5Lower than for 64% 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.14% of residentsUS: 24%Lower than for 51% of US city residents
BestNeighborhood, a sister site of CrimeGrade™, ranks the neighborhoods of Lajas 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 Lajas
Crime costs Lajas about $908 a year per household, counting police, courts and prisons as well as victims' losses, 25% 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 $41 million a year, or $2,126 per resident.
How the cost breaks down
Crime
Cost a year
Per resident
Murder
$5.1 million
$264
Rape
$170,000
$9
Robbery
$170,000
$9
Assault
$530,000
$28
Burglary
$300,000
$16
Theft
$280,000
$14
Vehicle theft
$200,000
$11
Arson
$84,000
$4
Vandalism
$430,000
$22
Total
$7.3 million
$376
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 Lajas 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.
