The Safest and Most Dangerous Places in Lake County, CA: Crime Maps and Statistics

Crime per Capita in Lake County

This overview combines violent, property, and other offenses into a single grade for Lake County. The dedicated violent crime and property crime pages go deeper on each. The map below shows the overall crime rate per 1,000 residents.

 

Lake County, CA Map of Crime Rates
Click the map to explore
A+ B C D F
Safest Highest crime
Colorblind friendly off

D+

Overall Crime Grade™

D-
D-
Other Crime Grade
A

$44.5 million

Cost of Crime™ for Lake County, CA

In 2025, crime will cost $1,581 per household.

More cost data

On the map, green marks the parts of Lake County 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 Lake County, CA Safe?

The D+ overall grade blends the violent, property, and other grades shown above into one measure, set against the average US county, where Lake County's combined rate is higher than the norm. Lake County sits in the 26th percentile, ahead of 26% of counties and behind 74%. The grade covers only Lake County's official city boundaries. See the table below for nearby counties.

The overall crime rate in Lake County is 40.59 per 1,000 residents in a typical year. Residents generally consider the southwest part of the county the safest. Your chance of being a victim ranges from 1 in 12 in the northeast areas to 1 in 37 in the southwest.

Counting total incidents instead of per-capita rates, the southeast parts of Lake County, CA report the most crime, about 746 cases per year. The southwest part reports the fewest, around 7 per year.

The Cost of Crime™ in Lake County, CA

Across all crime types, the projected cost of crime in Lake County for 2025 is $44,495,711, about $605 per resident and $1,581 per household. That equals 1.7% of the median household income. These figures cover tangible costs, which include:
  1. Criminal justice system costs (law enforcement, courts, and imprisonment): 54.0%
  2. Direct costs to victims (damaged property, medical expenses, and lost wages): 34.7%
  3. Lost economic contribution from offenders (time in prison or repeat offenses): 11.2%

How Much Does Crime Cost in Lake County Compared to Other Counties?

Lake County, CA: $605
San Francisco County, CA: $1016
Placer County, CA: $320
California: $491
USA: $464

The overall cost of crime per resident in Lake County is $605 per year, which is $141 more than the national average and $114 more than California's state average. The comparison below uses counties similar to Lake County:
  • In San Francisco County, CA, crime costs $1,016 per person, which is $411 more than in Lake County.
  • In Placer County, CA, crime costs $320 per person, which is $285 less than in Lake County

2025 Projected Cost by Type of Crime

The table below shows the total cost of crime to the residents of Lake County for the year 2025 along with the projected cost per resident.
Crime
Cost to Lake County
Cost per Lake County Resident
Murder
$9.36 million
$127
Rape/Sexual Assault
$2.39 million
$33
Robbery
$3.60 million
$49
Assault
$9.26 million
$126
Kidnapping
$981,029
$13
Vehicle Theft
$4.82 million
$66
Burglary
$3.92 million
$53
Theft
$6.99 million
$95
Arson
$432,129
$6
Vandalism
$1.42 million
$19
Animal Cruelty
$16,662
$0
Drug Crimes
$1.05 million
$14
Identity Theft
$260,031
$4
Total Cost of Crime
$44,495,711
$605

The Intangible Cost of Crime in Lake County, CA

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 Lake County totals $77,947,907 ($1,060 per resident), and all of it comes from violent crime rather than property loss. Added to the tangible costs, the full estimate reaches $122,443,618 ($1,665 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 southeast part of the county 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 Lake County has 15, do the same, and of Lake County's 73,527 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 Lake County, CA at ISP Reports.

Lake County 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 Lake County residents in a standard year.

Violent Crime Rates

Crime Type
Crime Rate
Assault
4.387
Robbery
1.555
Rape
0.5365
Murder
0.0678
Total Violent Crime
6.546 (D-)
 
 

 


Property Crime Rates

Crime Type
Crime Rate
Theft
18.36
Vehicle Theft
4.230
Burglary
5.874
Arson
0.2434
Total Property Crime
28.70 (D-)
 
 

 


Other Crime Rates

Crime Type
Crime Rate
Kidnapping
0.2201
Drug Crimes
1.932
Vandalism
2.696
Identity Theft
0.4569
Animal Cruelty
0.0306
Total "Other" Rate
5.336 (A)

 


Crime Maps and Rates for Nearby Counties

Compared to surrounding counties, the rate of crime in Lake County is higher. The table below shows Crime Grades for counties close to Lake County.

Nearby County
Overall Crime Grade
Violent Crime Grade
Property Crime Grade
C-
D
D
B
C-
C-
D
D-
D-
B-
C-
C-
C
C-
D+
C+
C-
D+
C-
D
D
B+
B
C+
B+
D
C+
B
C+
C

Crime Maps and Rates for County with Similar Populations

Lake County is higher versus other counties of the same size for crime. The table below compares crime in counties with comparable overall population in the county‘s boundaries.

Similar County
Overall Crime Grade
Violent Crime Grade
Property Crime Grade
A
A
A
B
B-
B-
A-
B
B
B+
B
B
C
B
B
B+
A-
A-
B
B+
B+
A+
A-
A-
B+
B
B
B
A-
A-

Considering only the crime rate, Lake County is less safe than the California 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 Lake County, CA average SchoolGrade of D-, with 22% actual proficiency versus 26% projected; overall, schools don't meet expectations. See Lake County 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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Home Security

A crime occurs on average every 2 hours 56 minutes in Lake County. Want to protect your home?

Home Security Companies in Lake County, CA

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.