The Safest and Most Dangerous Places in Lakeland Highlands, FL
Lakeland Highlands is an unincorporated community of 12,400 in Polk County, about 6 miles south of downtown Lakeland · Updated November 2026
Is Lakeland Highlands, FL safe?
Yes. Most US neighborhoods have little crime, and Lakeland Highlands has less than most of them: its overall CrimeGrade™ is A, safer than the neighborhoods where 64% of Americans live. Violent and property crime both grade A here. Every neighborhood in Lakeland Highlands grades A.
A
Overall CrimeGrade™
Safety score 892 of 1,000Safer than most US neighborhoodsi What this means
64% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime than Lakeland Highlands as a whole, and 36% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a safety score of 838, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. Lakeland Highlands scores 892.
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 Lakeland Highlands, FL at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in Lakeland Highlands, 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 Lakeland Highlands
Theft runs low. Lakeland Highlands has 5.4 thefts a year per 1,000 residents, less than half the US rate of 13.1.
How neighborhoods in Lakeland Highlands compare
Every part of Lakeland Highlands where people live grades A or B on the national scale.
100%
A or B 100%
Share of residents, by the overall CrimeGrade™ of the area they live in.
1Crescent Lake, southClose to the rest of Lakeland Highlands on most crimes.A912
2Christina Woods, southwestThefts run about 30% lower here than in the rest of Lakeland Highlands.A903
3Scott Lake West, northClose to the rest of Lakeland Highlands on most crimes.A861
Neighborhood areas of Lakeland Highlands, ranked by overall CrimeGrade™; beside each grade is its safety score, from 0 to 1,000 (higher is safer). Each one combines several of the smaller areas on the map.
Crime rates and types in Lakeland Highlands
CrimeGrade™ estimates Lakeland Highlands has about 17 reported crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 55% less than the US as a whole and 45% less than Florida.
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.
The largest share of crime reported in Lakeland Highlands is assault, about 49% of the total. It also makes up 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.
Select a crime's name to see its map above. CrimeGrade™ business reports map each crime at about 66-meter detail.
How Lakeland Highlands compares with nearby cities
Lakeland Highlands has the least crime of its 6 nearest cities.
Nearest first, with each place's distance from Lakeland Highlands. Beside each overall CrimeGrade™ is its safety score, from 0 to 1,000 (higher is safer).
Compared with cities of similar size and density, Lakeland Highlands has more crime than 68% of them.
Night lighting, density and walkability in Lakeland Highlands
Two things set Lakeland Highlands apart: it has 1% of its residents in dense blocks, against 24% nationally, and a Walk Grade of D- (6 of 100) on BestNeighborhood, against 21 for the US as a whole. Places like that tend to report less robbery and car theft.
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.100% where people liveUS: 78%Higher than for 92% 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.1% of residentsUS: 24%Lower than for 90% 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. 99% of residents here live in car-dependent areas.D- (6 of 100)US: 21Lower than for 88% of US city residents
Show all 6
Stores and restaurantsShops and restaurants draw crowds and parked cars. Places with many stores tend to report more theft.6.3 per 1,000 residentsUS: 10.5Lower than for 86% of US city residents
JobsJobs draw daytime crowds. Places with many jobs tend to report more theft and robbery.24 for every 100 residentsUS: 45Lower than for 81% of US city residents
Parking lotsBig lots at stores, offices and apartment complexes. Places with more lot space tend to report more theft.0.9 spaces per residentUS: 2.0Lower than for 81% 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 Lakeland Highlands
Counting police, courts and prisons as well as victims' losses, crime costs Lakeland Highlands about $435 a year per household, 64% 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 $5.4 million a year, or $432 per resident.
How the cost breaks down
Crime
Cost a year
Per resident
Murder
$110,000
$9
Rape
$67,000
$5
Robbery
$53,000
$4
Assault
$1.1 million
$90
Burglary
$89,000
$7
Theft
$350,000
$28
Vehicle theft
$100,000
$8
Arson
$1,100
under $1
Vandalism
$140,000
$12
Total
$2.0 million
$164
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 Lakeland Highlands 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. Lakeland Highlands is the other kind of example: few people work in, shop in or visit it, so its crime per resident looks lower than its CrimeGrade™ suggests.
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 Lakeland Highlands, FL average a SchoolGrade of C: 54% of students test proficient, against 43% projected for schools like them. Overall, they meet expectations. See schools in Lakeland Highlands on SchoolGrade
