The Safest and Most Dangerous Places in Lincoln, RI

Lincoln is a town of 20,100 in Providence County, about 6 miles north of downtown Providence · Updated November 2026

Is Lincoln, RI safe?

Yes. Crime is low across most of the US, and lower still in Lincoln: an overall CrimeGrade™ of A, safer than the neighborhoods where 73% of Americans live. Violent crime grades better than property crime here, A+ against A. What matters most is the neighborhood: grades within Lincoln run from A+ to B+, so check the map below.

A
Overall CrimeGrade™Safety score 916 of 1,000
Safer than most US neighborhoods What this means

73% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime than Lincoln as a whole, and 27% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a safety score of 838, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. Lincoln scores 916.

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.

A+
Violent crimeSafety score 936 of 1,000Less violent crime than most US neighborhoods
A
Property crimeSafety score 881 of 1,000Less property crime than most US neighborhoods

How it works


Crime map of Lincoln

Map of Lincoln shaded by overall CrimeGrade™, from green for the least crime to red for the most
Click the map to explore
F D C B A+
Highest crime Safest
Colorblind friendly off

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 Lincoln, RI at ISP Reports.

Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in Lincoln, 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 Lincoln

Vehicle theft runs low. Lincoln has 1.3 car thefts a year per 1,000 residents, about half the US rate of 2.7.


The safest and least safe parts of Lincoln

Every part of Lincoln where people live grades A or B on the national scale. Grades across Lincoln run from A+ to B+; 91% of residents live in areas with less crime than the typical US neighborhood.

A or B 100%

Share of residents, by the overall CrimeGrade™ of the area they live in.

Within Lincoln, the west side has the least crime and the southeast side the most.


Is crime going up in Lincoln?

Reported property crime in Lincoln has fallen 37% since 2019. Too few violent crimes are reported here each year for a reliable violent crime trend. Burglaries, thefts and vehicle thefts went from about 17 to 11 a year per 1,000 residents (US: 18). In 2024 alone, property crime rose 15%.

Property crime, change since 2019

LincolnUnited States

Source: crime reports to the FBI from the police department that serves Lincoln. The charts follow crimes per resident.

Data table
YearProperty, LincolnProperty, US
2016+14%+15%
2017+8%+12%
2018+3%+4%
2019+0%+0%
2020-42%-8%
2021-43%-10%
2022-41%-6%
2023-45%-7%
2024-37%-15%

Crime rates and types in Lincoln

CrimeGrade™ estimates Lincoln has about 24 reported crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 37% less than the US as a whole and close to Rhode Island.

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 42% of crime reported in Lincoln. Assault is less common but costs more, because each one does more harm.

CrimeCrimeGrade™Reported a yearPer 1,000 residentsUS per 1,000
Violent crime
MurderA+under 1under 0.010.05
RapeA-60.290.38
RobberyA+under 10.050.62
AssaultA1346.712.3
Property crime
BurglaryA+160.812.4
TheftA1969.813.1
Vehicle theftA+251.32.7
ArsonA+under 10.050.12
VandalismA-934.65.5

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 Lincoln

Lincoln has its own police department, and these figures come from its reports, 2022 to 2024.

In Lincoln, 71% of burglaries hit homes, against 57% nationally. Thefts from cars happen most often at homes: 49% of them, against 34% nationally.

CrimeMost often atBusiest time
BurglaryHomes (71%)Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Car theftHomes (46%)Morning (6 am to noon)
Theft from carsHomes (49%)Morning (6 am to noon)
VandalismHomes (35%)Afternoon (noon to 6 pm)

Shares of the crimes reported to police, 2022 to 2024. Reports with no time recorded are left out of the times.


How Lincoln compares with nearby cities

Lincoln has less crime than 6 of its 9 nearest cities.

Nearby cities

PlaceOverallViolentPropertyResidents
LincolnA916A+A20,100
Valley Falls 2 milesA873AA-12,200
Central Falls 3 milesB622B+C+22,900
Pawtucket 4 milesB671BB76,700
Providence 6 milesB683B+B206,600
Show all 9
PlaceOverallViolentPropertyResidents
Cumberland 4 milesA+950A+A+16,000
North Providence 4 milesA874AA17,300
Smithfield 4 milesA+947A+A14,900
Manville 4 milesA893AA-3,500
Cumberland Hill 5 milesA+940A+A8,640

Nearest first, with each place's distance from Lincoln. Beside each overall CrimeGrade™ is its safety score, from 0 to 1,000 (higher is safer).

Compared with cities of similar size and density, Lincoln is safer than 56% of them.

Cities of similar size and density

PlaceOverallViolentPropertyResidents
LincolnA916A+A20,100
Grand Island, NYA+973A+A+20,100
Prineville, ORA+940A+A+20,100
Fairfax Station, VAA+938A+A20,100
Murphy, TXA+927A+A20,100
Show all 10
PlaceOverallViolentPropertyResidents
Roscoe, ILA+925AA+20,000
Walled Lake, MIA909AA20,100
Yankton, SDA886AA20,100
North Ogden, UTA874AA20,100
Jacksonville, ILA872AA20,100
Gaston, SCA-806A-A-20,100

Empty homes, jobs and walkability in Lincoln

Two things set Lincoln apart: it has 2.4% of its homes standing empty, against 7.1% nationally, and 79 jobs for every 100 residents, against 45 for the US as a whole. It also combines many jobs with busy transit: places with both tend to report more theft and robbery than places with only one of them, yet theft 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.2.4% of homesUS: 7.1%Lower than for 93% of US city residents
JobsJobs draw daytime crowds. Places with many jobs tend to report more theft and robbery.79 for every 100 residentsUS: 45Higher than for 91% 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. 90% of residents here live in car-dependent areas.D (12 of 100)US: 21Lower than for 69% of US city residents
Show all 6
Parking lotsBig lots at stores, offices and apartment complexes. Places with more lot space tend to report more theft.3.3 spaces per residentUS: 2.0Higher than for 89% of US city residents
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 Lincoln: D- (11 of 100).5 trips an hourUS: noneHigher than for 72% of US city residents
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.83% where people liveUS: 78%Lower than for 68% of US city residents

BestNeighborhood, a sister site of CrimeGrade™, ranks the neighborhoods of Lincoln 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 Lincoln

Crime costs Lincoln about $525 a year per household, counting police, courts and prisons as well as victims' losses, 56% 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 $8.7 million a year, or $436 per resident.

How the cost breaks down
CrimeCost a yearPer resident
Murder$240,000$12
Rape$350,000$18
Robbery$31,000$2
Assault$1.2 million$61
Burglary$150,000$7
Theft$1.0 million$50
Vehicle theft$390,000$19
Arson$22,000$1
Vandalism$660,000$33
Total$4.1 million$203

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 Lincoln 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
  • Population and housing figures from the US Census Bureau
  • 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.

More about CrimeGrade™ data


Schools in Lincoln

Schools in Lincoln, RI average a SchoolGrade of B+: 40% of students test proficient, against 40% projected for schools like them. Overall, they exceed expectations. See schools in Lincoln on SchoolGrade