The Safest and Most Dangerous Places in Marshall County, WV
Marshall County is home to 29,900 residents and includes Moundsville and McMechen · Updated November 2026
Is Marshall County, WV safe?
Yes. Crime is low across most of the US, and lower still in Marshall County: an overall CrimeGrade™ of A+, safer than the neighborhoods where 79% of Americans live. Violent and property crime both grade A+ here. What matters most is the neighborhood: grades within Marshall County run from A+ to B, so check the map or the safest and least safe places below.
A+
Overall CrimeGrade™
Safety score 933 of 1,000Safer than most US neighborhoodsi What this means
79% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime than Marshall County as a whole, and 21% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a safety score of 838, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. Marshall County scores 933.
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 Marshall County, WV at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in Marshall County, 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 Marshall County
Burglary runs low. Marshall County has 1.1 burglaries a year per 1,000 residents, less than half the US rate of 2.4.
The safest and most dangerous places in Marshall County
Every part of Marshall County where people live grades A or B on the national scale. Grades across Marshall County run from A+ to B; 74% 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.
Cities and towns in Marshall County with at least 1,000 residents. Ranked by overall CrimeGrade™; beside each grade is its safety score, from 0 to 1,000 (higher is safer), and the other numbers are residents.
Across the county, the south side has the least crime and the north side the most.
Crime rates and types in Marshall County
CrimeGrade™ estimates Marshall County has about 23 reported crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 39% less than the US as a whole and close to West Virginia.
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 Marshall County is assault, about 42% 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.
Where and when crime happens in Marshall County
These figures come from the reports of the police departments across Marshall County, 2022 to 2024.
Crime
Most often at
Busiest time
Vandalism
Homes (40%)
Afternoon (noon to 6 pm)
Aggravated assault
Homes (49%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Shares of the crimes reported to police, 2022 to 2024. Reports with no time recorded are left out of the times.
How Marshall County compares with nearby counties
Of the 10 counties closest to Marshall County, 6 have less crime. Monroe County, OH and Harrison County, OH have the least.
Nearest first, with each place's distance from Marshall County. Beside each overall CrimeGrade™ is its safety score, from 0 to 1,000 (higher is safer).
Compared with counties of similar size and density, Marshall County is safer than 70% of them.
Empty homes, transit and walkability in Marshall County
Two things set Marshall County apart: it has 13.6% of its homes standing empty, against 7.1% nationally, and 54% of the land where people live lit at night, against 78% nationally. Places with many empty homes tend to report more burglary and arson, yet burglary 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 and arson.13.6% of homesUS: 7.1%Higher than for 95% of Americans
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 Marshall County: F (0 of 100).NoneUS: noneLower than for 86% of Americans
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. 80% of residents here live in car-dependent areas.D (16 of 100)US: 21Lower than for 55% of Americans
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.54% where people liveUS: 78%Lower than for 82% of Americans
Stores and restaurantsShops and restaurants draw crowds and parked cars. Places with many stores tend to report more theft.8.7 per 1,000 residentsUS: 10.5Lower than for 81% of Americans
JobsJobs draw daytime crowds. Places with many jobs tend to report more theft and robbery.34 for every 100 residentsUS: 45Lower than for 78% of Americans
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 Marshall County
Crime costs Marshall County about $595 a year per household, counting police, courts and prisons as well as victims' losses, 51% 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 $25 million a year, or $851 per resident.
How the cost breaks down
Crime
Cost a year
Per resident
Murder
$1.4 million
$48
Rape
$740,000
$25
Robbery
$25,000
$1
Assault
$3.0 million
$99
Burglary
$280,000
$9
Theft
$1.3 million
$42
Vehicle theft
$290,000
$10
Arson
$81,000
$3
Vandalism
$580,000
$19
Total
$7.7 million
$257
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 Marshall County 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.
Schools in Marshall County, WV average a SchoolGrade of C+: 30% of students test proficient, against 38% projected for schools like them. Overall, they don't meet expectations. See schools in Marshall County on SchoolGrade
