Merrydale is an unincorporated community of 9,520 in East Baton Rouge Parish, about 6 miles northeast of downtown Baton Rouge · Updated November 2026
Is Merrydale, LA safe?
Crime in Merrydale is high, with an overall CrimeGrade™ of D-. Most US neighborhoods have far less: 91% of Americans live in neighborhoods with less crime than Merrydale. Violent crime grades D- and property crime D. What matters most is the neighborhood: grades within Merrydale run from C+ to F, so check the map below.
D-
Overall CrimeGrade™
Safety score 148 of 1,000Less safe than nearly all US neighborhoodsi What this means
9% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime than Merrydale as a whole, and 91% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a safety score of 838, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. Merrydale scores 148.
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 Merrydale, LA at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in Merrydale, 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 Merrydale
Burglary at more than double the US rate. Merrydale has 5.5 burglaries a year per 1,000 residents, against 2.4 nationally.
Crime rates and types in Merrydale
CrimeGrade™ estimates Merrydale has about 64 reported crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 72% more than the US as a whole and 39% more than Louisiana.
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 is the most common crime in Merrydale, about 41% 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 Merrydale compares with nearby cities
Merrydale has the most crime of its 8 nearest cities.
Two things set Merrydale apart: it has 5 jobs for every 100 residents, against 45 for the US as a whole, and 2.7 stores and restaurants for every 1,000 residents, against 10.5 nationally. Places like that tend to report less theft and robbery, yet theft runs higher here than that would suggest.
JobsJobs draw daytime crowds. Places with many jobs tend to report more theft and robbery.5 for every 100 residentsUS: 45Lower than for 99% of US city residents
Stores and restaurantsShops and restaurants draw crowds and parked cars. Places with many stores tend to report more theft.2.7 per 1,000 residentsUS: 10.5Lower than for 98% 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. 94% of residents here live in car-dependent areas.D- (12 of 100)US: 21Lower than for 70% 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.100% where people liveUS: 78%Higher than for 92% of US city residents
Parking lotsBig lots at stores, offices and apartment complexes. Places with more lot space tend to report more theft.0.5 spaces per residentUS: 2.0Lower than for 91% of US city residents
Empty homesSeasonal and vacation homes are left out. Places with many empty homes tend to report more burglary, vandalism and arson.11.4% of homesUS: 7.1%Higher than for 91% 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 Merrydale
Crime costs Merrydale about $2,580 a year per household, counting police, courts and prisons as well as victims' losses, about double 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 $33 million a year, or $3,518 per resident.
How the cost breaks down
Crime
Cost a year
Per resident
Murder
$3.0 million
$319
Rape
$80,000
$8
Robbery
$120,000
$12
Assault
$2.2 million
$232
Burglary
$470,000
$49
Theft
$1.3 million
$133
Vehicle theft
$660,000
$69
Arson
$20,000
$2
Vandalism
$680,000
$71
Total
$8.5 million
$896
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 Merrydale 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 Merrydale, LA average a SchoolGrade of D-: 21% of students test proficient, against 11% projected for schools like them. Overall, they exceed expectations. See schools in Merrydale on SchoolGrade
