The Safest and Most Dangerous Places in North Fair Oaks, CA
North Fair Oaks is an unincorporated community of 10,400 in San Mateo County, about 25 miles southeast of downtown San Francisco · Updated November 2026
Is North Fair Oaks, CA safe?
Crime in North Fair Oaks is high by national standards, with an overall CrimeGrade™ of C+. Most US neighborhoods have little crime: 83% of Americans live in neighborhoods with less crime than North Fair Oaks. Violent crime grades better than property crime here, B against D-. What matters most is the neighborhood: grades within North Fair Oaks run from B to D, so check the map below.
C+
Overall CrimeGrade™
Safety score 487 of 1,000Less safe than most US neighborhoodsi What this means
17% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime than North Fair Oaks as a whole, and 83% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a safety score of 838, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. North Fair Oaks scores 487.
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 North Fair Oaks, CA at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in North Fair Oaks, 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 North Fair Oaks
Theft is a strength. North Fair Oaks grades D- for property crime, but theft grades B.
Vehicle theft at more than double the US rate. North Fair Oaks has 7.5 car thefts a year per 1,000 residents, against 2.7 nationally.
The safest and least safe parts of North Fair Oaks
Crime varies widely across North Fair Oaks: 34% of residents live in areas graded A or B, and 27% in areas graded D or F. Grades across North Fair Oaks run from B to D; 1% of residents live in areas with less crime than the typical US neighborhood.
34%39%27%
A or B 34%C 39%D or F 27%
Share of residents, by the overall CrimeGrade™ of the area they live in.
Within North Fair Oaks, the east side has the least crime and the southwest side the most.
Crime rates and types in North Fair Oaks
CrimeGrade™ estimates North Fair Oaks has about 38 reported crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, about the same as the US as a whole and close to California.
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 North Fair Oaks, about 30% of everything reported, but assault costs more, because each one does more harm.
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 North Fair Oaks compares with nearby cities
Of the 10 cities closest to North Fair Oaks, 9 have less crime. Woodside and Atherton have the least.
Nearest first, with each place's distance from North Fair Oaks. Beside each overall CrimeGrade™ is its safety score, from 0 to 1,000 (higher is safer).
Compared with cities of similar size and density, North Fair Oaks has more crime than 81% of them.
Density, walkability and night lighting in North Fair Oaks
Two things set North Fair Oaks apart: it has 90% of its residents in dense blocks, against 24% nationally, and a Walk Grade of B+ (65 of 100) on BestNeighborhood, against 21 for the US as a whole. Places like that tend to report more robbery and car theft, and they run high here.
Residents in dense blocksBlocks of 10,000 or more people per square mile. Dense neighborhoods tend to report more robbery and car theft.90% of residentsUS: 24%Higher than for 96% 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.B+ (65 of 100)US: 21Higher than for 95% 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.100% where people liveUS: 78%Higher than for 92% 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.0.5 spaces per residentUS: 2.0Lower than for 90% of US city residents
Stores and restaurantsShops and restaurants draw crowds and parked cars. Places with many stores tend to report more theft.15.4 per 1,000 residentsUS: 10.5Higher than for 88% 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 North Fair Oaks: C- (28 of 100).under 1 trip an hourUS: noneLower than for 68% 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 North Fair Oaks
Crime costs North Fair Oaks about $1,821 a year per household, counting police, courts and prisons as well as victims' losses, 51% more 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 $15 million a year, or $1,467 per resident.
How the cost breaks down
Crime
Cost a year
Per resident
Murder
$810,000
$78
Rape
$350,000
$34
Robbery
$440,000
$42
Assault
$1.3 million
$123
Burglary
$200,000
$19
Theft
$620,000
$59
Vehicle theft
$1.2 million
$115
Arson
$44,000
$4
Vandalism
$330,000
$32
Total
$5.3 million
$506
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 North Fair Oaks 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 North Fair Oaks, CA average a SchoolGrade of D+: 29% of students test proficient, against 32% projected for schools like them. Overall, they meet expectations. See schools in North Fair Oaks on SchoolGrade
