The Safest and Most Dangerous Places in Portsmouth, OH
Portsmouth is a city of 22,300 in Scioto County, about 35 miles northwest of downtown Huntington · Updated November 2026
Is Portsmouth, OH safe?
Crime in Portsmouth is moderate, with an overall CrimeGrade™ of B. Most US neighborhoods have little crime: 73% of Americans live in neighborhoods with less crime than Portsmouth. Violent and property crime both grade B here. What matters most is the neighborhood: grades within Portsmouth run from A+ to D+, so check the map or the safest and least safe neighborhoods below.
B
Overall CrimeGrade™
Safety score 661 of 1,000Less safe than most US neighborhoodsi What this means
27% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime than Portsmouth as a whole, and 73% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a safety score of 838, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. Portsmouth scores 661.
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 Portsmouth, OH at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in Portsmouth, 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 Portsmouth
Car thefts are less common than the crime level suggests. Crime overall in Portsmouth runs 70% above the US rate, but car thefts run 23% below it: 2.1 a year per 1,000 residents, against 2.7 nationally.
One part of Portsmouth stands out for burglary. Burglaries in 2nd Ward, in southwest Portsmouth, run at more than double the rate in the rest of the city.
The safest and most dangerous neighborhoods in Portsmouth
Most of Portsmouth grades well: 56% of residents live in areas graded A or B, and 13% in areas graded D or F. Grades across Portsmouth run from A+ to D+; 23% of residents live in areas with less crime than the typical US neighborhood.
56%31%13%
A or B 56%C 31%D or F 13%
Share of residents, by the overall CrimeGrade™ of the area they live in.
16th Ward, northeastThefts run at about half the rate in the rest of Portsmouth.A873
25th Ward & 3rd Ward, centralThefts run about 30% lower here than in the rest of Portsmouth.B655
31st Ward, westBurglaries run about 40% higher here than in the rest of Portsmouth.C+518
42nd Ward, southwestCar thefts run at about double the rate in the rest of Portsmouth.C429
54th Ward, southBurglaries run about 90% higher here than in the rest of Portsmouth.C427
Neighborhood areas of Portsmouth, 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.
Is crime going up in Portsmouth?
Since 2019, reported violent crime in Portsmouth is up 23% and property crime is down 15%. Murders, rapes, robberies and aggravated assaults went from about 5.8 to 7.1 a year per 1,000 residents (US: 3.7); burglaries, thefts and vehicle thefts from about 45 to 38 (US: 18). In 2024 alone, property crime fell 11%.
Violent crime, change since 2019
Property crime, change since 2019
PortsmouthUnited States
Source: crime reports to the FBI from the police department that serves Portsmouth. The charts follow crimes per resident.
Data table
Year
Violent, Portsmouth
Violent, US
Property, Portsmouth
Property, US
2016
-21%
+4%
+35%
+15%
2017
+1%
+4%
+34%
+12%
2018
+4%
+0%
+12%
+4%
2019
+0%
+0%
+0%
+0%
2020
+36%
+4%
+14%
-8%
2021
+6%
+6%
+3%
-10%
2022
+4%
+5%
-20%
-6%
2023
+32%
+2%
-4%
-7%
2024
+23%
-4%
-15%
-15%
Crime rates and types in Portsmouth
CrimeGrade™ estimates Portsmouth has about 63 reported crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 70% more than the US as a whole and 80% more than Ohio.
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 37% of crime reported in Portsmouth. Assault is less common but 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.
Where and when crime happens in Portsmouth
Portsmouth has its own police department, and these figures come from its reports, 2022 to 2024.
In Portsmouth, 72% of burglaries hit homes, against 57% nationally. Thefts from cars happen most often in parking lots and garages: 36% of them, against 31% nationally.
Crime
Most often at
Busiest time
Burglary
Homes (72%)
Afternoon (noon to 6 pm)
Car theft
Streets and sidewalks (35%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Theft from cars
Parking lots and garages (36%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Vandalism
Homes (30%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Aggravated assault
Homes (55%)
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 Portsmouth compares with nearby cities
Portsmouth has the most crime of its 7 nearest cities.
Empty homes, transit and walkability in Portsmouth
Two things set Portsmouth apart: it has 13.0% of its homes standing empty, against 7.1% nationally, and a Walk Grade of C- (29 of 100) on BestNeighborhood, against 21 for the US as a whole. Even so, 60% of residents in Portsmouth live in car-dependent areas, where most errands take a car. Places like that tend to report more burglary, vandalism and arson, and burglary and vandalism run high here.
Empty homesSeasonal and vacation homes are left out. Places with many empty homes tend to report more burglary, vandalism and arson.13.0% of homesUS: 7.1%Higher than for 94% 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 Portsmouth: F (0 of 100).NoneUS: noneLower than for 84% 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.C- (29 of 100)US: 21Higher than for 79% of US city residents
Show all 6
JobsJobs draw daytime crowds. Places with many jobs tend to report more theft and robbery.62 for every 100 residentsUS: 45Higher than for 79% 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.80% where people liveUS: 78%Lower than for 71% of US city residents
Stores and restaurantsShops and restaurants draw crowds and parked cars. Places with many stores tend to report more theft.11.5 per 1,000 residentsUS: 10.5Higher than for 64% 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 Portsmouth
Counting police, courts and prisons as well as victims' losses, crime costs Portsmouth about $1,653 a year per household, 37% 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 $50 million a year, or $2,263 per resident.
How the cost breaks down
Crime
Cost a year
Per resident
Murder
$2.8 million
$125
Rape
$930,000
$42
Robbery
$270,000
$12
Assault
$5.5 million
$248
Burglary
$1.1 million
$50
Theft
$2.7 million
$121
Vehicle theft
$710,000
$32
Arson
$41,000
$2
Vandalism
$1.6 million
$71
Total
$16 million
$703
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 Portsmouth 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 Portsmouth, OH average a SchoolGrade of C-: 54% of students test proficient, against 43% projected for schools like them. Overall, they meet expectations. See schools in Portsmouth on SchoolGrade
