The Safest and Most Dangerous Places in Rockwell, NC
Rockwell is a town of 10,400 in Rowan County, about 30 miles northeast of downtown Charlotte · Updated November 2026
Is Rockwell, NC safe?
Yes. Most US neighborhoods have little crime, and Rockwell has less than most of them: its overall CrimeGrade™ is A+, safer than the neighborhoods where 76% of Americans live. Violent crime grades A+ and property crime A. Its neighborhoods are much alike, from A+ to A; see the map below.
A+
Overall CrimeGrade™
Safety score 925 of 1,000Safer than most US neighborhoodsi What this means
76% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime than Rockwell as a whole, and 24% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a safety score of 838, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. Rockwell scores 925.
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 Rockwell, NC at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in Rockwell, 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 Rockwell
Burglaries run above the US rate. Rockwell has less crime than the US as a whole, 53% below the US rate, but more burglaries: 3.4 a year per 1,000 residents, against 2.4 nationally.
Simple assaults are uncommon. Rockwell has simple assaults at a small fraction of the US rate: 2.5 a year per 1,000 residents, against 9.7 nationally.
The safest and least safe parts of Rockwell
Every part of Rockwell where people live grades A or B on the national scale. Grades across Rockwell run from A+ to A; every part of Rockwell has 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.
Within Rockwell, the southwest side has the least crime and the northeast side the most.
Crime rates and types in Rockwell
CrimeGrade™ estimates Rockwell has about 18 reported crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 53% less than the US as a whole and 57% less than North Carolina.
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 Rockwell, about 36% 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 Rockwell compares with nearby cities
Rockwell has less crime than 5 of its 9 nearest cities.
Density, night lighting and walkability in Rockwell
Two things set Rockwell apart: it has 22% of the land where people live lit at night, against 78% nationally, and a Walk Grade of F (5 of 100) on BestNeighborhood, against 21 for the US as a whole. Places like that tend to report less theft and vandalism, and they run low here.
Residents in dense blocksBlocks of 10,000 or more people per square mile. Dense neighborhoods tend to report more robbery and car theft.NoneUS: 24%Lower than for 97% 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.22% where people liveUS: 78%Lower than for 95% 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. 96% of residents here live in car-dependent areas.F (5 of 100)US: 21Lower than for 91% of US city residents
Show all 6
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 Rockwell: F (0 of 100).NoneUS: noneLower than for 84% of US city residents
JobsJobs draw daytime crowds. Places with many jobs tend to report more theft and robbery.22 for every 100 residentsUS: 45Lower than for 83% of US city residents
Parking lotsBig lots at stores, offices and apartment complexes. Places with more lot space tend to report more theft.1.3 spaces per residentUS: 2.0Lower than for 67% 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 Rockwell
Crime costs Rockwell about $606 a year per household, counting police, courts and prisons as well as victims' losses, 50% 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 $10 million a year, or $988 per resident.
How the cost breaks down
Crime
Cost a year
Per resident
Murder
$920,000
$88
Rape
$66,000
$6
Robbery
$38,000
$4
Assault
$580,000
$56
Burglary
$320,000
$31
Theft
$340,000
$33
Vehicle theft
$170,000
$16
Arson
$16,000
$2
Vandalism
$190,000
$18
Total
$2.6 million
$253
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 Rockwell 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 Rockwell, NC average a SchoolGrade of C-: 50% of students test proficient, against 53% projected for schools like them. Overall, they underperform expectations. See schools in Rockwell on SchoolGrade
