The Safest and Most Dangerous Places in Shirley Center, MA: Crime Maps and Statistics

Overall Crime Grade™

Violent Crime Grade	A+
Property Crime Grade	A-
Other Crime Grade	A

Which crimes are included?

$189,613

Cost of Crime™ for Shirley Center, MA

In 2025, crime will cost $407 per household.

More cost data

On the map, green marks the parts of Shirley Center with the least crime overall and red marks the most. Each area is weighted by the type and severity of every offense, so a place with rare but serious violent crime can grade differently from one with frequent petty theft. The Interpreting the Crime Maps section below explains how to read the colors.

Is Shirley Center, MA Safe?

The A overall grade blends the violent, property, and other grades shown above into one measure, set against the average US city, where Shirley Center's combined rate is much lower than the norm. Shirley Center sits in the 92nd percentile, ahead of 92% of cities and behind 8%. The grade covers only Shirley Center's official city boundaries. See the table below for nearby cities.

The overall crime rate in Shirley Center is 11.63 per 1,000 residents in a typical year. Residents generally consider the northeast part of the city the safest. Your chance of being a victim ranges from 1 in 73 in the southwest neighborhoods to 1 in 157 in the northeast.

Counting total incidents instead of per-capita rates, the southwest parts of Shirley Center, MA report the most crime, about 5 cases per year. The northeast part reports the fewest, around 1 per year.

The Cost of Crime™ in Shirley Center, MA

Across all crime types, the projected cost of crime in Shirley Center for 2025 is $189,613, about $154 per resident and $407 per household. That equals 0.3% of the median household income. These figures cover tangible costs, which include:

Criminal justice system costs (law enforcement, courts, and imprisonment): 61.1%
Direct costs to victims (damaged property, medical expenses, and lost wages): 26.1%
Lost economic contribution from offenders (time in prison or repeat offenses): 12.8%

How Much Does Crime Cost in Shirley Center Compared to Other Cities?

Shirley Center, MA:	$154
Provincetown, MA:	$798
East Sandwich, MA:	$119
Massachusetts:	$274
USA:	$464

The overall cost of crime per resident in Shirley Center is $154 per year, which is $310 less than the national average and $120 less than Massachusetts's state average. The comparison below uses cities similar to Shirley Center:

In Provincetown, MA, crime costs $798 per person, which is $644 more than in Shirley Center.
In East Sandwich, MA, crime costs $119 per person, which is $35 less than in Shirley Center

2025 Projected Cost by Type of Crime

The table below shows the total cost of crime to the residents of Shirley Center for the year 2025 along with the projected cost per resident.

Crime	Cost to Shirley Center	Cost per Shirley Center Resident
Murder	$27,284	$22
Rape/Sexual Assault	$36,257	$30
Robbery	$7,020	$6
Assault	$25,421	$21
Kidnapping	$8,545	$7
Vehicle Theft	$11,384	$9
Burglary	$11,612	$9
Theft	$36,592	$30
Arson	$1,620	$1
Vandalism	$14,578	$12
Animal Cruelty	$170	$0
Drug Crimes	$7,022	$6
Identity Theft	$2,108	$2
Total Cost of Crime	$189,613	$154

The Intangible Cost of Crime in Shirley Center, MA

The totals above count tangible costs only. Violent crime also carries a human cost, the pain and trauma borne by victims and their families, which research-based methods estimate so it can be compared across places. That intangible cost in Shirley Center totals $365,286 ($297 per resident), and all of it comes from violent crime rather than property loss. Added to the tangible costs, the full estimate reaches $554,899 ($452 per resident). All Cost of Crime figures come from scholarly research on the cost of crime. Read more about our methodology here.

Interpreting the Crime Maps

Crime rates on the map are measured per resident, so areas with heavy visitor traffic can read high because crime follows crowds, even where few people live. The city holds few retail establishments, which lifts recorded crime around those blocks. A red area does not always mean the neighborhood is unsafe for residents.

Airports, parks, and transit hubs create the same effect. Major airports draw large crowds with few residents nearby, so they read as high-crime spots. Parks and recreational areas do the same, and of Shirley Center's 1,229 residents few live beside them. Before assuming an area is unsafe, weigh both the per-capita rate and the total number of incidents, and note what sits nearby.

The interactive maps load faster on a strong connection. Compare high speed internet in Shirley Center, MA at ISP Reports.

Shirley Center Crime Breakdown

The tables below show which crimes are used to calculate the Crime Grades above. All crime rates are shown as the number of crimes per 1,000 Shirley Center residents in a standard year.

Violent Crime Rates

Crime Type	Crime Rate
Assault	0.7202
Robbery	0.1816
Rape	0.4866
Murder	0.0118
Total Violent Crime	1.400 (A+)

Property Crime Rates

Crime Type	Crime Rate
Theft	5.749
Vehicle Theft	0.5982
Burglary	1.042
Arson	0.0546
Total Property Crime	7.443 (A-)

Other Crime Rates

Crime Type	Crime Rate
Kidnapping	0.1147
Drug Crimes	0.7724
Vandalism	1.660
Identity Theft	0.2216
Animal Cruelty	0.0187
Total "Other" Rate	2.788 (A)

Individual Shirley Center Crime Maps & Stats

Crime Maps and Rates for Nearby Cities

Compared to surrounding cities, the rate of crime in Shirley Center is lower. The table below shows Crime Grades for cities close to Shirley Center.

Nearby City	Overall Crime Grade	Violent Crime Grade	Property Crime Grade
Shirley, MA	B+	C+	B
Townsend Harbor, MA	A+	A+	A+
Ayer, MA	B	C	B-
Devens, MA	D	D	D
Lunenburg, MA	A	A-	A-
Groton, MA	A+	A-	A
Harvard Station, MA	A	B+	A-
Townsend, MA	A+	A-	A+
Pepperell, MA	A+	A+	A
Harvard, MA	A+	A+	A+

Crime Maps and Rates for City with Similar Populations

Shirley Center is lower versus other cities of the same size for crime. The table below compares crime in cities with comparable overall population in the city‘s boundaries.

Similar City	Overall Crime Grade	Violent Crime Grade	Property Crime Grade
West Plattsburg, NY	A+	A	A
Birmingham, OH	A	B	B
Blanket, TX	C	D+	D+
Boca Grande, FL	D-	F	F
Brinnon, WA	D+	D-	D-
Broseley, MO	C	D+	D+
Browns Crossing, GA	B	B-	B-
Welcome Valley, TX	D	C+	C+
West Newfield, ME	A	A+	A+
Afton, IA	D+	C+	C+

Considering only the crime rate, Shirley Center is safer than the Massachusetts state average and safer than the national average.

Safety and school performance are separate topics, but both shape moving decisions. Using SchoolGrade data, schools in Shirley Center, MA average SchoolGrade of A-, with 56% actual proficiency versus 51% projected; overall, schools exceed expectations. See Shirley Center schools on SchoolGrade

About the Data

CrimeGrade.org provides highly detailed and accurate crime data, used by insurance companies, home security firms, and other industries. Our data is available for licensing—learn more about our USA crime data and licensing.

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All maps and statistics above are projections, not certainties, and provided without guarantee free of charge. Verify all info before making any decisions based on the data.