The Safest and Most Dangerous Places in South Bend, IN
South Bend is a city of 147,200 in St. Joseph County and the main city of the South Bend metro area, home to 324,600 · Updated November 2026
Is South Bend, IN safe?
Crime in South Bend is moderate, with an overall CrimeGrade™ of B+. Most US neighborhoods have little crime: 69% of Americans live in neighborhoods with less crime than South Bend. Property crime grades better than violent crime here, B+ against B. What matters most is the neighborhood: grades within South Bend run from A+ to F, so check the map or the safest and least safe neighborhoods below.
B+
Overall CrimeGrade™
Safety score 699 of 1,000Less safe than most US neighborhoodsi What this means
31% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime than South Bend as a whole, and 69% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a safety score of 838, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. South Bend scores 699.
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 South Bend, IN at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in South Bend, 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 South Bend
One part of South Bend stands out for robbery. Robberies in Westside, Lasalle Park & Nws Cooperative Alliance, in west South Bend, run at about triple the rate in the rest of the city.
Aggravated assaults run high for a B-graded city. South Bend has 6.6 aggravated assaults a year per 1,000 residents; for the typical resident of a B-graded US city, the figure is 3.1.
The safest and most dangerous neighborhoods in South Bend
Most of South Bend grades well: 68% of residents live in areas graded A or B, and 11% in areas graded D or F. Grades across South Bend run from A+ to F; 33% of residents live in areas with less crime than the typical US neighborhood.
68%21%11%
A or B 68%C 21%D or F 11%
Share of residents, by the overall CrimeGrade™ of the area they live in.
1Wooded Estates, northeastAggravated assaults run at less than half the rate in the rest of South Bend.A-808
2Fnw, Council Oak & Lasalle, northwestCar thefts run at about half the rate in the rest of South Bend.B+765
3Southeast Quality, Twyckenham Hills & Southeast Pond, southeastBurglaries run about 30% lower here than in the rest of South Bend.B+731
4Keller Park, North Shore Triangle & Harters Heights, northClose to the rest of South Bend on most crimes.B+723
5Rum Village, southRobberies run about 30% higher here than in the rest of South Bend.B648
6River Park & Northeast, eastCar thefts run at about double the rate in the rest of South Bend.B-590
7Near Westside Neighborhood, Nearnorthwest & Howard Park-East Bank, centralCar thefts run at more than double the rate in the rest of South Bend.C+519
8Westside, Lasalle Park & Nws Cooperative Alliance, westAggravated assaults run about 80% higher here than in the rest of South Bend.C+512
Neighborhood areas of South Bend, 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.
Crime rates and types in South Bend
CrimeGrade™ estimates South Bend has about 52 reported crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 41% more than the US as a whole and 66% more than Indiana.
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.
Assault is the most common crime in South Bend, about 43% of everything reported, and it also accounts for the largest share of what crime costs here.
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 South Bend
South Bend has its own police department, and these figures come from its reports, 2022 to 2024.
In South Bend, 75% of burglaries hit homes, against 57% nationally. Thefts from cars happen most often at homes: 39% of them, against 34% nationally.
Crime
Most often at
Busiest time
Burglary
Homes (75%)
Afternoon (noon to 6 pm)
Car theft
Homes (37%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Theft from cars
Homes (39%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Vandalism
Homes (51%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Robbery
Streets and sidewalks (47%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Aggravated assault
Homes (58%)
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 South Bend compares with nearby cities
South Bend has the most crime of its 8 nearest cities.
Empty homes, parking lots and walkability in South Bend
Two things set South Bend apart: it has 10.5% of its homes standing empty, against 7.1% nationally, and 3.1 parking-lot spaces per resident, against 2.0 nationally. Places like that tend to report more burglary, vandalism and arson, and they run high here.
Empty homesSeasonal and vacation homes are left out. Places with many empty homes tend to report more burglary, vandalism and arson.10.5% of homesUS: 7.1%Higher than for 88% of US city residents
Parking lotsBig lots at stores, offices and apartment complexes. Places with more lot space tend to report more theft.3.1 spaces per residentUS: 2.0Higher than for 86% 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. 78% of residents here live in car-dependent areas.D+ (19 of 100)US: 21Higher than for 55% of US city residents
Show all 6
Stores and restaurantsShops and restaurants draw crowds and parked cars. Places with many stores tend to report more theft.8.6 per 1,000 residentsUS: 10.5Lower than for 67% 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 South Bend: F (1 of 100).under 1 trip an hourUS: noneLower than for 67% of US city residents
JobsJobs draw daytime crowds. Places with many jobs tend to report more theft and robbery.49 for every 100 residentsUS: 45Higher than for 62% 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 South Bend
Counting police, courts and prisons as well as victims' losses, crime costs South Bend about $1,525 a year per household, 27% more than the US figure of $1,205. The total is about $90 million a year.
Cost of crime per resident, per year
Counting the pain and suffering of victims, which comes almost entirely from violent crime, the full cost rises to about $279 million a year, or $1,895 per resident.
How the cost breaks down
Crime
Cost a year
Per resident
Murder
$6.8 million
$46
Rape
$4.2 million
$28
Robbery
$2.5 million
$17
Assault
$45 million
$305
Burglary
$2.6 million
$18
Theft
$8.8 million
$60
Vehicle theft
$8.0 million
$54
Arson
$590,000
$4
Vandalism
$12 million
$80
Total
$90 million
$613
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 South Bend 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 South Bend, IN average a SchoolGrade of D: 30% of students test proficient, against 29% projected for schools like them. Overall, they don't meet expectations. See schools in South Bend on SchoolGrade
