The Safest and Most Dangerous Places in South Charleston, WV: Crime Maps and Statistics

C-

Overall Crime Grade™

Violent Crime Grade	C+
Property Crime Grade	C-
Other Crime Grade	C-

Which crimes are included?

$7.34 million

Cost of Crime™ for South Charleston, WV

In 2025, crime will cost $1,059 per household.

More cost data

On the map, green marks the parts of South Charleston 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 South Charleston, WV Safe?

The C- overall grade blends the violent, property, and other grades shown above into one measure, set against the average US city, where South Charleston's combined rate is slightly higher than the norm. South Charleston sits in the 35th percentile, ahead of 35% of cities and behind 65%. The grade covers only South Charleston's official city boundaries. See the table below for nearby cities.

The overall crime rate in South Charleston is 29.67 per 1,000 residents in a typical year. Residents generally consider the southeast part of the city the safest. Your chance of being a victim ranges from 1 in 14 in the north neighborhoods to 1 in 60 in the southeast.

Counting total incidents instead of per-capita rates, the southwest parts of South Charleston, WV report the most crime, about 112 cases per year. The southeast part reports the fewest, around 20 per year.

The Cost of Crime™ in South Charleston, WV

Across all crime types, the projected cost of crime in South Charleston for 2025 is $7,337,664, about $477 per resident and $1,059 per household. That equals 1.3% of the median household income. These figures cover tangible costs, which include:

Criminal justice system costs (law enforcement, courts, and imprisonment): 54.0%
Direct costs to victims (damaged property, medical expenses, and lost wages): 34.1%
Lost economic contribution from offenders (time in prison or repeat offenses): 11.9%

How Much Does Crime Cost in South Charleston Compared to Other Cities?

South Charleston, WV:	$477
Welch, WV:	$655
Bunker Hill, WV:	$179
West Virginia:	$362
USA:	$464

The overall cost of crime per resident in South Charleston is $477 per year, which is $13 more than the national average and $114 more than West Virginia's state average. The comparison below uses cities similar to South Charleston:

In Welch, WV, crime costs $655 per person, which is $178 more than in South Charleston.
In Bunker Hill, WV, crime costs $179 per person, which is $297 less than in South Charleston

2025 Projected Cost by Type of Crime

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

Crime	Cost to South Charleston	Cost per South Charleston Resident
Murder	$2.66 million	$173
Rape/Sexual Assault	$846,482	$55
Robbery	$48,752	$3
Assault	$804,433	$52
Kidnapping	$91,842	$6
Vehicle Theft	$416,565	$27
Burglary	$314,458	$20
Theft	$1.00 million	$65
Arson	$33,616	$2
Vandalism	$566,010	$37
Animal Cruelty	$2,446	$0
Drug Crimes	$543,048	$35
Identity Theft	$1,810	$0
Total Cost of Crime	$7,337,664	$477

The Intangible Cost of Crime in South Charleston, WV

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 South Charleston totals $21,889,707 ($1,422 per resident), and all of it comes from violent crime rather than property loss. Added to the tangible costs, the full estimate reaches $29,227,371 ($1,899 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 south part of the city holds more 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, of which South Charleston has 3, do the same, and of South Charleston's 15,391 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 South Charleston, WV at ISP Reports.

South Charleston 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 South Charleston residents in a standard year.

Violent Crime Rates

Crime Type	Crime Rate
Assault	1.820
Robbery	0.1007
Rape	0.9071
Murder	0.0921
Total Violent Crime	2.920 (C+)

Property Crime Rates

Crime Type	Crime Rate
Theft	12.61
Vehicle Theft	1.748
Burglary	2.253
Arson	0.0904
Total Property Crime	16.70 (C-)

Other Crime Rates

Crime Type	Crime Rate
Kidnapping	0.0984
Drug Crimes	4.770
Vandalism	5.148
Identity Theft	0.0152
Animal Cruelty	0.0215
Total "Other" Rate	10.05 (C-)

Individual South Charleston Crime Maps & Stats

Crime Maps and Rates for Nearby Cities

Compared to surrounding cities, the rate of crime in South Charleston is similar. The table below shows Crime Grades for cities close to South Charleston.

Nearby City	Overall Crime Grade	Violent Crime Grade	Property Crime Grade
Dunbar, WV	D+	C+	D+
Institute, WV	C+	C+	C+
Charleston, WV	C-	C	C-
Jefferson, WV	D	D+	D
Loudendale, WV	B+	A-	A
Cross Lanes, WV	B	B-	B-
St. Albans, WV	C+	C+	C+
Tornado, WV	A-	A-	B+
Rand, WV	D-	D-	D-
Alum Creek, WV	B+	B+	B+

Crime Maps and Rates for City with Similar Populations

South Charleston 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
White Hall, AR	F	F	F
DeForest, WI	B	A	A
Dentsville, SC	F	F	F
Denver, PA	A+	A	A
Detroit Lakes, MN	D+	C	C
Dexter, MI	A	B+	B+
Discovery Bay, CA	A-	B-	B-
Douglassville, PA	A+	A+	A+
Dumas, TX	F	D-	D-
Whitman, MA	A-	B+	B+

Considering only the crime rate, South Charleston is less safe than the West Virginia state average and as safe as the national average.

Safety and school performance are separate topics, but both shape moving decisions. Using SchoolGrade data, schools in South Charleston, WV average SchoolGrade of C-, with 32% actual proficiency versus 35% projected; overall, schools don't meet expectations. See South Charleston 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.