The Safest and Most Dangerous Places in Stony Brook, NY
Stony Brook is an unincorporated community of 21,400 in Suffolk County, about 45 miles east of Midtown Manhattan · Updated November 2026
Is Stony Brook, NY safe?
Yes. Crime is low across most of the US, and lower still in Stony Brook: an overall CrimeGrade™ of A+, safer than the neighborhoods where 86% of Americans live. Violent and property crime both grade A+ here. Every neighborhood in Stony Brook grades A+.
A+
Overall CrimeGrade™
Safety score 951 of 1,000Safer than most US neighborhoodsi What this means
86% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime than Stony Brook as a whole, and 14% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a safety score of 838, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. Stony Brook scores 951.
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 Stony Brook, NY at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in Stony Brook, 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 Stony Brook
Theft runs low. Stony Brook has 6.0 thefts a year per 1,000 residents, about half the US rate of 13.1.
The safest and least safe parts of Stony Brook
Every part of Stony Brook where people live grades A or B on the national scale.
100%
A or B 100%
Share of residents, by the overall CrimeGrade™ of the area they live in.
Within Stony Brook, the east side has the least crime and the southeast side the most.
Crime rates and types in Stony Brook
CrimeGrade™ estimates Stony Brook has about 12 reported crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 67% less than the US as a whole and 69% less than New York.
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 49% of crime reported in Stony Brook. 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.
How Stony Brook compares with nearby cities
Stony Brook has less crime than 7 of its 8 nearest cities; only Nissequogue has less.
One thing sets Stony Brook apart: it has 35% of its residents in dense blocks, against 24% nationally. Places like that tend to report more robbery and car theft.
Residents in dense blocksBlocks of 10,000 or more people per square mile. Dense neighborhoods tend to report more robbery and car theft.35% of residentsUS: 24%Higher than for 73% of US city residents
JobsJobs draw daytime crowds. Places with many jobs tend to report more theft and robbery.55 for every 100 residentsUS: 45Higher than for 70% 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. 95% of residents here live in car-dependent areas.D (13 of 100)US: 21Lower than for 66% 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.8.3 per 1,000 residentsUS: 10.5Lower than for 70% 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
Empty homesSeasonal and vacation homes are left out. Places with many empty homes tend to report more burglary, vandalism and arson.7.0% of homesUS: 7.1%Higher than for 63% 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 Stony Brook
Counting police, courts and prisons as well as victims' losses, crime costs Stony Brook about $449 a year per household, 63% 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 $4.2 million a year, or $198 per resident.
How the cost breaks down
Crime
Cost a year
Per resident
Murder
$170,000
$8
Rape
$64,000
$3
Robbery
$37,000
$2
Assault
$800,000
$37
Burglary
$42,000
$2
Theft
$660,000
$31
Vehicle theft
$92,000
$4
Arson
$4,600
under $1
Vandalism
$210,000
$10
Total
$2.1 million
$97
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 Stony Brook 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 Stony Brook, NY average a SchoolGrade of A: 72% of students test proficient, against 77% projected for schools like them. Overall, they underperform expectations. See schools in Stony Brook on SchoolGrade
