The Safest and Most Dangerous Places in Sun City West, AZ
Sun City West is an unincorporated community of 28,900 in Maricopa County, about 20 miles northwest of downtown Phoenix · Updated November 2026
Is Sun City West, AZ safe?
Yes, crime in Sun City West is low, with an overall CrimeGrade™ of A. Because most US neighborhoods are safe as well, Sun City West sits near the middle: safer than the neighborhoods where 54% of Americans live. Property crime grades better than violent crime here, A against A-. What matters most is the neighborhood: grades within Sun City West run from A+ to B+, so check the map below.
A
Overall CrimeGrade™
Safety score 856 of 1,000About as safe as the typical US neighborhoodi What this means
54% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime than Sun City West as a whole, and 46% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a safety score of 838, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. Sun City West scores 856.
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 Sun City West, AZ at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in Sun City West, 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 Sun City West
Reported rape is the exception. Sun City West grades A- for violent crime, but reported rape grades B, worse than in the neighborhoods where 78% of Americans live.
Car thefts and acts of vandalism both run low. In Sun City West, each runs at less than half the US rate: 1.1 car thefts and 1.9 acts of vandalism a year per 1,000 residents, against 2.7 and 5.5 nationally.
The safest and least safe parts of Sun City West
Every part of Sun City West where people live grades A or B on the national scale. Grades across Sun City West run from A+ to B+; 73% of residents live in areas with 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 Sun City West, the northeast side has the least crime and the southeast side the most.
Crime rates and types in Sun City West
CrimeGrade™ estimates Sun City West has about 21 reported crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 45% less than the US as a whole and 48% less than Arizona.
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 47% of crime reported in Sun City West. 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 Sun City West compares with nearby cities
Sun City West has less crime than 8 of its 9 nearest cities; only Waddell has less.
Two things set Sun City West apart: it has 3.6 stores and restaurants for every 1,000 residents, against 10.5 nationally, and a Walk Grade of F (4 of 100) on BestNeighborhood, against 21 for the US as a whole. Places like that tend to report less theft; here theft sits near the national middle.
Stores and restaurantsShops and restaurants draw crowds and parked cars. Places with many stores tend to report more theft.3.6 per 1,000 residentsUS: 10.5Lower than for 96% 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 (4 of 100)US: 21Lower than for 93% of US city residents
Residents in dense blocksBlocks of 10,000 or more people per square mile. Dense neighborhoods tend to report more robbery and car theft.2% of residentsUS: 24%Lower than for 86% of US city residents
Show all 6
JobsJobs draw daytime crowds. Places with many jobs tend to report more theft and robbery.27 for every 100 residentsUS: 45Lower than for 76% 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 Sun City West: F (0 of 100).under 1 trip an hourUS: noneLower than for 64% of US city residents
Parking lotsBig lots at stores, offices and apartment complexes. Places with more lot space tend to report more theft.1.7 spaces per residentUS: 2.0Higher than for 53% 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 Sun City West
Counting police, courts and prisons as well as victims' losses, crime costs Sun City West about $396 a year per household, 67% 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 $22 million a year, or $771 per resident.
How the cost breaks down
Crime
Cost a year
Per resident
Murder
$980,000
$34
Rape
$700,000
$24
Robbery
$51,000
$2
Assault
$2.3 million
$80
Burglary
$320,000
$11
Theft
$1.4 million
$50
Vehicle theft
$500,000
$17
Arson
$21,000
$1
Vandalism
$390,000
$13
Total
$6.7 million
$232
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 Sun City West 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. Sun City West is the other kind of example: few people work in, shop in or visit it, so its crime per resident looks lower than its CrimeGrade™ suggests.
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 Sun City West, AZ average a SchoolGrade of B: 37% of students test proficient, against 35% projected for schools like them. Overall, they meet expectations. See schools in Sun City West on SchoolGrade
