Tufts is a neighborhood of 5,490 residents in Somerville, close to downtown · Updated November 2026
Is Tufts in Somerville safe?
Yes, crime in Tufts is low, with an overall CrimeGrade™ of A-. Because most US neighborhoods are safe as well, Tufts sits near the middle: safer than the neighborhoods where 44% of Americans live. Violent crime grades better than property crime here, A+ against B-. Somerville as a whole grades A-. Its neighborhoods are much alike, from A- to B+; see the map below.
A-
Overall CrimeGrade™
Safety score 805 of 1,000About as safe as the typical US neighborhoodi What this means
44% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime than Tufts as a whole, and 56% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a safety score of 838, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. Tufts scores 805.
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 Tufts, Somerville, MA at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in Tufts in Somerville, 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 Tufts
Thefts from cars happen on streets and sidewalks far more often than nationally. In Somerville as a whole, 60% of reported thefts from cars happen on streets and sidewalks, against 18% nationally.
Theft runs low. Tufts has 6.1 thefts a year per 1,000 residents, about half the US rate of 13.1.
Crime rates and types in Tufts
CrimeGrade™ estimates Tufts has about 12 reported crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 68% less than the US as a whole and 53% less than Somerville as a whole.
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.
The largest share of crime reported in Tufts is theft, about 52% of the total. It also makes up 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 Somerville
The Somerville Police Department polices Tufts; these figures cover Somerville as a whole, 2022 to 2024.
In Somerville as a whole, 66% of burglaries hit homes, against 57% nationally.
Crime
Most often at
Busiest time
Burglary
Homes (66%)
Morning (6 am to noon)
Car theft
Streets and sidewalks (54%)
Afternoon (noon to 6 pm)
Theft from cars
Streets and sidewalks (60%)
Morning (6 am to noon)
Vandalism
Streets and sidewalks (35%)
Afternoon (noon to 6 pm)
Robbery
Stores and businesses (36%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Aggravated assault
Homes (35%)
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 Tufts compares with nearby neighborhoods
Tufts has less crime than 7 of its 10 nearest neighborhoods.
Two things set Tufts apart: it has 2 jobs for every 100 residents, against 45 for the US as a whole, and 100% of its residents in dense blocks, against 24% nationally. Places with few jobs tend to report less theft and robbery, yet theft runs higher here than that would suggest.
JobsJobs draw daytime crowds. Places with many jobs tend to report more theft and robbery.2 for every 100 residentsUS: 45Lower than for 99% of residents of US city neighborhoods
Residents in dense blocksBlocks of 10,000 or more people per square mile. Dense neighborhoods tend to report more robbery and car theft.100% of residentsUS: 24%Higher than for 98% of residents of US city neighborhoods
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.B+ (67 of 100)US: 21Higher than for 75% of residents of US city neighborhoods
Show all 4
Stores and restaurantsShops and restaurants draw crowds and parked cars. Places with many stores tend to report more theft and car theft.1.8 per 1,000 residentsUS: 10.5Lower than for 96% of residents of US city neighborhoods
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 Tufts
Counting police, courts and prisons as well as victims' losses, crime costs Tufts about $487 a year per household, 60% 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 $1.4 million a year, or $247 per resident.
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 Tufts 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. Tufts 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 Tufts, Somerville, MA average a SchoolGrade of A-: 54% of students test proficient, against 57% projected for schools like them. Overall, they don't meet expectations. See schools in Tufts on SchoolGrade
