University Park is a neighborhood of 6,670 residents in Portland, about 5 miles northwest of downtown · Updated November 2026
Is University Park in Portland safe?
University Park has more crime than most of the country: an overall CrimeGrade™ of C, with more crime than the neighborhoods where 84% of Americans live. Violent crime grades B and property crime D-. Portland as a whole grades C. What matters most is the neighborhood: grades within University Park run from B to D+, so check the map below.
C
Overall CrimeGrade™
Safety score 446 of 1,000Less safe than most US neighborhoodsi What this means
16% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime than University Park as a whole, and 84% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a safety score of 838, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. University Park scores 446.
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 University Park, Portland, OR at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in University Park in Portland, 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 University Park
Vehicle theft at about triple the US rate. University Park has 7.8 car thefts a year per 1,000 residents, against 2.7 nationally.
Crime rates and types in University Park
CrimeGrade™ estimates University Park has about 56 reported crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 50% more than the US as a whole and 27% less than Portland 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.
Theft is the most common crime in University Park, about 48% 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 Portland
The Portland Police Department polices University Park; these figures cover Portland as a whole, 2022 to 2024.
In Portland as a whole, 34% of burglaries hit homes, against 57% nationally. Thefts from cars happen most often on streets and sidewalks: 35% of them, against 18% nationally.
Crime
Most often at
Busiest time
Burglary
Stores and businesses (46%)
Night (midnight to 6 am)
Car theft
Streets and sidewalks (62%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Theft from cars
Streets and sidewalks (35%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Vandalism
Streets and sidewalks (30%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Robbery
Stores and businesses (51%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Aggravated assault
Streets and sidewalks (41%)
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 University Park compares with nearby neighborhoods
University Park has less crime than 7 of its 10 nearest neighborhoods.
Nearest first, with each place's distance from University Park. Beside each overall CrimeGrade™ is its safety score, from 0 to 1,000 (higher is safer).
Compared with neighborhoods of similar size and density, University Park has more crime than 65% of them.
Shops, tree cover and walkability in University Park
One thing sets University Park apart: it has 3.9 stores and restaurants for every 1,000 residents, against 10.5 nationally. Places like that tend to report less theft and car theft, yet theft and car theft run higher here than that would suggest.
Stores and restaurantsShops and restaurants draw crowds and parked cars. Places with many stores tend to report more theft and car theft.3.9 per 1,000 residentsUS: 10.5Lower than for 86% of residents of US city neighborhoods
Tree coverThe share of land under tree canopy where people live. Leafy neighborhoods tend to report less robbery.21% where people liveUS: 21%Higher than for 81% 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.C (40 of 100)US: 21Higher than for 56% of residents of US city neighborhoods
Show all 4
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 University Park: C (32 of 100).15 trips an hourUS: noneHigher than for 64% 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 University Park
Counting police, courts and prisons as well as victims' losses, crime costs University Park about $2,239 a year per household, 86% more 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 $12 million a year, or $1,861 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 University Park 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
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 University Park, Portland, OR average a SchoolGrade of A-: 44% of students test proficient, against 47% projected for schools like them. Overall, they meet expectations. See schools in University Park on SchoolGrade
