Ventura is a neighborhood of 3,650 residents in Palo Alto, about 2 miles southeast of downtown · Updated November 2026
Is Ventura in Palo Alto safe?
Yes. An overall CrimeGrade™ of A- means crime in Ventura is low. Most US neighborhoods have little crime too, so Ventura sits near the middle: 51% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime, and 49% in neighborhoods with less. Violent crime grades better than property crime here, A against B+. Palo Alto as a whole grades A. Its neighborhoods are much alike, from A to A-; see the map below.
A-
Overall CrimeGrade™
Safety score 844 of 1,000About as safe as the typical US neighborhoodi What this means
51% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime than Ventura as a whole, and 49% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a safety score of 838, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. Ventura scores 844.
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 Ventura, Palo Alto, CA at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in Ventura in Palo Alto, 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 Ventura
Thefts from cars happen in the evening far more often than nationally. In Palo Alto as a whole, 61% of reported thefts from cars happen in the evening (6 pm to midnight), against 32% nationally.
Crime rates and types in Ventura
CrimeGrade™ estimates Ventura has about 34 reported crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 8% less than the US as a whole and close to Palo Alto 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 Ventura, about 63% 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 Palo Alto
The Palo Alto Police Department polices Ventura; these figures cover Palo Alto as a whole, 2022 to 2024.
In Palo Alto as a whole, 55% of burglaries hit homes, against 57% nationally.
Crime
Most often at
Busiest time
Burglary
Homes (55%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Car theft
Streets and sidewalks (48%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Theft from cars
Parking lots and garages (49%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Vandalism
Parking lots and garages (25%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Robbery
Stores and businesses (56%)
Afternoon (noon to 6 pm)
Aggravated assault
Homes (29%)
Afternoon (noon to 6 pm)
Shares of the crimes reported to police, 2022 to 2024. Reports with no time recorded are left out of the times.
How Ventura compares with nearby neighborhoods
Ventura has less crime than 8 of its 10 nearest neighborhoods; only Barron Park and North Los Altos have less.
Two things set Ventura apart: it has 125 jobs for every 100 residents, against 45 for the US as a whole, and 12.0% of its homes standing empty, against 7.1% nationally. Places like that tend to report more theft and robbery, and theft runs high here.
JobsJobs draw daytime crowds. Places with many jobs tend to report more theft and robbery.125 for every 100 residentsUS: 45Higher than for 92% of residents of US city neighborhoods
Empty homesSeasonal and vacation homes are left out. Places with many empty homes tend to report more burglary, vandalism and arson.12.0% of homesUS: 7.1%Higher than for 87% 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- (32 of 100)US: 21Lower than for 53% of residents of US city neighborhoods
Show all 4
Parking lotsBig lots at stores, offices and apartment complexes. Places with more lot space tend to report more theft.1.2 spaces per residentUS: 2.0Higher than for 69% 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 Ventura
Crime costs Ventura about $592 a year per household, counting police, courts and prisons as well as victims' losses, 51% 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 $2.8 million a year, or $770 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 Ventura 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. Ventura is a good example: many people work in, shop in or visit it, so its crime per resident looks worse 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 Ventura, Palo Alto, CA average a SchoolGrade of A+: 75% of students test proficient, against 68% projected for schools like them. Overall, they exceed expectations. See schools in Ventura on SchoolGrade
