Crime in Wadesboro, NC

Wadesboro is a town of 8,130 in Anson County, about 45 miles east of downtown Charlotte · Updated November 2026

Is Wadesboro, NC safe?

With an overall CrimeGrade™ of B-, Wadesboro has moderate crime by national standards. Most US neighborhoods have less: 77% of Americans live in neighborhoods with less crime. Violent crime grades B- and property crime B. What matters most is the neighborhood: grades within Wadesboro run from A+ to F, so check the map below.

B-
Overall CrimeGrade™Safety score 592 of 1,000
Less safe than most US neighborhoods What this means

23% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime than Wadesboro as a whole, and 77% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a safety score of 838, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. Wadesboro scores 592.

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.

B-
Violent crimeSafety score 564 of 1,000More violent crime than most US neighborhoods
B
Property crimeSafety score 638 of 1,000More property crime than most US neighborhoods

How it works


Crime map of Wadesboro

Map of Wadesboro shaded by overall CrimeGrade™, from green for the least crime to red for the most
Click the map to explore
F D C B A+
Highest crime Safest
Colorblind friendly off

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 Wadesboro, NC at ISP Reports.

Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in Wadesboro, 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 Wadesboro

Burglaries run high for a B-graded city. Wadesboro has 11.5 burglaries a year per 1,000 residents; for the typical resident of a B-graded US city, the figure is 2.7.

Aggravated assaults and simple assaults both run high. In Wadesboro, each runs at more than triple the US rate: 10.8 aggravated assaults and 34.1 simple assaults a year per 1,000 residents, against 2.6 and 9.7 nationally.


Crime rates and types in Wadesboro

CrimeGrade™ estimates Wadesboro has about 119 reported crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, about triple the rate for the US as a whole and about triple the rate for North Carolina.

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.

Simple assault is the most common crime in Wadesboro, about 29% of everything reported.

CrimeCrimeGrade™Reported a yearPer 1,000 residentsUS per 1,000
Violent crime
MurderB+20.250.05
RapeA30.420.38
RobberyA-80.990.62
Aggravated assaultC-8810.82.6
Simple assaultC27834.19.7
Property crime
BurglaryB-9311.52.4
TheftB24430.013.1
Vehicle theftA-465.72.7
ArsonA-20.280.12
VandalismC+19824.45.5

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 Wadesboro

Wadesboro has its own police department, and these figures come from its reports, 2022 to 2024.

In Wadesboro, 71% of burglaries hit homes, against 57% nationally. Thefts from cars happen most often at homes: 55% of them, against 34% nationally.

CrimeMost often atBusiest time
BurglaryHomes (71%)Afternoon (noon to 6 pm)
Car theftHomes (63%)Afternoon (noon to 6 pm)
Theft from carsHomes (55%)Morning (6 am to noon)
VandalismHomes (59%)Afternoon (noon to 6 pm)
Aggravated assaultHomes (61%)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 Wadesboro compares with nearby cities

Wadesboro has the most crime of its 3 nearest cities.

Nearby cities

PlaceOverallViolentPropertyResidents
WadesboroB-592B-B8,130
Lilesville 6 milesA918AA+2,050
Morven 8 milesA916AA+2,250
Polkton 8 milesA+938A+A+4,230

Nearest first, with each place's distance from Wadesboro. Beside each overall CrimeGrade™ is its safety score, from 0 to 1,000 (higher is safer).

Compared with cities of similar size and density, Wadesboro has more crime than 99% of them.

Cities of similar size and density

PlaceOverallViolentPropertyResidents
WadesboroB-592B-B8,130
Old Lyme, CTA+974A+A+8,150
Sugarcreek, OHA+958A+A+8,130
Fort Knox, KYA+949A+A+8,130
Mendota, ILA+949A+A+8,130
Show all 10
PlaceOverallViolentPropertyResidents
West Salem, WIA+946A+A+8,140
Devine, TXA+943A+A+8,130
Halifax, MAA914A+A8,120
West Columbia, TXA892AA8,130
Kirtland, NMA870AA8,140
Palmview South, TXB+733B+A-8,130

Empty homes, night lighting and walkability in Wadesboro

Two things set Wadesboro apart: it has 14.9% of its homes standing empty, against 7.1% nationally, and 42% of the land where people live lit at night, against 78% nationally. Places with many empty homes tend to report more burglary, vandalism and arson, and burglary and vandalism run high here.

Empty homesSeasonal and vacation homes are left out. Places with many empty homes tend to report more burglary, vandalism and arson.14.9% of homesUS: 7.1%Higher than for 96% of US city residents
Lit at nightSatellite images show which neighborhoods are lit at night, a sign of busy streets and businesses. Brightly lit places tend to report more theft and vandalism.42% where people liveUS: 78%Lower than for 90% 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. 92% of residents here live in car-dependent areas.D- (8 of 100)US: 21Lower than for 83% of US city residents
Show all 6
Residents in dense blocksBlocks of 10,000 or more people per square mile. Dense neighborhoods tend to report more robbery and car theft.1% of residentsUS: 24%Lower than for 89% of US city residents
Stores and restaurantsShops and restaurants draw crowds and parked cars. Places with many stores tend to report more theft.15.2 per 1,000 residentsUS: 10.5Higher than for 88% 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 Wadesboro: F (0 of 100).NoneUS: noneLower than for 84% of US city residents

BestNeighborhood, a sister site of CrimeGrade™, ranks the neighborhoods of Wadesboro on shops, parks, home prices, getting around and more.

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 Wadesboro

Counting police, courts and prisons as well as victims' losses, crime costs Wadesboro about $3,971 a year per household, about triple 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 $48 million a year, or $5,936 per resident.

How the cost breaks down
CrimeCost a yearPer resident
Murder$3.8 million$463
Rape$200,000$25
Robbery$250,000$31
Aggravated assault$2.5 million$309
Simple assault$2.0 million$249
Burglary$840,000$103
Theft$1.3 million$154
Vehicle theft$710,000$87
Arson$54,000$7
Vandalism$1.4 million$173
Total$13 million$1,601

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 Wadesboro 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
  • Population and housing figures from the US Census Bureau
  • 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.

More about CrimeGrade™ data


Schools in Wadesboro

Schools in Wadesboro, NC average a SchoolGrade of D-: 41% of students test proficient, against 30% projected for schools like them. Overall, they meet expectations. See schools in Wadesboro on SchoolGrade