The Safest and Most Dangerous Places in Wapato, WA

Wapato is a city of 10,400 in Yakima County, about 12 miles south of downtown Yakima · Updated November 2026

Is Wapato, WA safe?

With an overall CrimeGrade™ of B, Wapato has moderate crime by national standards. Most US neighborhoods have less: 72% of Americans live in neighborhoods with less crime. Violent crime grades B+ and property crime C+. What matters most is the neighborhood: grades within Wapato run from A+ to D-, so check the map below.

B
Overall CrimeGrade™Safety score 674 of 1,000
Less safe than most US neighborhoods What this means

28% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime than Wapato as a whole, and 72% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a safety score of 838, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. Wapato scores 674.

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 754 of 1,000More violent crime than most US neighborhoods
C+
Property crimeSafety score 538 of 1,000More property crime than most US neighborhoods

How it works


Crime map of Wapato

Map of Wapato 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 Wapato, WA at ISP Reports.

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

Theft is a strength. Wapato grades C+ for property crime, but theft grades A-, better than in the neighborhoods where 57% of Americans live.

Vandalism stands out among B-graded cities. For the typical resident of a B-graded US city, the figure is 6.1 acts of vandalism a year per 1,000 residents; Wapato has 37.0.


The safest and least safe parts of Wapato

Safety changes a lot from one part of Wapato to the next: 45% of residents live in areas graded A or B, while 55% live in areas graded D or F. Grades across Wapato run from A+ to D-; 44% of residents live in areas with less crime than the typical US neighborhood.

A or B 45%D or F 55%

Share of residents, by the overall CrimeGrade™ of the area they live in.

Within Wapato, the southwest side has the least crime and the east side the most.


Crime rates and types in Wapato

CrimeGrade™ estimates Wapato has about 81 reported crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, about double the rate for the US as a whole and 80% more than Washington.

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.

Vandalism is the most common crime in Wapato, about 46% of everything reported, and it also accounts for the largest share of what crime costs here.

CrimeCrimeGrade™Reported a yearPer 1,000 residentsUS per 1,000
Violent crime
MurderA-10.130.05
RapeA30.310.38
RobberyA-50.520.62
AssaultB21220.512.3
Property crime
BurglaryB+454.32.4
TheftA-11811.413.1
Vehicle theftB+706.82.7
ArsonA20.150.12
VandalismF38337.05.5

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.


How Wapato compares with nearby cities

Wapato has the most crime of its 8 nearest cities.

Nearby cities

PlaceOverallViolentPropertyResidents
WapatoB674B+C+10,400
Buena 6 milesA880AA1,120
Harrah 6 milesA+933A+A+3,390
Toppenish 7 milesB+747A-B11,900
Union Gap 8 milesB+723A-B-7,280
Show all 8
PlaceOverallViolentPropertyResidents
Moxee 8 milesA907AA7,190
Zillah 9 milesA912AA6,270
Terrace Heights 11 milesA870AA10,200
Yakima 12 milesB678BA-118,200

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

Compared with cities of similar size and density, Wapato has more crime than 87% of them.

Cities of similar size and density

PlaceOverallViolentPropertyResidents
WapatoB674B+C+10,400
Waldwick, NJA+958A+A+10,300
Clarendon Hills, ILA+927A+A10,400
Brookdale, NJA922A+A-10,300
Lincoln University, PAA921AA+10,400
Show all 10
PlaceOverallViolentPropertyResidents
Avon, COA902AA10,400
Monongahela, PAA901AA+10,400
Marathon, FLA885AA+10,300
Orange Cove, CAA-786A-A-10,400
Yorkshire, VAB673BB+10,400
Elfers, FLB622C+A-10,400

Shops, night lighting and walkability in Wapato

One thing sets Wapato apart: it has 6.8 stores and restaurants for every 1,000 residents, against 10.5 nationally. Places like that tend to report less theft, and it runs low here.

Stores and restaurantsShops and restaurants draw crowds and parked cars. Places with many stores tend to report more theft.6.8 per 1,000 residentsUS: 10.5Lower than for 82% 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.62% where people liveUS: 78%Lower than for 82% 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. 74% of residents here live in car-dependent areas.D+ (20 of 100)US: 21Higher than for 60% of US city residents
Show all 6
Parking lotsBig lots at stores, offices and apartment complexes. Places with more lot space tend to report more theft.2.7 spaces per residentUS: 2.0Higher than for 79% of US city residents
JobsJobs draw daytime crowds. Places with many jobs tend to report more theft and robbery.32 for every 100 residentsUS: 45Lower than for 67% 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 Wapato: F (0 of 100).under 1 trip an hourUS: noneLower than for 61% of US city residents

BestNeighborhood, a sister site of CrimeGrade™, ranks the neighborhoods of Wapato 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 Wapato

Counting police, courts and prisons as well as victims' losses, crime costs Wapato about $3,291 a year per household, more than double 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 $29 million a year, or $2,776 per resident.

How the cost breaks down
CrimeCost a yearPer resident
Murder$2.4 million$235
Rape$190,000$18
Robbery$170,000$16
Assault$2.1 million$201
Burglary$400,000$39
Theft$610,000$58
Vehicle theft$1.1 million$104
Arson$36,000$3
Vandalism$2.7 million$262
Total$9.7 million$938

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 Wapato 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 Wapato

Schools in Wapato, WA average a SchoolGrade of D-: 31% of students test proficient, against 29% projected for schools like them. Overall, they meet expectations. See schools in Wapato on SchoolGrade