The Safest and Most Dangerous Places in White Center, WA
White Center is an unincorporated community of 15,100 in King County, about 7 miles south of downtown Seattle · Updated November 2026
Is White Center, WA safe?
Crime in White Center is high, with an overall CrimeGrade™ of F. Most US neighborhoods have far less: 93% of Americans live in neighborhoods with less crime than White Center. Violent crime grades D and property crime F. What matters most is the neighborhood: grades within White Center run from B+ to F, so check the map below.
F
Overall CrimeGrade™
Safety score 47 of 1,000Less safe than nearly all US neighborhoodsi What this means
7% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime than White Center as a whole, and 93% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a safety score of 838, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. White Center scores 47.
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 White Center, WA at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in White Center, 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 White Center
Aggravated assaults are less common than in most F-graded cities. White Center has 3.3 aggravated assaults a year per 1,000 residents; for the typical resident of an F-graded US city, the figure is 7.6.
Car thefts and robberies both run high. In White Center, each runs at more than triple the US rate: 16.2 car thefts and 2.6 robberies a year per 1,000 residents, against 2.7 and 0.62 nationally.
The safest and least safe parts of White Center
High crime is widespread across White Center: 83% of residents live in areas graded D or F, and 2% in areas graded A or B. Grades across White Center run from B+ to F; every part of White Center has more crime than the typical US neighborhood.
15%83%
A or B 2%C 15%D or F 83%
Share of residents, by the overall CrimeGrade™ of the area they live in.
Within White Center, the west side has the least crime and the center the most.
Crime rates and types in White Center
CrimeGrade™ estimates White Center has about 63 reported crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 71% more than the US as a whole and 41% 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.
Vehicle theft is the most common crime in White Center, about 26% of everything reported.
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 White Center compares with nearby cities
White Center has the most crime of its 9 nearest cities.
Two things set White Center apart: it has 15 jobs for every 100 residents, against 45 for the US as a whole, and 24 buses and trains an hour at the evening rush, where most Americans have none nearby. Places with few jobs tend to report less theft and robbery, yet theft and robbery run higher here than that would suggest.
JobsJobs draw daytime crowds. Places with many jobs tend to report more theft and robbery.15 for every 100 residentsUS: 45Lower than for 92% 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 White Center: C (34 of 100).24 trips an hourUS: noneHigher than for 92% 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.C+ (45 of 100)US: 21Higher than for 90% of US city residents
Show all 6
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.100% where people liveUS: 78%Higher than for 92% of US city residents
Parking lotsBig lots at stores, offices and apartment complexes. Places with more lot space tend to report more theft.0.5 spaces per residentUS: 2.0Lower than for 90% of US city residents
Residents in dense blocksBlocks of 10,000 or more people per square mile. Dense neighborhoods tend to report more robbery and car theft.41% of residentsUS: 24%Higher than for 77% of US city residents
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 White Center
Counting police, courts and prisons as well as victims' losses, crime costs White Center about $2,580 a year per household, about 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 $51 million a year, or $3,358 per resident.
How the cost breaks down
Crime
Cost a year
Per resident
Murder
$4.2 million
$278
Rape
$490,000
$32
Robbery
$1.2 million
$82
Assault
$2.8 million
$186
Burglary
$560,000
$37
Theft
$1.0 million
$68
Vehicle theft
$3.8 million
$249
Arson
$170,000
$11
Vandalism
$1.1 million
$73
Total
$15 million
$1,016
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 White Center 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
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 White Center, WA average a SchoolGrade of F: 27% of students test proficient, against 28% projected for schools like them. Overall, they meet expectations. See schools in White Center on SchoolGrade
