The Safest and Most Dangerous Places in Worcester, MA: Crime Maps and Statistics

B+

Overall Crime Grade™

Violent Crime Grade	C+
Property Crime Grade	B
Other Crime Grade	B+

Which crimes are included?

$206.6 million

Cost of Crime™ for Worcester, MA

In 2025, crime will cost $578 per household.

More cost data

On the map, green marks the parts of the Worcester area with the least crime overall and red marks the most. Each area is weighted by the type and severity of every offense, so a place with rare but serious violent crime can grade differently from one with frequent petty theft. The Interpreting the Crime Maps section below explains how to read the colors.

Is Worcester, MA Safe?

The B+ overall grade blends the violent, property, and other grades shown above into one measure, set against the average US city, where the Worcester area's combined rate is lower than the norm. Worcester sits in the 73rd percentile, ahead of 73% of cities and behind 27%. The grade covers only the Worcester area's official city boundaries. See the table below for nearby cities.

The overall crime rate in the Worcester area is 17.13 per 1,000 residents in a typical year. Residents generally consider the southeast part of the city the safest. Your chance of being a victim ranges from 1 in 43 in the central neighborhoods to 1 in 76 in the southeast.

Counting total incidents instead of per-capita rates, the central parts of Worcester, MA report the most crime, about 5,581 cases per year. The west part reports the fewest, around 528 per year.

The Cost of Crime™ in Worcester, MA

Across all crime types, the projected cost of crime in Worcester for 2025 is $206,602,901, about $226 per resident and $578 per household. That equals 0.5% of the median household income. These figures cover tangible costs, which include:

Criminal justice system costs (law enforcement, courts, and imprisonment): 60.1%
Direct costs to victims (damaged property, medical expenses, and lost wages): 27.6%
Lost economic contribution from offenders (time in prison or repeat offenses): 12.2%

How Much Does Crime Cost in Worcester Compared to Other Cities?

Worcester, MA:	$226
Provincetown, MA:	$798
East Sandwich, MA:	$119
Massachusetts:	$274
USA:	$464

The overall cost of crime per resident in Worcester is $226 per year, which is $238 less than the national average and $48 less than Massachusetts's state average. The comparison below uses cities similar to Worcester:

In Provincetown, MA, crime costs $798 per person, which is $572 more than in Worcester.
In East Sandwich, MA, crime costs $119 per person, which is $108 less than in Worcester

2025 Projected Cost by Type of Crime

The table below shows the total cost of crime to the residents of Worcester for the year 2025 along with the projected cost per resident.

Crime	Cost to Worcester	Cost per Worcester Resident
Murder	$21.9 million	$24
Rape/Sexual Assault	$28.1 million	$31
Robbery	$8.37 million	$9
Assault	$57.0 million	$63
Kidnapping	$3.64 million	$4
Vehicle Theft	$9.85 million	$11
Burglary	$10.5 million	$12
Theft	$34.1 million	$37
Arson	$1.01 million	$1
Vandalism	$20.9 million	$23
Animal Cruelty	$178,730	$0
Drug Crimes	$8.55 million	$9
Identity Theft	$2.38 million	$3
Total Cost of Crime	$206,602,901	$226

The Intangible Cost of Crime in Worcester, MA

The totals above count tangible costs only. Violent crime also carries a human cost, the pain and trauma borne by victims and their families, which research-based methods estimate so it can be compared across places. That intangible cost in Worcester totals $299,506,881 ($328 per resident), and all of it comes from violent crime rather than property loss. Added to the tangible costs, the full estimate reaches $506,109,782 ($555 per resident). All Cost of Crime figures come from scholarly research on the cost of crime. Read more about our methodology here.

Interpreting the Crime Maps

Crime rates on the map are measured per resident, so areas with heavy visitor traffic can read high because crime follows crowds, even where few people live. The central part of the city holds more retail establishments, which lifts recorded crime around those blocks. A red area does not always mean the neighborhood is unsafe for residents.

Airports, parks, and transit hubs create the same effect. Major airports, of which the Worcester area has 1, draw large crowds with few residents nearby, so they read as high-crime spots. Parks and recreational areas, of which the Worcester area has 16, do the same, and of the Worcester area's 912,273 residents few live beside them. Before assuming an area is unsafe, weigh both the per-capita rate and the total number of incidents, and note what sits nearby.

The interactive maps load faster on a strong connection. Compare high speed internet in Worcester, MA at ISP Reports.

Worcester Crime Breakdown

The tables below show which crimes are used to calculate the Crime Grades above. All crime rates are shown as the number of crimes per 1,000 Worcester residents in a standard year.

Violent Crime Rates

Crime Type	Crime Rate
Assault	2.177
Robbery	0.2917
Rape	0.5085
Murder	0.0128
Total Violent Crime	2.990 (C+)

Property Crime Rates

Crime Type	Crime Rate
Theft	7.215
Vehicle Theft	0.6971
Burglary	1.274
Arson	0.0458
Total Property Crime	9.231 (B)

Other Crime Rates

Crime Type	Crime Rate
Kidnapping	0.0657
Drug Crimes	1.267
Vandalism	3.213
Identity Theft	0.3369
Animal Cruelty	0.0265
Total "Other" Rate	4.910 (B+)

Individual Worcester Crime Maps & Stats

Crime Maps and Rates for Nearby Cities

Compared to surrounding cities, the rate of crime in the Worcester area is higher. The table below shows Crime Grades for cities close to the Worcester area.

Nearby City	Overall Crime Grade	Violent Crime Grade	Property Crime Grade
Cherry Valley, MA	A-	B	B+
Auburn, MA	B	C+	B-
Shrewsbury, MA	A	A-	A-
Holden, MA	A	A	A-
Millbury, MA	B+	B+	B
Leicester, MA	A	A-	A-
North Grafton, MA	A	B-	A-
Boylston, MA	A+	A	A
Morningdale, MA	A+	A+	A
Paxton, MA	A+	A+	A+

Crime Maps and Rates for City with Similar Populations

Worcester is lower versus other cities of the same size for crime. The table below compares crime in cities with comparable overall population in the city‘s boundaries.

Similar City	Overall Crime Grade	Violent Crime Grade	Property Crime Grade
Omaha, NE	C	B-	B-
Bridgeport, CT	C	A	A
Fresno, CA	D+	D	D
Tulsa, OK	D	D+	D+
Honolulu, HI	B-	B+	B+
Greenville, SC	D	D+	D+
Albuquerque, NM	D-	F	F
Tucson, AZ	D+	D	D
Bakersfield, CA	D+	D	D
Albany, NY	B-	C	C

Considering only the crime rate, the Worcester area is safer than the Massachusetts state average and safer than the national average.

Safety and school performance are separate topics, but both shape moving decisions. Using SchoolGrade data, schools in Worcester, MA average SchoolGrade of B-, with 41% actual proficiency versus 40% projected; overall, schools meet expectations. See Worcester schools on SchoolGrade

About the Data

CrimeGrade.org provides highly detailed and accurate crime data, used by insurance companies, home security firms, and other industries. Our data is available for licensing—learn more about our USA crime data and licensing.

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All maps and statistics above are projections, not certainties, and provided without guarantee free of charge. Verify all info before making any decisions based on the data.