The Safest and Most Dangerous Places in Yellowstone County, MT: Crime Maps and Statistics

Crime per Capita in Yellowstone County

This overview combines violent, property, and other offenses into a single grade for Yellowstone County. The dedicated violent crime and property crime pages go deeper on each. The map below shows the overall crime rate per 1,000 residents.

 

Yellowstone County, MT Map of Crime Rates
Click the map to explore
A+ B C D F
Safest Highest crime
Colorblind friendly off

C+

Overall Crime Grade™

C
C
Other Crime Grade
B

$75.4 million

Cost of Crime™ for Yellowstone County, MT

In 2025, crime will cost $1,041 per household.

More cost data

On the map, green marks the parts of Yellowstone County 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 Yellowstone County, MT Safe?

The C+ overall grade blends the violent, property, and other grades shown above into one measure, set against the average US county, where Yellowstone County's combined rate is about the same as the norm. Yellowstone County sits in the 49th percentile, ahead of 49% of counties and behind 51%. The grade covers only Yellowstone County's official city boundaries. See the table below for nearby counties.

The overall crime rate in Yellowstone County is 30.85 per 1,000 residents in a typical year. Residents generally consider the northwest part of the county the safest. Your chance of being a victim ranges from 1 in 20 in the central areas to 1 in 71 in the northwest.

Counting total incidents instead of per-capita rates, the central parts of Yellowstone County, MT report the most crime, about 1,800 cases per year. The southeast part reports the fewest, around 39 per year.

The Cost of Crime™ in Yellowstone County, MT

Across all crime types, the projected cost of crime in Yellowstone County for 2025 is $75,358,780, about $435 per resident and $1,041 per household. That equals 1.0% of the median household income. These figures cover tangible costs, which include:
  1. Criminal justice system costs (law enforcement, courts, and imprisonment): 58.2%
  2. Direct costs to victims (damaged property, medical expenses, and lost wages): 29.5%
  3. Lost economic contribution from offenders (time in prison or repeat offenses): 12.3%

How Much Does Crime Cost in Yellowstone County Compared to Other Counties?

Yellowstone County, MT: $435
Missoula County, MT: $588
Flathead County, MT: $323
Montana: $495
USA: $464

The overall cost of crime per resident in Yellowstone County is $435 per year, which is $29 less than the national average and $60 less than Montana's state average. The comparison below uses counties similar to Yellowstone County:
  • In Missoula County, MT, crime costs $588 per person, which is $153 more than in Yellowstone County.
  • In Flathead County, MT, crime costs $323 per person, which is $112 less than in Yellowstone County

2025 Projected Cost by Type of Crime

The table below shows the total cost of crime to the residents of Yellowstone County for the year 2025 along with the projected cost per resident.
Crime
Cost to Yellowstone County
Cost per Yellowstone County Resident
Murder
$12.6 million
$73
Rape/Sexual Assault
$11.7 million
$68
Robbery
$989,477
$6
Assault
$14.3 million
$83
Kidnapping
$3.20 million
$18
Vehicle Theft
$6.52 million
$38
Burglary
$2.68 million
$15
Theft
$12.3 million
$71
Arson
$512,458
$3
Vandalism
$6.77 million
$39
Animal Cruelty
$128,553
$1
Drug Crimes
$3.08 million
$18
Identity Theft
$483,437
$3
Total Cost of Crime
$75,358,780
$435

The Intangible Cost of Crime in Yellowstone County, MT

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 Yellowstone County totals $143,753,175 ($829 per resident), and all of it comes from violent crime rather than property loss. Added to the tangible costs, the full estimate reaches $219,111,955 ($1,264 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 county 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 draw large crowds with few residents nearby, so they read as high-crime spots. Parks and recreational areas, of which Yellowstone County has 21, do the same, and of Yellowstone County's 173,330 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 Yellowstone County, MT at ISP Reports.

Yellowstone County 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 Yellowstone County residents in a standard year.

Violent Crime Rates

Crime Type
Crime Rate
Assault
2.883
Robbery
0.1815
Rape
1.116
Murder
0.0386
Total Violent Crime
4.219 (C)
 
 

 


Property Crime Rates

Crime Type
Crime Rate
Theft
13.74
Vehicle Theft
2.429
Burglary
1.704
Arson
0.1224
Total Property Crime
18.00 (C)
 
 

 


Other Crime Rates

Crime Type
Crime Rate
Kidnapping
0.3043
Drug Crimes
2.401
Vandalism
5.467
Identity Theft
0.3604
Animal Cruelty
0.1003
Total "Other" Rate
8.633 (B)

 


Crime Maps and Rates for Nearby Counties

Compared to surrounding counties, the rate of crime in Yellowstone County is lower. The table below shows Crime Grades for counties close to Yellowstone County.

Nearby County
Overall Crime Grade
Violent Crime Grade
Property Crime Grade
C
D-
C
D+
D+
D
B
A
A+
F
D-
F
C
C+
C+
D-
D-
D-
D-
F
D-
C-
D+
D+
C
C
C-
C+
D-
B+

Crime Maps and Rates for County with Similar Populations

Yellowstone County is higher versus other counties of the same size for crime. The table below compares crime in counties with comparable overall population in the county‘s boundaries.

Similar County
Overall Crime Grade
Violent Crime Grade
Property Crime Grade
D-
D-
D-
B-
A+
A+
C
C
C
C+
B-
B-
A-
A+
A+
C+
A
A
B+
A-
A-
B-
C-
C-
A+
A+
A+
A
B+
B+

Considering only the crime rate, Yellowstone County is safer than the Montana state average and as safe as the national average.

Safety and school performance are separate topics, but both shape moving decisions. Using SchoolGrade data, schools in Yellowstone County, MT average SchoolGrade of C, with 37% actual proficiency versus 40% projected; overall, schools don't meet expectations. See Yellowstone County 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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Home Security

A crime occurs on average every 1 hour 38 minutes in Yellowstone County. Want to protect your home?

Home Security Companies in Yellowstone County, MT

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.