Falls Church is a city of 58,900 in Fairfax County, about 7 miles west of downtown Washington · Updated November 2026
How common is violent crime in Falls Church?
Falls Church earns an A for violent crime, safer than the neighborhoods where 54% of Americans live. Assaults make up 93% of it, and most of those are simple assaults, which involve no weapon and no serious injury.
A
Violent crime CrimeGrade™
Safety score 874 of 1,000About as much violent crime as the typical US neighborhoodi What this means
54% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more violent crime than Falls Church as a whole, and 46% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a violent crime safety score of 860, a CrimeGrade™ of A. Falls Church scores 874.
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 violent crime than most US neighborhoods.
How to read the map: each area's color compares its violent crime with the people who spend time there, on one national scale, from green for the least to red for the most. Each area gets its own color, so a busy downtown or nightlife strip can show red while the homes around it stay green. The interactive maps load faster on a solid connection. Compare high speed internet in Falls Church, VA at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in Falls Church, 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 about violent crime in Falls Church
Robberies run high for a city with an A for violent crime. Falls Church has 0.59 robberies a year per 1,000 residents; for the typical resident of a US city graded A for violent crime, the figure is 0.14.
Aggravated assault runs low. Falls Church has 0.81 aggravated assaults a year per 1,000 residents, less than half the US rate of 2.6.
Where violent crime is lowest and highest in Falls Church
Every part of Falls Church where people live grades A or B for violent crime on the national scale. Violent crime grades across Falls Church run from A+ to B.
100%
A or B 100%
Share of residents, by the violent crime CrimeGrade™ of the area they live in.
1Madison Condominium, Hillwood-Buffalo Park & Larchmont Terrace, centralSimple assaults run at about half the rate in the rest of Falls Church.A+924
2Pimmit Hills, northwestSimple assaults run about 30% lower here than in the rest of Falls Church.A908
3Merrifield, southwestSimple assaults run about 30% lower here than in the rest of Falls Church.A908
Neighborhood areas of Falls Church, ranked by violent crime CrimeGrade™; beside each grade is its safety score, from 0 to 1,000 (higher is safer). Each one combines several of the smaller areas on the map.
Violent crime rates and types in Falls Church
CrimeGrade™ estimates Falls Church has about 11 reported violent crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 19% less than the US as a whole and close to Virginia.
All violent crime
Assaults
Robbery
Reported crimes a year, per 1,000 residents. Violent crime here includes simple assaults, which the FBI's violent crime rate leaves out.
Assault is the most common violent crime in Falls Church, about 93% of the total.
Each CrimeGrade™ here compares a violent crime with the people who spend time in an area, not only the people who live there. 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.
Violent crime in Falls Church and nearby cities
Falls Church has more violent crime than 7 of its 10 nearest cities. McLean and Woodburn have the least violent crime nearby.
Nearest first, with each place's distance from Falls Church. Beside each violent crime CrimeGrade™ is its safety score, from 0 to 1,000 (higher is safer).
Compared with cities of similar size and density, Falls Church is safer than 81% of them.
Among the traits that tend to go with violent crime, two set Falls Church apart: it has 21 buses and trains an hour at the evening rush, where most Americans have none nearby, and a Walk Grade of C+ (42 of 100) on BestNeighborhood, against 21 for the US as a whole. Places like that tend to report more robbery, and it runs high here.
Transit serviceBuses and trains an hour at the evening rush. Places with busy transit tend to report more robbery. BestNeighborhood's Transit Grade for Falls Church: D (13 of 100).21 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 assault.C+ (42 of 100)US: 21Higher than for 88% of US city residents
Residents in dense blocksBlocks of 10,000 or more people per square mile. Dense neighborhoods tend to report more robbery.50% of residentsUS: 24%Higher than for 83% of US city residents
Show all 4
JobsJobs draw daytime crowds. Places with many jobs tend to report more robbery.47 for every 100 residentsUS: 45Higher than for 58% 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 violent crime costs Falls Church
Counting the pain and suffering of victims, violent crime costs Falls Church about $26 million a year, or $447 per resident. The costs that reach a bill, such as medical care, lost work and the justice system, come to about $8.3 million, or $141 per resident.
Billed cost of violent crime per resident, per year
How the cost breaks down
Pain and suffering are about 68% of that full cost.
Crime
Cost a year
Per resident
Murder
$1.4 million
$23
Rape
$540,000
$9
Robbery
$1.1 million
$18
Assault
$5.3 million
$90
Total
$8.3 million
$141
How CrimeGrade™ works
The violent crime CrimeGrade™ covers murder, rape, robbery and assault, from A+ for the least crime to F for the most, on one scale for the whole country.
It weighs each violent crime against the people who spend time in an area, so a busy downtown is graded on its workers and visitors as well as its residents.
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.
