Huntington Beach is a city of 192,000 in Orange County, about 30 miles southeast of downtown Los Angeles · Updated November 2026
How common is violent crime in Huntington Beach?
Violent crime in Huntington Beach sits near the national middle: an A-, with more violent crime than the neighborhoods where 54% of Americans live. Assaults make up 88% of it, and most of those are simple assaults, which involve no weapon and no serious injury.
A-
Violent crime CrimeGrade™
Safety score 844 of 1,000About as much violent crime as the typical US neighborhoodi What this means
46% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more violent crime than Huntington Beach as a whole, and 54% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a violent crime safety score of 860, a CrimeGrade™ of A. Huntington Beach scores 844.
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 Huntington Beach, CA at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in Huntington Beach, 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 Huntington Beach
Aggravated assault runs low. Huntington Beach has 1.2 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 Huntington Beach
Every part of Huntington Beach where people live grades A or B for violent crime on the national scale. Violent crime grades across Huntington Beach run from A to B.
100%
A or B 100%
Share of residents, by the violent crime CrimeGrade™ of the area they live in.
1Bolsa Chica-Heil, northwestClose to the rest of Huntington Beach on most crimes.A870
2Adams, eastClose to the rest of Huntington Beach on most crimes.A863
3Downtown Huntington Beach, southAggravated assaults run about 50% higher here than in the rest of Huntington Beach.A-828
4Garfield & Yorktown, centralClose to the rest of Huntington Beach on most crimes.A-823
5Newland, northeastClose to the rest of Huntington Beach on most crimes.A-800
6Oak View, Washington & Goldenwest, northAggravated assaults run about 40% higher here than in the rest of Huntington Beach.A-780
Neighborhood areas of Huntington Beach, 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.
Is violent crime going up in Huntington Beach?
Reported violent crime in Huntington Beach peaked in 2021 and has fallen 23% since, back near its 2019 level. Murders, rapes, robberies and aggravated assaults went from about 1.9 to 2.0 a year per 1,000 residents (US: 3.7). Violent crime changed little from 2023 to 2024.
Violent crime, change since 2019
Huntington BeachUnited States
Source: crime reports to the FBI from the police department that serves Huntington Beach. The charts follow crimes per resident.
Data table
Year
Violent, Huntington Beach
Violent, US
2016
-7%
+4%
2017
+19%
+4%
2018
+11%
+0%
2019
+0%
+0%
2020
+28%
+4%
2021
+37%
+6%
2022
+31%
+5%
2023
+11%
+2%
2024
+6%
-4%
Violent crime rates and types in Huntington Beach
CrimeGrade™ estimates Huntington Beach has about 7.0 reported violent crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 48% less than the US as a whole and 42% less than California.
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 Huntington Beach, about 88% of the total. Murder and rape are far rarer, but they account for 41% of the cost of violent crime here.
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 Huntington Beach and nearby cities
Huntington Beach has less violent crime than 7 of its 10 nearest cities.
Nearest first, with each place's distance from Huntington Beach. 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, Huntington Beach is safer than 73% of them.
Density, walkability and transit in Huntington Beach
Among the traits that tend to go with violent crime, one sets Huntington Beach apart: it has 49% of its residents in dense blocks, against 24% nationally. Places like that tend to report more robbery, and it runs high here.
Residents in dense blocksBlocks of 10,000 or more people per square mile. Dense neighborhoods tend to report more robbery.49% of residentsUS: 24%Higher 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 assault. 72% of residents here live in car-dependent areas.C- (26 of 100)US: 21Higher than for 74% of US city residents
Transit serviceBuses and trains an hour at the evening rush. Places with busy transit tend to report more robbery. BestNeighborhood's Transit Grade for Huntington Beach: D+ (24 of 100).4 trips an hourUS: noneHigher than for 66% of US city residents
Show all 4
JobsJobs draw daytime crowds. Places with many jobs tend to report more robbery.38 for every 100 residentsUS: 45Lower than for 56% 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 Huntington Beach
Counting the pain and suffering of victims, violent crime costs Huntington Beach about $121 million a year, or $628 per resident. The costs that reach a bill, such as medical care, lost work and the justice system, come to about $27 million, or $142 per resident.
Billed cost of violent crime per resident, per year
How the cost breaks down
Pain and suffering are about 77% of that full cost.
Crime
Cost a year
Per resident
Murder
$7.1 million
$37
Rape
$3.9 million
$21
Robbery
$2.9 million
$15
Assault
$13 million
$69
Total
$27 million
$142
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.
