King County, WA Violent Crime Rates and Maps

Overall Crime Grade™

Violent Crime Grade	C-
Property Crime Grade	F
Other Crime Grade	C

Which crimes are included?

$942.9 million

Cost of Crime™ for King County, WA

In 2025, violent crime will cost $1,014 per household.

More cost data

On the map, green marks the parts of King County with the least violent crime and red marks the most, weighted by the type and severity of each offense. Violent crime concentrates where people gather after dark, near nightlife, bars, and transit, more than on residential streets. The Interpreting the Crime Maps section below explains how to read those hot spots.

The C- grade reflects how often assault, robbery, rape, and murder occur in King County against the average US county, where the rate is slightly higher than the norm. King County sits in the 35th percentile for violent-crime safety, ahead of 35% of counties and behind 65%. The grade covers only King County's official city boundaries. See the table below for nearby counties.

The violent crime rate in King County is 4.479 per 1,000 residents in a typical year. Residents generally consider the southeast part of the county the safest. Your chance of being a victim ranges from 1 in 111 in the west areas to 1 in 343 in the southeast.

Counting total incidents instead of per-capita rates, the west parts of King County, WA report the most violent crime, about 2,340 cases per year. The southwest part reports the fewest, around 599 per year.

The Cost of Crime™ in King County, WA

The tangible cost of violent crime in King County is projected at $942,865,997 for 2025, about $401 per resident and $1,014 per household. That equals 0.6% of the median household income, and it counts only the bills that can be totaled: emergency care, lost wages, and the justice response. The larger cost, the harm to victims, comes later on this page. These tangible costs split into:

Criminal justice system costs (law enforcement, courts, and imprisonment): 39.7%
Direct costs to victims (damaged property, medical expenses, and lost wages): 46.8%
Lost economic contribution from offenders (time in prison or repeat offenses): 13.4%

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

King County, WA:	$401
Grant County, WA:	$242
Snohomish County, WA:	$125
Washington:	$247
USA:	$258

The tangible cost of violent crime is $401 per resident each year in King County, which is $143 more than the national average and $154 more than Washington's state average. The comparison below uses counties similar to King County:

In Grant County, WA, crime costs $242 per person, which is $160 less than in King County.
In Snohomish County, WA, crime costs $125 per person, which is $276 less than in King County

2025 Projected Violent Crime Cost by Type

The table below breaks the violent-crime total into its four offenses for King County, with the projected cost per resident.

Crime	Cost to King County	Cost per King County Resident
Murder	$585.8 million	$249
Rape/Sexual Assault	$109.0 million	$46
Robbery	$73.8 million	$31
Assault	$174.3 million	$74
Total Cost of Violent Crime	$942,865,997	$401

The Human Cost of Violent Crime in King County, WA

Much of what violent crime costs never reaches a bill. Pain, trauma, and lost quality of life for victims and their families typically outweigh the medical and legal totals above. Research-based methods put a figure on that harm so it can be compared across places. By those methods, the human cost of violent crime in King County totals $4,482,801,124 ($1,908 per resident). Added to the tangible costs, the full estimate reaches $5,425,667,121 ($2,309 per resident). This human toll is what sets violent crime apart from property crime in King County, WA, where the loss is mostly replaceable property. All Cost of Crime figures come from scholarly research on the cost of crime. Read more about our methodology here.

Interpreting the Violent Crime Maps

Violent crime rates are measured per resident, so places packed with visitors after dark read high even when few people live there. Bars, clubs, event venues, and transit hubs draw the crowds where assaults and robberies cluster. How strongly this shows on the map depends on the commercial base; the west part of the county has more retail establishments. A red block full of bars and venues does not mean the homes around it are dangerous.

Transit stations show the same effect: large moving crowds, few residents, so per-capita violent crime reads high. Major airports, of which King County has 1, are the extreme case. Before judging a residential street, weigh both the per-capita rate and the total count of incidents, and note what draws crowds nearby.

The interactive maps load faster on a solid connection. Compare high speed internet in King County, WA at ISP Reports.

King County Violent Crime Breakdown

The table below shows which offenses feed the Violent Crime Grade above, each as crimes per 1,000 King County residents in a standard year.

Crime Type	Crime Rate
Assault	2.583
Robbery	0.9983
Rape	0.7654
Murder	0.1327
Total Violent Crime	4.479 (C-)

Individual King County Crime Maps & Stats

Crime Maps and Rates for Nearby Counties

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

Nearby County	Overall Crime Grade	Violent Crime Grade	Property Crime Grade
Kitsap County, WA	D-	C+	D-
Snohomish County, WA	D	B	D-
Pierce County, WA	D-	D+	F
Mason County, WA	C-	D+	C-
Jefferson County, WA	D-	D	D-
Thurston County, WA	D+	B-	D-
Clallam County, WA	C	C+	D+
Kittitas County, WA	D	B	D-
Chelan County, WA	D	C+	D-
Douglas County, WA	C-	B	D+

Crime Maps and Rates for County with Similar Populations

King County is similar versus other counties of the same size for violent 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
San Diego County, CA	C	C-	C-
Los Angeles County, CA	C-	D	D
Orange County, CA	B-	C	C
Maricopa County, AZ	B-	C+	C+
Harris County, TX	D	D	D
Cook County, IL	C	C+	C+
Miami-Dade County, FL	A-	B	B
Mobile County, AL	C	D	D
Broome County, NY	B-	D+	D+
Bronx County, NY	B-	C-	C-

Considering only the violent crime rate, King County is less safe than the Washington state average and less safe than the national average.

About the Data

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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.