Columbus, OH Crime Map

Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions About Columbus, OH Crime

Is Columbus, OH safe in 2026?

Columbus earns a city-wide safety rating of B (Safe) based on analysis of all 182 neighborhoods. Exactly 77% of neighborhoods score in the safe range — grades A or B — while only 10% fall into the higher-crime D or F tier. That means roughly 9 out of 10 Columbus neighborhoods present a manageable or low risk profile. Areas like Bluffsview (A+), Worthington Hills (A+), and Antrim (A+) anchor the safe end of the spectrum, while Mt. Vernon (F+) and King-Lincoln Bronzeville (F+) represent the two neighborhoods — just 1.1% of all analyzed areas — that earned failing grades. For most residents and visitors, Columbus is a livable, navigable city with clear pockets of elevated risk that a crime map can help you avoid.

What is the overall crime grade for Columbus?

Columbus receives an overall crime grade of C at the city level, which reflects the full urban footprint including its higher-density commercial and transitional corridors. At the neighborhood level, however, the picture is more nuanced: 50% of Columbus's 182 analyzed neighborhoods earn an A grade, and another 26.9% earn a B. Only 12.6% land at C, 9.3% at D, and 1.1% at F. The gap between the city-wide C and the neighborhood-level B safety rating reflects how concentrated crime is in a small number of areas — particularly Devon Triangle (D-), Eastgate (D-), Somerset (D-), and the two F-rated neighborhoods — rather than spread evenly across the city.

What are the safest neighborhoods in Columbus?

Ten Columbus neighborhoods hold the highest possible A+ safety grade. Leading the list are Olentangy Highlands (median income: $199,194), Stilson East ($193,479), Hayden Falls Village ($189,373), Hickory Bluff Farms ($178,788), and Worthington Hills ($175,610). Also earning A+ ratings are Antrim, Northbridge, Bluffsview, Deer Creek, and Ohio State. Notably, Ohio State stands out: despite a median household income of just $24,043 — far below the city median of $54,902 — it still achieves an A+ grade, demonstrating that safety grades reflect crime data directly rather than income alone. Combined, these ten neighborhoods span a wide range of population sizes, from Hayden Falls Village (94 residents) to Ohio State (10,719 residents), showing that top safety ratings are achievable at any scale.

Which Columbus neighborhoods have the highest crime?

Two neighborhoods earned an F+ grade in the 2026 analysis: Mt. Vernon and King-Lincoln Bronzeville. These represent just 1.1% of the 182 neighborhoods studied. The next tier down — grade D- — includes Devon Triangle, Eastgate, and Somerset, accounting for another 9.3% of neighborhoods. Together, D and F neighborhoods make up 10% of Columbus's analyzed areas. If you are evaluating housing or planning routes through Columbus, the interactive crime map lets you filter by neighborhood grade so you can visualize these concentrations relative to your destination.

How does Columbus compare to other large U.S. cities?

With 77% of neighborhoods graded A or B and only 10% graded D or F, Columbus compares favorably to many large American metros of similar size. The city's population of 1,547,860 and population density of 1,560 people per square mile place it in a mid-density category where crime tends to be more neighborhood-specific than pervasive. The 19.1% poverty rate and 5.4% unemployment rate are factors that correlate with crime in certain corridors, but the fact that half of all neighborhoods still earn an A grade suggests Columbus has successfully maintained safety in a majority of its residential areas despite those economic headwinds.

Is Columbus a good place to live based on crime data?

The crime data supports Columbus as a viable place to live for most households. A full 50% of its 182 neighborhoods score an A and another 26.9% score a B, meaning the average resident has a strong probability of living in a low-crime area. The city's median home value of $159,007 and median rent of $989 make it relatively affordable compared to coastal metros, and many of the safest neighborhoods — including Deer Creek (median income: $91,788, grade A+) — are accessible to middle-income households rather than exclusively high-income ones. The key is using neighborhood-level data: the city-wide C grade is pulled down by a concentrated set of higher-crime areas, while the majority of Columbus zip codes and neighborhoods offer a B or better safety environment.

How are Columbus neighborhood safety grades calculated?

Neighborhood grades on this page are derived from crime incident data mapped to each of Columbus's 182 analyzed neighborhoods and converted into letter grades — A through F — so they are easy to compare at a glance without interpreting raw numbers. An A or A+ grade indicates crime rates well below the national baseline for similarly sized urban areas; a C grade is roughly average; and D or F grades signal crime rates meaningfully above average. Grades account for the residential population of each neighborhood, which is why a smaller area like Northbridge (362 residents, A+) can be directly compared to a larger one like Ohio State (10,719 residents, A+). The overall city grade of C represents a population-weighted aggregate across all neighborhoods.