Lowell, MA Crime Map

Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions: Lowell, MA Crime & Safety

Is Lowell, MA safe?

By the numbers, Lowell holds up reasonably well. Of the 11 neighborhoods analyzed for 2026, 73% earned a combined A or B safety grade — meaning nearly three out of four neighborhoods are classified as safe. Two neighborhoods, Belvidere (Grade A) and South Lowell (Grade A-), sit at the top of the safety spectrum. Six additional neighborhoods — including Centralville, Pawtucketville, Highlands, Sacred Heart, Back Central, and Downtown Lowell — all earned B-range grades. Not a single neighborhood in Lowell received a D or F grade, which is a meaningful data point. The city-wide safety rating lands at Safe (B), though the overall crime grade of D+ reflects that crime is not evenly distributed and some pockets require more caution than others.

What is the crime rate in Lowell compared to its neighborhoods?

Lowell's overall crime grade is D+, but that city-wide figure masks significant variation at the neighborhood level. When you break it down, 18.2% of neighborhoods (2 out of 11) earned an A grade, and 54.5% (6 out of 11) earned a B grade. The remaining 27.3% (3 neighborhoods) landed in the C range — specifically The Acre (C), Lower Highlands (C+), and Lower Belvidere (C+). No neighborhood scored below a C, which means the worst areas in Lowell are still in the moderate-risk tier, not the high-risk tier. The gap between the city-wide D+ and the neighborhood-level Safe (B) average suggests that crime is concentrated in specific corridors rather than spread uniformly across the city.

What are the safest neighborhoods in Lowell?

The five safest neighborhoods in Lowell for 2026, ranked by crime grade, are:

1. Belvidere — Grade A: Home to 12,272 residents with a median household income of $87,392, Belvidere is Lowell's top-rated neighborhood for safety.
2. South Lowell — Grade A-: A smaller community of 3,226 residents, South Lowell has the city's highest median income at $89,385 and closely trails Belvidere in safety performance.
3. Centralville — Grade B+: With 16,358 residents and a median income of $72,220, Centralville combines size and safety, making it one of the most practical choices for families.
4. Pawtucketville — Grade B+: Nearly identical in size to Centralville (16,319 residents), Pawtucketville posts a median income of $81,041 — the third highest among all analyzed neighborhoods.
5. Highlands — Grade B: The most populous neighborhood analyzed at 19,691 residents, Highlands earns a solid B with a median income of $77,389.

Collectively, the top five safest neighborhoods account for a substantial share of Lowell's 111,311 residents and all carry median incomes well above the city median of $62,196.

Which neighborhoods in Lowell have higher crime levels?

Three neighborhoods received C-range grades in the 2026 analysis: The Acre (C), Lower Belvidere (C+), and Lower Highlands (C+). Two additional neighborhoods — Back Central (B-) and Downtown Lowell (B-) — sit at the lower end of the B range and warrant awareness, particularly at night. It's worth noting that Lower Belvidere is a very small community of just 1,455 residents, so its grade reflects a concentrated area rather than a large swath of the city. Back Central, with a median income of $48,984, and Downtown Lowell, at $53,541, are the two neighborhoods with the lowest median incomes among those analyzed — a pattern consistent with the broader relationship between economic stress and crime risk seen in cities nationwide.

Is Lowell a good place to live in 2026?

For prospective residents weighing the data, Lowell offers a mixed but largely encouraging picture. The median home value of $285,539 and median rent of $1,229 make it one of the more affordable mid-size cities in Massachusetts. The median household income of $62,196 is functional, though the 17.3% poverty rate and 5.5% unemployment rate signal economic challenges that correlate with the crime concentrations seen in neighborhoods like The Acre and Lower Highlands. On the safety side, the fact that 73% of neighborhoods grade out at B or better — with zero neighborhoods receiving a D or F — means that informed neighborhood selection significantly changes the risk profile for residents. Families and professionals who prioritize safety tend to gravitate toward Belvidere, South Lowell, Pawtucketville, and Centralville, all of which combine strong safety grades with above-average household incomes.

How does neighborhood income correlate with safety grades in Lowell?

The data shows a clear pattern: higher-income neighborhoods consistently earn higher safety grades in Lowell. The two Grade A neighborhoods — Belvidere ($87,392 median income) and South Lowell ($89,385) — have the highest and second-highest median incomes in the city. The three C-grade areas — The Acre, Lower Belvidere ($57,709), and Lower Highlands ($68,846) — all fall below the median incomes of their B+ counterparts. The starkest contrast is between Back Central (B-, $48,984 median income) and Pawtucketville (B+, $81,041 median income) — two neighborhoods just one letter grade apart but separated by over $32,000 in median household income. This correlation doesn't mean lower-income neighborhoods are dangerous by definition, but it does reinforce that economic investment and safety outcomes tend to move together at the neighborhood level in Lowell.