Pittsburgh, PA Crime Map

Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions About Pittsburgh Crime

Is Pittsburgh safe?

Pittsburgh earns an overall crime grade of C- — a moderate risk rating based on analysis of all 107 neighborhoods. The good news: 63% of neighborhoods score in the A or B range, meaning nearly two-thirds of the city is considered relatively safe. Another 13.1% fall in the C range, while 24% of neighborhoods — roughly 1 in 4 — carry D or F grades, signaling elevated concern. Neighborhoods like Bluff (A+), Lincoln Place (A+), and Brookline (A) represent the safer end of the spectrum. On the other end, Homewood West, Middle Hill, Northview Heights, Bedford Dwellings, and Crawford-Roberts all carry F grades and account for a disproportionate share of serious incidents. As with any metro area of 1.7 million people, safety in Pittsburgh is highly neighborhood-dependent — knowing which grade your area carries makes a meaningful difference.

What is the crime rate in Pittsburgh?

Pittsburgh's crime landscape breaks down clearly across its 107 analyzed neighborhoods: 40.2% earn a Grade A (43 neighborhoods), 22.4% earn a Grade B (24 neighborhoods), 13.1% a Grade C (14 neighborhoods), 17.8% a Grade D (19 neighborhoods), and 6.5% — or 7 neighborhoods — earn an F. That means the safest tier (A+B) covers 63 neighborhoods, while the highest-risk tier (D+F) covers 26. Property crime, including burglary and vehicle theft, tends to drive volume across mid-tier neighborhoods, while violent crime is more concentrated in F-rated areas like Northview Heights and Bedford Dwellings. Pittsburgh's poverty rate of 19.7% and unemployment rate of 5.4% — both above national medians — correlate with the crime concentration seen in lower-income districts. The city's median household income of $50,536 masks wide variation: Bon Air residents earn a median of $101,172 and hold an A+ grade, while some F-rated neighborhoods sit well below the city average.

What are the safest neighborhoods in Pittsburgh?

Five Pittsburgh neighborhoods hold the top grade of A+, making them the safest in the city by our analysis:

• Bluff — A+ grade, population 5,409, median income $21,979. Notably safe despite a lower income level, demonstrating that income alone doesn't determine safety.
• Lincoln Place — A+ grade, population 3,201, median income $68,816. A residential enclave on the city's southeastern edge with consistently low crime.
• Bon Air — A+ grade, population 811, median income $101,172. The highest-income neighborhood among the A+ tier.
• Ridgemont — A+ grade, population 513, median income $46,882. A smaller community with strong safety metrics.
• Overbrook — A+ grade, population 3,759, median income $68,603. Consistently low incident rates across crime categories.

Just behind them, Point Breeze (A) with a median income of $128,528 and Regent Square (A) at $99,426 round out the upper tier. Brookline (A) is particularly notable — with a population of 13,079, it's the largest neighborhood in the top-10 safest list, suggesting that safety at scale is achievable in Pittsburgh.

Which Pittsburgh neighborhoods have the highest crime?

Seven neighborhoods received an F grade — the lowest possible safety rating — accounting for 6.5% of all neighborhoods analyzed. The most frequently cited high-crime areas include Homewood West, Middle Hill, Northview Heights, Bedford Dwellings, and Crawford-Roberts. These neighborhoods tend to share structural challenges: higher poverty concentrations, lower median incomes, and limited economic mobility. An additional 19 neighborhoods (17.8%) carry D grades, meaning nearly a quarter of Pittsburgh's neighborhoods fall into the elevated-risk category. If you're evaluating where to live or visit, cross-referencing a neighborhood's grade with its specific crime type breakdown — property vs. violent — gives a more complete picture than a single score alone.

Is Pittsburgh a good place to live?

Pittsburgh offers a genuinely mixed picture. On the positive side, 63% of its 107 neighborhoods earn A or B safety grades, the median home value is just $134,394 (well below most major metros), and median rent sits at $984/month — making it one of the more affordable large cities in the Northeast. Neighborhoods like Lincoln Place (A+), Regent Square (A), and Brookline (A) offer strong safety grades alongside reasonable cost of living. The challenges are real too: a poverty rate of 19.7% is notably high, and 24% of neighborhoods carry D or F grades. The city's population density of 2,100 per square mile is moderate, and its unemployment rate of 5.4% sits slightly above the national average. For buyers and renters doing neighborhood-level research, Pittsburgh rewards due diligence — the gap between its safest and highest-crime areas is significant, and choosing the right neighborhood can mean the difference between an A+ and an F rating.

How does Pittsburgh's crime compare across income levels?

The data from Pittsburgh's 107 neighborhoods reveals a nuanced relationship between income and safety. The highest-income neighborhoods in the top-10 safest list — South Shore ($168,035 median income, Grade A), Point Breeze ($128,528, Grade A), and Bon Air ($101,172, Grade A+) — do tend to correlate safety with wealth. However, Bluff earns an A+ grade with a median income of just $21,979, the lowest among the top-10 safest neighborhoods, demonstrating that community factors beyond income influence crime outcomes. Conversely, F-rated neighborhoods generally fall below the city's $50,536 median household income, reflecting the structural link between economic distress and crime concentration. Pittsburgh's overall poverty rate of 19.7% is a key driver of its C- citywide grade — addressing concentrated poverty in areas like Northview Heights and Bedford Dwellings remains central to any long-term safety improvement strategy.