Rockford, IL Crime Map

Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions: Rockford, IL Crime & Safety

Is Rockford, IL safe in 2026?

By the numbers, Rockford leans toward safe. Of the 95 neighborhoods analyzed, 61.1% earned an A grade and 25.3% earned a B grade — meaning 86% of the city falls into the broadly safe category. Only 3.2% of neighborhoods (three areas) received a D grade, and zero neighborhoods received an F. The city-wide safety rating is a B, while the overall crime grade for Rockford as a whole is a C, reflecting that concentrated crime in a small number of areas pulls the citywide average down even though most residential neighborhoods are low-crime. Areas like Jefferson Ridge, Spring Lake, and Tower Hill Estates hold A+ ratings, while Riverview and Coronado Haskell represent the higher-crime end of the spectrum at D- and D respectively.

What is the crime rate in Rockford, IL?

Rockford's crime profile is best understood through its neighborhood grade distribution rather than a single number. Across 95 analyzed neighborhoods: 58 neighborhoods (61.1%) grade A, 24 neighborhoods (25.3%) grade B, 10 neighborhoods (10.5%) grade C, 3 neighborhoods (3.2%) grade D, and 0 neighborhoods grade F. The combined A+B share of 86% means the vast majority of Rockford residents live in areas with relatively low crime. The combined D+F share is just 3%, concentrated in areas such as Riverview (D-), Coronado Haskell (D), and ORCHiD 3rd Union College (D+). Rockford's overall crime grade of C is influenced by socioeconomic factors including a 21.8% poverty rate and 9.6% unemployment rate, both of which correlate with elevated crime in specific pockets of the city.

What are the safest neighborhoods in Rockford?

Ten neighborhoods earned the top rating of A+ in the 2026 analysis. These include Jefferson Ridge (median income: $89,998), Maplewood ($103,081), CMC ($89,990), Spring Lake ($108,416), Tower Hill Estates ($117,149), Palomino ($111,790), Nottingham Manor ($114,453), Calvin Park Boulevard ($92,987), Tullocks Woods ($111,342), and Cinnamon Lane ($103,336). A clear pattern emerges: every A+ neighborhood carries a median household income well above the city median of $44,771, ranging from roughly $90,000 to over $117,000. These neighborhoods also tend to be smaller, lower-density communities. If minimizing crime exposure is a top priority, any of these ten areas represent the strongest options in Rockford.

Which neighborhoods in Rockford have higher crime?

Three neighborhoods received a D grade or lower, placing them in the highest-crime tier among the 95 areas studied. Riverview holds the lowest rating at D-, followed by Coronado Haskell at D and ORCHiD 3rd Union College at D+. Two additional neighborhoods — Central Park and Take It Back — grade at C, meaning they are below average but not in the highest-risk tier. Together, D and F grades account for just 3.2% of all analyzed neighborhoods, which underscores that elevated crime is geographically concentrated rather than spread across the city. Residents and prospective movers should use the interactive crime map to review incident patterns at the block level within these areas.

Is Rockford a good place to live?

Rockford offers a compelling affordability case: the median home value is $94,448 and median rent is $784/month, both significantly below national averages. For buyers or renters on a budget, that combination is rare in a city of 280,337 people. The trade-off is a citywide overall crime grade of C and economic headwinds — a 21.8% poverty rate and 9.6% unemployment rate are notably above national norms. However, because 86% of neighborhoods grade A or B, a careful neighborhood selection largely neutralizes the citywide crime concern. Households targeting areas like Spring Lake (A+, median income $108,416) or Calvin Park Boulevard (A+, median income $92,987) can access safe, stable communities at a fraction of what comparable safety would cost in larger Illinois metros. The key is using neighborhood-level data — not city averages — to guide the decision.

How does Rockford's crime compare across its neighborhoods?

The spread between Rockford's safest and highest-crime neighborhoods is stark. At the top, A+ neighborhoods like Tower Hill Estates and Nottingham Manor report median incomes above $114,000 and carry the lowest crime exposure in the city. At the bottom, Riverview (D-) and Coronado Haskell (D) represent conditions that diverge sharply from the city norm. Importantly, 10 out of 95 neighborhoods (10.5%) grade C — a middle tier that is neither high-crime nor among the city's safest. This means roughly one in ten Rockford neighborhoods sits in a transitional zone worth monitoring. The overall picture is a city where crime is highly uneven: the majority of the geographic footprint is safe (86% A+B), but a small cluster of neighborhoods accounts for a disproportionate share of incidents, which is why the citywide overall grade of C diverges from the neighborhood-level safety rating of B.