San Mateo, CA Crime Map

Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions About San Mateo Crime & Safety

Is San Mateo safe?

San Mateo earns a city-wide safety rating of Very Safe (A) based on an analysis of 34 neighborhoods. An impressive 94% of neighborhoods fall into the top two safety tiers — grade A or grade B — meaning the overwhelming majority of the city is considered safe by objective crime metrics. Specifically, 23 neighborhoods (67.6%) received an A grade, and another 9 neighborhoods (26.5%) received a B grade. Communities like Dolphin Bay, Sea Colony, The Islands, Harbor Side, and Baywood Park all earned the highest possible rating of A+, reflecting very low crime activity. Only one neighborhood received a D grade (Vintage Park) and none received an F, which underscores how rare high-crime pockets are in this city. For context, San Mateo's overall city-level grade is a C, reflecting that while most neighborhoods are very safe, a small number of higher-traffic commercial areas bring the aggregate score down slightly.

What is the crime rate in San Mateo?

Across 34 analyzed neighborhoods, 67.6% earned an A grade and 26.5% earned a B grade, putting 94% of San Mateo in the safe category. At the other end of the spectrum, only 2.9% of neighborhoods (one area) received a D grade — Vintage Park — and another 2.9% received a C grade (Metro Center). No neighborhood in San Mateo received an F. This distribution is notably favorable compared to many Bay Area cities of similar size and density. Property-related incidents — such as vehicle break-ins and theft — tend to be the most common crime types citywide, and they are concentrated in a handful of neighborhoods rather than spread evenly. Neighborhoods like Downtown San Mateo (B-) and Fiesta Gardens (B-) see slightly more activity than quieter residential areas, largely due to higher foot traffic and commercial density.

What are the safest neighborhoods in San Mateo?

The five safest neighborhoods in San Mateo all hold an A+ safety grade: Dolphin Bay, Sea Colony, The Islands, Harbor Side, and Baywood Park. These communities share several characteristics — lower population density, higher median household incomes (ranging from roughly $156,000 to over $214,000), and predominantly residential land use. Baywood Park, with a median household income of $214,081, is the most affluent of the group. Sea Colony and Harbor Side both report median incomes above $170,000. Just below the A+ tier, neighborhoods like San Mateo Highlands, San Mateo Park, Aragon, Parkside, and Bay Vista all earned straight A grades, with median incomes ranging from approximately $140,000 to $178,000. Together, these ten neighborhoods represent some of the safest residential pockets on the San Francisco Peninsula.

Which neighborhoods in San Mateo have higher crime?

Only a small fraction of San Mateo's 34 analyzed neighborhoods fall below a B grade. Vintage Park is the single neighborhood rated D+, making it the area with the highest relative crime activity in the city. Metro Center received a C grade, and both Downtown San Mateo and Fiesta Gardens received B- grades — still technically in the safe range but at the lower end. North Central earned a B+ grade, placing it solidly in the safe category despite being adjacent to more commercially active zones. It's worth noting that even the lowest-graded neighborhood in San Mateo (Vintage Park at D+) is not an F-rated area, and the city has zero F-grade neighborhoods. Higher crime in these areas tends to be property-crime-driven rather than violent, consistent with patterns seen in dense, commercially active urban corridors.

Is San Mateo a good place to live?

By nearly every measurable indicator, San Mateo ranks as an excellent place to live. The city's median household income of $126,102 is well above national averages, and its unemployment rate of just 4.5% reflects a stable local economy. The poverty rate of 7.8% is relatively low for a city of this size and density (3,297 residents per square mile). On the housing side, a median home value of $1,185,750 signals strong demand and long-term investment confidence, while a median rent of $2,658 reflects the premium placed on living in this part of the Bay Area. Safety-wise, with 94% of neighborhoods graded A or B and a city-wide safety rating of Very Safe (A), San Mateo consistently outperforms many comparable California cities. Families, professionals, and retirees alike tend to gravitate toward established neighborhoods like Aragon, San Mateo Park, Parkside, and Bay Vista for their combination of safety grades, community character, and proximity to amenities.

How does San Mateo's safety compare across its neighborhoods?

San Mateo shows a notably top-heavy safety distribution: 23 out of 34 neighborhoods (67.6%) earned an A grade, which is unusually high for a city with over 100,000 residents. The grade breakdown tells the story clearly — A grades: 67.6%, B grades: 26.5%, C grades: 2.9%, D grades: 2.9%, F grades: 0%. This means nearly 7 in 10 neighborhoods are in the highest safety tier. The combined A+B share of 94% leaves only 6% of neighborhoods in the C-or-below range. The safest cluster of neighborhoods — including Dolphin Bay, Sea Colony, The Islands, Harbor Side, and Baywood Park — are concentrated in the western and southern portions of the city near the bay, while areas with relatively more activity like Metro Center and Vintage Park tend to be closer to transit corridors and commercial zones. This geographic pattern is consistent with what crime researchers observe in most mid-size suburban cities.