Lawrence, KS Crime Map

Lawrence, KS Safety Overview: A City That Earns Its Grades

With a population of 96,694 and an overall crime grade of B, Lawrence, Kansas stands out as one of the safer mid-sized cities in the region — and the neighborhood-level data makes that case even more convincingly. Across 35 analyzed neighborhoods, 91.4% earned an A grade, while the remaining 8.6% landed at B. Not a single neighborhood scored C, D, or F. That means 100% of Lawrence neighborhoods fall into the "safe" category, a distribution that is genuinely rare among comparable college towns and university cities.

Where Lawrence Excels: The Safest Neighborhoods

The strongest safety grades cluster in areas with higher median incomes, though the pattern is not absolute. Western Hills leads the city with an A+ grade and a median household income of $180,666 — the highest of any analyzed neighborhood. South Siders and Scenic Riverway also earned A+ ratings, with median incomes of $98,113 and $89,663 respectively. Scenic Riverway is particularly notable given its larger population of 3,432 residents, suggesting that safety at scale is achievable here. West Lawrence, home to 4,804 people and a median income of $112,329, holds a solid A grade and represents one of the city's most populous safe zones. Old West Lawrence and Deerfield round out the top tier, each graded A with median incomes above $84,000.

Understanding the Higher-Crime Areas

Lawrence's so-called higher-crime neighborhoods still perform well by most cities' standards. Brook Creek carries a B grade, and Indian Hills earned a B+. East Lawrence, Pinckney, and Prairie Meadows each received an A-, placing them firmly in safe territory despite sitting at the lower end of Lawrence's local spectrum. It is worth noting that even these neighborhoods would rank favorably against national benchmarks — the city's worst grade is still a B, which reflects a community where serious crime concentration is largely absent.

Property Crime vs. Violent Crime in Lawrence

Lawrence's crime profile, like most college towns with an 18.8% poverty rate and a median household income of $55,598, skews more toward property-related offenses than violent incidents. Opportunistic theft, vehicle break-ins, and residential burglaries tend to follow population density and foot traffic patterns, making areas near commercial corridors and student housing more susceptible. Violent crime exists but is not a defining feature of the city's safety landscape — the overwhelmingly high proportion of A-graded neighborhoods reflects a low incidence of assault and serious offenses across most of the city. Neighborhoods like Brook Creek and East Lawrence, while graded slightly lower, do not represent violent crime hotspots so much as areas where property crime rates are comparatively elevated.

How the Crime Map Supports Smarter Decisions

Lawrence's interactive crime map serves a practical function for several distinct groups of residents. Home buyers evaluating properties in West Lawrence or Old West Lawrence can cross-reference safety grades with the city's median home value of $204,890 to assess whether a neighborhood's risk profile aligns with its price point. Renters — particularly students and young professionals drawn by the city's median rent of $953 — can use the map to compare neighborhoods like University Heights and Raintree against areas like Pinckney before signing a lease. Daily commuters benefit from understanding which corridors see higher incident rates at specific times, allowing for more informed routing decisions. The map transforms raw crime data into a spatial tool that connects directly to how people actually live, move, and invest in Lawrence.

The Bottom Line on Lawrence Safety

Lawrence's data tells a consistent story: this is a city where safety is the norm, not the exception. An overall grade of B combined with a city-wide safety rating of Very Safe (A) and zero neighborhoods below a B grade puts Lawrence in a strong position relative to cities of similar size and demographic makeup. The 4.4% unemployment rate and a community where most neighborhoods maintain A-level safety suggest a stable foundation — one that residents can navigate with confidence using the tools and neighborhood-level data available on this map.