America's 50 Most Dangerous Cities

There were 1,245 violent crimes reported in Anchorage, Alaska for every 100,000 people in 2019. For context, there were 367 violent crimes for every 100,000 people nationwide in 2019. As is the case across the United States, aggravated assault is the most common violent crime in Anchorage. Of the 3,581 violent crimes committed in the city in 2019, 2,388 were aggravated assaults.

While the relationship between unemployment and violent crime is complicated, many of the cities with the highest violent crime rates have high unemployment. Some 5.1% of the Anchorage labor force was unemployed in 2019, a higher unemployment rate than the national rate of 3.7%.

Click here to see the full crime report for Anchorage, Alaska.

The violent crime rate in Oakland, California, is among the highest of any U.S. city. There were 5,520 cases of rape, robbery, aggravated assault, and murder reported in Oakland in 2019, or 1,272 for every 100,000 people — more than triple the violent crime rate nationwide of 367 incidents for every 100,000 people.

Crime tends to be more concentrated in areas with limited economic opportunity and widespread financial hardship — and this pattern holds in Oakland. Across the city, 17.6% of the population lives below the poverty line, well above the 14.1% national poverty rate.

Click here to see the full crime report for Oakland, California.

There were 1,319 violent crimes reported per 100,000 San Bernardino residents in 2019, far more than the national rate of 367 violent crimes per 100,000 Americans and the 13th highest violent crime rate of any large city.

Other, nonviolent forms of crime, such as burglary, larceny, and motor vehicle theft are also more common in San Bernardino than they are nationwide. There were 9,081 property crimes reported in San Bernardino in 2019, or 4,190 for every 100,000 residents. Meanwhile, the national property crime rate stood at 2,110 per 100,000 the same year.

Click here to see the full crime report for San Bernardino, California.

Of the four categories of violent crime — rape, robbery, aggravated assault, and homicide — aggravated assault is the most common. That pattern holds in South Bend, Indiana, where there were 1,020 aggravated assaults in 2019. Due primarily to instances of aggravated assault, the violent crime rate in the city stands at 1,331 incidents for every 100,000 people.

Specifically, homicide is considerably more common in South Bend than it is nationwide. There were 14 homicides committed in South Bend in 2019, or 13.7 for every 100,000 people. Meanwhile, the national murder rate was just 5 per 100,000 the same year.

Click here to see the full crime report for South Bend, Indiana.

As is the case nationwide, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, aggravated assault drives the overall violent crime rate more than any other offense. Of the 7,874 violent crimes committed in the city in 2019, 5,439 were aggravated assaults. Overall, there were 1,332 violent crimes reported in Milwaukee for every 100,000 people in 2019.

Poverty tends to be more prevalent in areas where crime is more common. In Milwaukee, some 26.6% of residents live below the poverty line, far more than the national poverty rate of 14.1%.

Click here to see the full crime report for Milwaukee, Wisconsin.