Is Houston, TX Safe?
Houston, TX has a Safety Score of 77/100 (grade B). Violent crime is 41% below the national average. Crime has been trending downward over the past 5 years.
Safety Context Score: 77/100 (Grade B)
CrimeContext scores Houston on a 0-100 scale that weights per-capita violent crime against the national average (40%), per-capita property crime (30%), and the 5-year direction of total crime (30%). A grade of B means Houston sits better than the typical U.S. city once population is taken into account. Crime has been trending downward over the past 5 years.
We never display raw crime counts. A large city will always log more total incidents than a small town; the only fair comparison is the rate per 100,000 residents, which is what every number on this page uses.
Houston Crime Rates per 100,000 vs National Average
| Crime Type | Houston | National Avg | vs National |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent Crime | 215.5 | 363.8 | -41% |
| Property Crime | 1917.5 | 1832.3 | +5% |
| Murder | 2.2 | 5.7 | -61% |
| Robbery | 34.5 | 73.0 | -53% |
| Aggravated Assault | 131.5 | 246.4 | -47% |
| Burglary | 249.3 | 269.8 | -8% |
| Larceny-Theft | 1361.4 | 1401.9 | -3% |
| Motor Vehicle Theft | 172.6 | 318.3 | -46% |
| 5-Year Trend | -14.0% | ||
| Population | 2,320,268 | ||
All values are incidents per 100,000 residents (FBI UCR/NIBRS). Per-capita rates only — never raw counts.
Frequently Asked Questions
Houston, TX has a Safety Score of 77/100 (grade B). Violent crime is 41% below the national average. Crime has been trending downward over the past 5 years.
Houston, TX has a violent crime rate of 215.5 per 100,000 residents (41% below the U.S. average of 363.8) and a property crime rate of 1917.5 per 100,000 (5% above the U.S. average of 1832.3). All figures are per-capita rates, never raw counts.
Houston has a murder rate of 2.2 per 100,000 residents, compared with the national average of 5.7. Like every figure here, this is a per-capita rate — raw homicide counts without population context can badly mislead.
Crime has been trending downward over the past 5 years. Over the past 5 years, the total crime rate in Houston has changed by -14.0%.
Violent crime in Houston is 41% below the U.S. average and property crime is 5% above average. Houston's overall Safety Context Score is 77/100 (grade B).
More about Houston
Houston, TX has a Safety Score of 77/100 (grade B). Violent crime is 41% below the national average. Crime has been trending downward over the past 5 years.
The data source behind this answer is the FBI UCR/NIBRS dataset. Every figure on the page traces back to that source; the methodology page describes the inputs and the refresh cadence in full detail.
For readers turning this answer into action: cross-reference against the underlying the FBI UCR/NIBRS dataset record before acting on time-sensitive decisions. The site renders the data as it was published; subsequent revisions can shift the picture, and the live federal data is always the authoritative current reference.
Source: FBI Crime Data Explorer, 2026.