Safest Cities in Tennessee 2026
Tennessee has 6 cities in our database with a statewide violent crime rate of 359.7 per 100,000 residents. The safest city is Nashville with a Safety Context Score of 68/100. All rates are per capita — never raw counts.
| # | City | Population | Violent/100K | Property/100K | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nashville | 689K | 391.2 | 2,086 | B (68) |
| 2 | Knoxville | 191K | 333.5 | 2,106 | B (68) |
| 3 | Memphis | 633K | 284.5 | 2,149 | B (65) |
| 4 | Chattanooga | 181K | 276.5 | 1,219 | B (65) |
| 5 | Murfreesboro | 153K | 463.1 | 1,845 | B (65) |
| 6 | Clarksville | 167K | 540.9 | 1,410 | C (53) |
All rates per 100,000 residents. Source: FBI UCR 2023.
Crime statistics for Tennessee cities are derived from FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) data. All figures represent per-capita rates per 100,000 residents, not raw counts.
Frequently Asked Questions
Based on FBI crime data and our Safety Context Score, Nashville is the safest city in Tennessee with a score of 68/100 (Grade B), a violent crime rate of 391.2 per 100,000, and a property crime rate of 2,086 per 100,000.
Cities are ranked using our Safety Context Score (0-100), which weighs violent crime rate vs. national average (40%), property crime rate vs. national average (30%), and 5-year trend direction (30%). All rates are per 100,000 residents — never raw counts.
Crime in Tennessee has increased 0.0% over the past 5 years based on FBI data.
Safety Context Score: violent crime vs. national average (40%), property crime vs. national average (30%), 5-year trend (30%). All rates per 100,000 residents.