Washington’s Safest Cities of 2024

See crime rates for the safest cities.

According to our most recent State of Safety report, Washington worries more about crime and safety on a daily basis than most of America, which reflects rising crime rates. However, the crime rates in the state’s 20 safest cities are lower than the state and national rates.

Washington's violent crime rate rose from 3.4 incidents per 1,000 people to 4.7. The overall property crime rate in Washington increased by 38% since last year, growing from 31.3 incidents per 1,000 people to 35.6.

On the national level, Washington's violent crime rate is 19% higher than the national rate (US 4.0) while its property crime rate is 72% higher (US 20.7). Among the 44 states that met reporting requirements this year, The Evergreen State has the fourteenth-highest violent crime rate and the highest property crime rate.

In tandem with a property crime rate that’s 72% higher than the national average, Washington residents are more concerned about property crime happening to them (66% versus the national average of 52%). Washington is the second-most concerned state in the country for worry about property theft in general and package theft, specifically.

• 35% of Washington respondents told us they had a personal experience with property crime, versus 27% nationwide—making Washington the fifth-highest state for property crime experience.
• Burglaries make up 16% of all reported property crimes statewide, 3 percentage points higher than the US average. In the safest cities, burglaries account for 13% of all property crime.
• 75% of survey respondents use some form of property protection (US 75%), with 38% of those using a security camera.
• 40% of Washingtonians said they added or increased security measures in the 12 months prior to the survey (US 35%).

• Seattle was the worst metro area in the country for package theft in our 2023 report.
• 41% of survey respondents in Washington reported experiencing package theft in the 12 months prior to the survey (US 35%).
• 67% of participants expressed a high level of concern about package theft (US 53%)—second-highest in the country.
• The preferred methods of package protection in Washington are  using a security or doorbell camera (24%) and leaving it in a safe spot (21%).

Washington residents have around 10% more worry about violent crime than other Americans. That concern may be justified, as this is the first year that the state's violent crime rate rose above the nationwide average. The violent crime rate increased from 3.4 incidents per 1,000 people to 4.7 this year.

• 29% of Washingtonians told us they feel safe in their state, compared to 45% nationally and 42% in last year's report.
• On a positive note, reported experiences with violent crime fell 24% year over year, with 16% of respondents reporting one, compared to 21% last year.
• Aggravated assault is the most prevalent violent crime, accounting for 53% of reported crimes, versus 71% nationally.
• Robbery is more than twice as common in Washington (37% of all violent crimes) than the proportion for the rest of the country (US 16%).
• 32% of survey participants use some kind of personal protection like a stun gun or pepper spray, compared to 36% nationally.
• The most popular type of personal protection used by Washington respondents this survey year was pocket knives (47%), followed by pepper spray (44%).

• 51% said gun violence is the safety concern they worry about most on a daily basis (US 51%).
• The number of respondents with a personal gun violence experience (7%) plummeted 67% since the previous survey year (US 12%).
• Washington saw 15 mass shooting incidents in 2023, a 36% increase over the 11 incidents in 2022.
• Of those who use  security measures, concealed firearms are used by 38% of respondents for personal protection and firearms are used by 22% for home security.

For the purposes of this report, the terms “dangerous” and “safest” refer explicitly to crime rates as calculated from FBI crime data—no other characterization of any community is implied or intended.

• 82 cities met criteria to be considered for ranking.
• Camas debuts as the safest city in Washington this year, toppling Sammamish to third after holding the top spot for the previous three years. 
• Sedro Woolley made the biggest improvement in ranking this year, moving up 9 spots to land at number 17.
• 2 cities are new to our top 20 this year: Camas and Pullman.
• Kirkland (population 91,464) and Sammamish (population 65,738) are the largest cities on the list and the only cities with populations above 50,000 residents.
• The violent crime rate in the safest cities is just 0.9 incidents per 1,000 people—81% lower than the state rate (4.7).
• The property crime rate in the safest cities is 16.7 incidents per 1,000 people, which is 53% below the state rate (35.7).

• Best Home Security Systems
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• Over 50% Of All Burglaries Are Residential—How To Protect Your Family
• The Best Personal Safety Devices for Every Situation

Find all endnotes and sources in our full methodology.

FBI Crime Data Explorer, "Documents & Downloads." Accessed March 18, 2024.

• 2022 and 2021 Crime in the United States Annual Reports
  • Offenses Known to Law Enforcement
• 2022 NIBRS Estimation Tables

Bureau of Justice Statistics, "National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS)." Accessed March 18, 2024.

Gun Violence Archive, "Mass Shootings." Accessed March 18, 2023.