Safest Cities in Indiana

Using data reported from the FBI, AdvisorSmith found the safest cities in the state of Indiana. Our study used data on reported crimes reported to the FBI by cities and law enforcement agencies in the state. We calculated a crime score for each city studied by tabulating the number of violent and property crimes reported, and adjusting the scores for the mix of crimes and the population in each city.

This study included 116 cities within the state of Indiana. The study included 17 large cities with over 50,000 residents, 46 midsize cities with between 10,000 and 50,000 residents, and 53 small cities with under 10,000 residents. The average crime score for cities in Indiana was 48.

Safest Large Cities in Indiana

Among large cities in Indiana with over 50,000 residents, the average crime score in the state was 76. Crime scores in large cities ranged from as low as 13 to as high as 150 in these cities.

The safest large city in Indiana was Carmel. This city is a suburb of Indianapolis, located to the north of the city. The city has an affluent and highly educated population, with very high levels of median income. Also, the city is notable for its many roundabouts which it uses rather than traffic signals. The city is also home to offices for several major financial services and insurance companies.

South Bend was the large city in Indiana with the highest levels of reported crime. Located on Indiana’s northern border with Michigan, South Bend is the economic and population hub for northern Indiana. The University of Notre Dame is located just outside the borders of South Bend, and the city also hosts corporations such as Crowe, Honeywell, and AM General.

Rank	City	Violent Crimes per 1,000 Residents	Property Crimes per 1,000 Residents	Crime Score
1	Berne	2.2	6.5	8.6
2	Ligonier	3.2	6.2	10.7
3	Lowell	4.9	4.5	10.9
4	Winona Lake	2.4	4.3	12.2
5	Ogden Dunes	11.0	3.7	14.7
6	New Whiteland	5.8	7.0	15.2
7	Garrett	8.0	8.0	16.1
8	South Whitley	5.1	8.5	17.9
9	Bargersville	2.9	12.2	18.5
10	Batesville	5.1	8.6	18.9
11	Osceola	2.9	14.5	19.8
12	Sellersburg	8.5	8.5	20.7
13	Porter	5.4	4.8	21.2
14	Westville	3.6	6.8	21.7
15	Hartford City	3.0	5.8	21.9
16	Nappanee	4.7	10.4	22.1
17	Loogootee	6.6	3.3	22.8
18	Mooresville	3.7	19.1	25.9
19	Portland	3.3	10.7	25.9
20	Ellettsville	6.4	12.6	28.2
21	Shirley	18.0	10.8	28.8
22	Tipton	13.0	6.7	29.4
23	Rushville	6.5	22.9	29.4
24	Whitestown	6.2	11.6	29.9
25	Decatur	2.6	15.6	30.9
26	Columbia City	9.3	14.9	32.5
27	Brookville	11.5	6.7	32.5
28	Fairmount	4.4	7.4	33.1
29	Kendallville	6.5	14.0	34.3
30	Cannelton	8.1	8.1	36.5
31	Huntingburg	9.6	7.8	39.7
32	Whiting	8.1	20.2	40.4
33	Plymouth	10.4	22.5	41.9
34	Tell City	16.3	12.2	42.1
35	Walkerton	15.8	6.6	42.2
36	Markle	3.2	41.3	44.5
37	North Vernon	13.2	24.1	52.9
38	Elwood	14.2	20.3	53.1
39	Boonville	9.0	26.4	56.4
40	Angola	15.6	33.5	56.9
41	Silver Lake	19.5	22.7	58.4
42	Knox	14.6	17.4	61.5
43	Syracuse	17.7	18.7	62.4
44	Hagerstown	8.6	2.9	62.5
45	Rensselaer	18.6	34.9	64.4
46	Linton	13.9	40.7	69.9
47	North Webster	12.9	49.0	74.7
48	Winchester	22.2	65.6	87.7
49	Clinton	19.1	27.0	90.8
50	Cumberland	18.8	70.3	106.7
51	Edinburgh	20.0	54.0	111.4
52	Roseland	33.2	47.4	128.0
53	Claypool	18.5	18.5	129.6

Safest Midsize Cities in Indiana

Zionsville was the safest midsize city in Indiana, with a crime score of 5. Also a northern suburb of Indianapolis, Zionsville has a village-style downtown with a main street that has retail and restaurant offerings. The city was originally a stop on the railroad that was established in the mid 1800s.

Among midsize cities in Indiana with between 10,000 and 50,000 residents, the average crime score was 45. The range of crime scores among midsize cities was between 5 and 104.

Rank	City	Violent Crimes per 1,000 Residents	Property Crimes per 1,000 Residents	Crime Score
1	Zionsville	1.0	2.8	4.6
2	Dyer	1.8	3.5	7.2
3	St. John	2.2	6.7	10.2
4	Auburn	2.7	8.7	13.2
5	Crown Point	2.6	9.6	13.4
6	West Lafayette	3.2	7.3	14.1
7	Westfield	4.4	7.8	14.6
8	Schererville	2.4	12.7	17.1
9	Chesterton	3.8	9.0	17.4
10	Brownsburg	2.4	9.4	19.6
11	Valparaiso	4.6	11.9	23.8
12	Munster	3.8	14.7	24.0
13	Highland	3.6	17.7	26.1
14	Cedar Lake	7.1	10.9	26.4
15	Bluffton	6.0	16.1	27.3
16	Griffith	5.8	17.9	28.7
17	Greenfield	11.1	13.3	29.9
18	Plainfield	5.8	18.0	31.3
19	Merrillville	8.1	16.7	34.1
20	Portage	7.5	15.8	34.9
21	Jasper	7.2	12.1	35.7
22	Avon	7.3	21.5	35.9
23	Bedford	7.1	22.1	42.0
24	Beech Grove	9.2	27.4	44.4
25	Logansport	10.0	30.0	46.3
26	New Haven	12.6	20.6	50.1
27	Franklin	11.4	20.3	52.2
28	Columbus	12.2	30.0	52.5
29	Lawrence	12.1	22.0	53.8
30	Washington	10.6	11.3	54.3
31	Vincennes	12.6	37.6	57.1
32	Hobart	14.6	34.6	57.6
33	Frankfort	18.8	25.9	57.6
34	Jeffersonville	18.2	28.1	59.9
35	Crawfordsville	17.5	21.4	61.7
36	Marion	11.7	31.3	62.8
37	Lebanon	16.8	15.3	63.0
38	Speedway	10.6	39.8	66.6
39	Seymour	10.6	43.5	66.6
40	La Porte	18.6	21.5	68.7
41	Shelbyville	13.5	21.0	72.9
42	Peru	14.0	33.3	78.3
43	Warsaw	15.1	24.8	86.5
44	East Chicago	21.1	39.5	99.0
45	Clarksville	12.9	58.4	99.5
46	Michigan City	21.9	43.8	104.2

Safest Small Cities in Indiana

Berne, located in the eastern portion of Indiana, was the safest small city in the state. The city is home to a large Amish population, and the city is named after the capital of Switzerland. Additionally, Berne is the furniture capital of the state of Indiana.

In the following table, we list the safest small cities in Indiana with under 10,000 residents. In addition to each city’s rank, we also list the city’s crime score and the level of violent and property crime per 1,000 residents. Among small Indiana cities, the average crime score was 43, with a range between 9 and 130.

Rank	City	Violent Crimes per 1,000 Residents	Property Crimes per 1,000 Residents	Crime Score
1	Carmel	2.4	8.5	12.9
2	Fishers	2.4	7.7	13.3
3	Noblesville	6.1	9.6	19.1
4	Greenwood	8.8	25.6	43.2
5	Fort Wayne	14.3	27.6	62.5
6	Bloomington	16.4	20.0	66.1
7	Muncie	18.0	35.0	71.1
8	Hammond	17.8	37.1	77.8
9	Kokomo	17.3	25.8	79.0
10	Anderson	19.9	38.2	85.0
11	Lafayette	30.8	32.9	90.3
12	Gary	23.4	35.6	90.9
13	Evansville	27.1	41.8	102.9
14	Elkhart	20.6	31.6	104.3
15	Indianapolis	20.6	36.2	104.4
16	Terre Haute	25.6	48.6	126.9
17	South Bend	38.2	42.1	149.6

Methodology

AdvisorSmith used a dataset called Uniform Crime Reporting Statistics published by the FBI to collate data about the levels of reported crime in cities around the country. Cities and law enforcement agencies use Return A to tabulate the number of violent and property crimes reported during a calendar year. These crimes include murder, rape, robbery, assault, burglary, larceny, and motor vehicle theft.

AdvisorSmith calculated a crime score by applying multipliers to each type of crime to reflect each crime’s severity. More severe crimes such as rape or murder received a higher weight than property crimes. We then added the weighted reported crimes for each city in the state of Indiana. This sum of weighted reported crimes was adjusted by each city’s population to create a per capita crime score.

To find the safest small, midsize, and large cities in Indiana, we divided the cities into one of three groups based upon the city’s population size. Cities with under 10,000 residents were labeled as small cities, while cities with between 10,000 and 50,000 residents were classified as midsize cities. Cities with over 50,000 residents were considered large cities. Within each population subset, we ranked the cities based upon the crime scores that we calculated.

Sources

1. Federal Bureau of Investigation, Uniform Crime Reporting, Return A, 2019