The Anchorage, AK metro area is the number one most dangerous metro in the West for the second year in a row as well as the number two most dangerous metro area overall. According to the most recent FBI data, which covers the full 2014 calendar year, Anchorage had 844 violent crimes per 100,000 people, an increase of over 6 percent from the previous year. California had four of the top 10 most dangerous metro areas while Oregon had three of the top 10 safest metros. In total, the West had roughly 23 percent of the U.S. population in 2014 as well as about 23 percent of the total violent crime.
Check out the rankings below to see the Top 10 Safest and Top 10 Most Dangerous metro areas across the West. All rates below are calculated per 100,000 people. Click here to read more information about Metropolitan Statistical Areas and these rankings.
Read More: Crime Rankings for the Midwest, Northeast, and South
Read More: Slideshow: Top 15 Most Dangerous Metros in the United States
Read More: Interactive Crime Map of the United States
Top 10 Most Dangerous Metros in the West
#1 Anchorage, AK
Overall Rank: #2
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 844
– Murder: 4
– Rape: 127
– Robbery: 159
– Aggravated Assault: 554
Population: 316,696
The Anchorage, AK metro area includes the Anchorage Municipality, the Matanuska-Susitna Borough, and the city of Anchorage.
#2 Stockton-Lodi, CA
Overall Rank: #7
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 750
– Murder: 9
– Rape: 25
– Robbery: 209
– Aggravated Assault: 508
Population: 712,619
The Stockton-Lodi, CA metro area includes San Joaquin County as well as the city of Stockton and the City of Lodi.
#3 Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV
Overall Rank: #8
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 743
– Murder: 7
– Rape: 48
– Robbery: 268
– Aggravated Assault: 420
Population: 2,066,423
The Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV metro area includes Clark County, the city of Las Vegas, and the city of Henderson.
#4 Albuquerque, NM
Overall Rank: #9
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 740
– Murder: 5
– Rape: 54
– Robbery: 171
– Aggravated Assault: 510
Population: 903,982
The Albuquerque, NM metro area includes Bernalillo, Sandoval, Torrance, and Valencia counties, as well as the city of Albuquerque.
#5 Redding, CA
Overall Rank: # 11
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 707
– Murder: 4
– Rape: 62
– Robbery: 95
– Aggravated Assault: 546
Population: 180,406
The Redding, CA metro area includes Shasta County and the city of Redding.
#6 Fairbanks, AK*
Overall Rank: #23
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 648
– Murder: 12
– Rape: 110
– Robbery: 158
– Aggravated Assault: 369
Population: 34,712
The Fairbanks, AL metro area includes the Fairbanks, North Star Borough and the City of Fairbanks.
*A large portion of the North Star Borough is policed by Alaskan State Troopers, which report their data as one agency. As a result, data is only available for a portion of the Fairbanks metropolitan area.
#7 Madera, CA
Overall Rank: #34
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 578
– Murder: 6
– Rape: 25
– Robbery: 65
– Aggravated Assault: 483
Population: 153,544
The Madera, CA metro area includes Madera County and the city of Madera.
#8 Pueblo, CO
Overall Rank: #36
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 575
– Murder: 6
– Rape: 96
– Robbery: 116
– Aggravated Assault: 357
Population: 162,854
The Pueblo, CO metro area includes Pueblo County and the city of Pueblo.
#9 Merced, CA
Overall Rank: #42
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 558
– Murder: 11
– Rape: 16
– Robbery: 91
– Aggravated Assault: 440
Population: 266,350
The Merced, CA metro area includes Merced County and the city of Merced.
#10 Farmington, NM
Overall Rank: #46
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 535
– Murder: 4
– Rape: 81
– Robbery: 46
– Aggravated Assault: 405
Population: 125,309
The Farmington, NM metro area includes San Juan County and the city of Farmington.
Top 10 Safest Metros in the West
#1 Albany, OR
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 98
– Murder: 3
– Rape: 15
– Robbery: 32
– Aggravated Assault: 48
Population: 119,734
The Albany, OR metro area includes Linn County and the city of Albany.
#2 Wenatchee, WA
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 117
– Murder: 0
– Rape: 22
– Robbery: 19
– Aggravated Assault: 76
Population: 114,491
The Wenatchee, WA metro area includes Chelan and Douglas Counties as well as the city of Wenatchee.
#3 Corvallis, OR
Rates/100,000 people: 120
– Violent Crime: 120
– Murder: 0
– Rape: 25
– Robbery: 18
– Aggravated Assault: 77
Population: 87,222
The Corvallis, OR metro area includes Benton County and the city of Corvallis.
#4 St. George, UT
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 135
– Murder: 1
– Rape: 33
– Robbery: 19
– Aggravated Assault: 81
Population: 150,723
The St. George, UT metro area includes Washington County and the city of St. George.
#5 Idaho Falls, ID
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 155
– Murder: 0
– Rape: 35
– Robbery: 7
– Aggravated Assault: 114
Population: 138,893
The Idaho Falls, ID metro area includes Bonneville, Butte, and Jefferson Counties as well as the city of Idaho Falls.
#6 Ogden-Clearfield, UT
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 155
– Murder: 2
– Rape: 50
– Robbery: 25
– Aggravated Assault: 78
Population: 629,218
The Ogden-Clearfield, UT metro area includes Box Elder, Davis, Morgan, and Weber Counties as well as the city of Ogden and the city of Clearfield.
#7 Cheyenne, WY
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 160
– Murder: 3
– Rape: 19
– Robbery: 18
– Aggravated Assault: 121
Population: 96,236
The Cheyenne, WY metro area includes Laramie County and the city of Cheyenne.
#8 Bend-Redmond, OR
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 168
– Murder: 0
– Rape: 30
– Robbery: 30
– Aggravated Assault: 109
Population: 168,749
The Bend-Redmond, OR metro area includes Deschutes County, the city of Bend, and the city of Redmond.
#9 Casper, WY
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 184
– Murder: 4
– Rape: 23
– Robbery: 16
– Aggravated Assault: 142
Population: 81,960
The Casper, WY metro area includes Natrona County and the City of Casper.
#10 Lewiston, ID-WA
Rates/100,000 people:
– Violent Crime: 188
– Murder: 5
– Rape: 26
– Robbery: 22
– Aggravated Assault: 136
Population: 62,666
The Lewiston, ID-WA metro area includes Nez Perce County, ID and Asotin County, WA as well as the city of Lewiston, ID.
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More info on metro areas:
The Office of Management and Budget began delineating Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) in the 1950s in order to provide an established level of analysis for government reports and statistics. MSAs are characterized as having an urban core with more than 50,000 people and surrounding areas that have close social and economic integration. The FBI does not provide data on all of the 388 MSAs defined by the Office of Management and Budget. Click here to see the FBI’s explanation for why all MSAs are not included. MSAs are organized by counties or their equivalent. All statistics in Law Street’s Crime in America metro rankings are presented as rates per 100,000 people, and they are taken from the FBI’s annual Crime in the United States publication section on metropolitan statistical areas. To see the FBI’s data click here.