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Ohio’s 20 Safest Cities of 2021

Researcher & Writer

Published on March 10, 2021

The SafeWise Team is pleased to release the seventh annual Safest Cities report.

Here are the 10 safest cities in Ohio for 2021

1. Chester Township
2. Olmsted Township
3. Sagamore Hills
4. Clearcreek Township
5. Springboro
6. North Ridgeville
7. Poland Township
8. Hamilton Township, Warren County
9. Bay Village
10. Seven Hills

See if your city made the full list.

In our 2021 State of Safety survey, 53% of respondents in Ohio reported daily levels of high concern for their safety. While this is lower than last year's survey (56%), it's still six percentage points higher than the national average of 47%.

Ohioans reported fewer personal experiences with violent crime and property crime year over year but more experience with gun violence. Ohio's crime rates are below the US average, but the state's violent crime rate actually increased in the past year as the state's property crime rate went down. Ohio's 20 safest cities have only a fraction of the state rate for both categories of crime.

2021 Ohio crime rates

Although Ohio's violent crime rate is relatively low compared to most states, it had a small increase from 2.8 crimes per 1,000 people to 2.9 this year. The state's property crime rate follows recent downward trends across the nation by moving down from 21.8 per 1,000 people to 20.6.

Compared to other states in the East North Central region, Ohio is tied with Wisconsin for the lowest violent crime rate. But the state has the highest property crime rate in the region, just above Indiana (19.7).

Ohio's crime rates are lower than the national average, though the property crime rate is close to the US average. Among all 50 states, Ohio has the eighteenth-lowest violent crime rate and the twenty-fourth-lowest property crime rate.

Level of concern and experience with crime in Ohio

A smaller percentage of residents in Ohio worried about their safety on a daily basis than last year, but the state remains above the national average for daily concern. Like most Americans, Ohioans' biggest crime worry is package theft.

Reported experiences with violent crime and property crime declined since last year but there was a big uptick in experience with gun violence. Despite the drop in experiences with violent crimes and property crimes, Ohio residents tended to encounter more crime than the average American.

Crime concerns in Ohio

We asked Ohio residents which crimes they worry may happen to them. See if Ohio residents are concerned about the same crime issues as the rest of the country.

Levels of crime concern Ohio 2021 infographic

View the complete 2021 State of Safety report.

Violent crime in Ohio: Fear vs. reality

People in Ohio tend to feel slightly less safe in their home state than the average American. Ohioans are also generally more likely to say the COVID-19 pandemic has affected their personal safety. This could involve any number of factors like above-average experience with violent crime and gun violence or possibly the state's small increase in reports of violent crime.

52% of people in Ohio reported feeling safe in their state compared to 55% of Americans.
16% of Ohio respondents reported having a personal experience with violent crime in the past 12 months—a 33% decrease from last year.
Murder is the least-common violent crime in The Buckeye State, making up 2% of violent crimes (US 1%)—the state's 20 safest cities averaged 0.9%.
Rape makes up 17% of violent crimes in Ohio (US 8%). The 20 safest cities have a higher rate at 23%.
40% of survey participants report using some form of personal protection like pepper spray—higher than the US average (34%).
54% of Ohioans say their personal safety has been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic compared to 44% of Americans. This is toward the high end of the scale, which tops out at 61% with Florida.

Ohio violent crime rates 3 year trend infographic

Attitudes about police and gun violence in Ohio

67% of Ohio residents named gun violence as a top safety concern—well above the US average of 53%.
17% of survey respondents reported experiencing gun violence in the past 12 months—1.3 times higher than last year.
There were 14 mass shootings in Ohio in 2019 and 25 in 2020.
47% of Buckeyes worry about police violence daily—higher than the US average of 40%.
Despite above-average concerns over police violence, 60% of people in Ohio reported having confidence in law enforcement, above the US average of 56%.
There were 82 officer-involved shootings in 2020, a 15% increase from 71 in 2019.

Ohio reported the third-highest experience with gun violence in the past year—nearly 2 in 10 reported a gun violence incident.

Property crime in Ohio: Fear vs. reality

There was a slight improvement in personal encounters with property crime in Ohio this year, which fits with a similar decline in crime reports from law enforcement agencies. More Ohioans use a form of property protection than a typical American with notable ownership rates for both security cameras and security systems.

22% of Ohio residents reported personal experiences with property crime this year, which is a small decrease compared to last year (27%).
Burglary accounts for 18% of all property crimes in The Buckeye State (the 20 safest cities average 12%), which is just above the national rate of 16%.
20% of respondents reported experiencing package theft—matching the US average.
73% of people in Ohio use some form of property protection. This is substantially higher than the 62% national average.
The top forms of property protection in Ohio this year were security cameras and security systems with 37% of survey respondents claiming to use one or the other. These adoption rates are higher than the national averages of 28% for security cameras and 25% for security systems.
40% of respondents say the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the security of their property—this is higher than the US average of 29%.

A closer look at the safest cities in Ohio

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.

Chester Township claims the top spot this year with the state's lowest violent and property crime rates.
2 new cities joined the list this year for the first time—Chester Township and Bay Village.
65% of the safest cities from last year stayed on the list with 4 of these holding the same rank—North Ridgeville, Seven Hills, North Royalton, and Brunswick.
Of the top 20, Perrysburg made the biggest jump in rankings compared to last year. It moved up 25 spots from 36 to 11.
3 cities reported 0 violent crimes this year—Chester Township, Sagamore Hills, and American Township.
All of the safest cities reported fewer than 20 total violent crimes this year, with 80% reporting 10 or fewer.
There was only a single murder among the safest cities.
65% of the safest cities reported less than 100 total property crimes this year.

The 20 Safest Cities in Ohio

Chester Township

(

New

)

Population

10,322
Median Income

$75,096
VC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

0.0, N/A, 0.0
PC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

1.5, N/A, 0.8

Olmsted Township

(

)

Population

13,432
Median Income

$64,740
VC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

0.1, 0.1, 0.1
PC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

2.2, 2.1, 3.8

Sagamore Hills

(

-1

)

Population

10,934
Median Income

$69,496
VC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

0.0, 0.0, 0.0
PC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

2.7, 2.7, 3.2

Clearcreek Township

(

)

Population

16,070
Median Income

$51,882
VC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

0.1, 0.3, 0.7
PC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

2.3, 3.0, 4.8

Springboro

(

)

Population

18,975
Median Income

$105,458
VC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

0.1, 0.2, 0.5
PC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

3.5, 5.4, 6.5

North Ridgeville

(

-0-

)

Population

34,469
Median Income

$74,309
VC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

0.4, 0.3, 0.5
PC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

3.2, 2.9, 4.2

Poland Township

(

-3

)

Population

11,859
Median Income

$66,793
VC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

0.5, 0.2, 0.3
PC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

3.0, 2.6, 4.4

Hamilton Township, Warren County

(

)

Population

23,791
Median Income

$84,882
VC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

0.5, 0.5, N/A
PC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

3.3, 3.9, N/A

Bay Village

(

New

)

Population

15,235
Median Income

$102,917
VC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

0.3, N/A, N/A
PC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

4.7, N/A, N/A

#10

Seven Hills

(

-0-

)

Population

11,621
Median Income

$79,735
VC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

0.6, 0.3, 0.3
PC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

3.2, 4.5, 4.3

#11

Perrysburg

(

+25

)

Population

21,672
Median Income

$91,281
VC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

0.1, 0.4, 0.3
PC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

5.7, 11.1, 10.7

#12

Hudson

(

-1

)

Population

22,286
Median Income

$128,638
VC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

0.3, 0.0, 0.5
PC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

5.2, 5.7, 5.1

#13

Berea

(

)

Population

18,573
Median Income

$59,229
VC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

0.5, 0.5, 0.4
PC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

4.3, 6.2, 7.4

#14

North Royalton

(

-0-

)

Population

30,177
Median Income

$70,429
VC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

0.6, 0.5, N/A
PC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

3.9, 4.0, N/A

#15

Powell

(

)

Population

13,545
Median Income

$149,119
VC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

0.1, 0.4, 0.5
PC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

6.2, 8.1, 7.9

#16

Clayton

(

+13

)

Population

13,221
Median Income

$74,795
VC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

0.2, 0.4, 0.4
PC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

6.3, 10.2, 9.0

#17

Brunswick

(

-0-

)

Population

34,977
Median Income

$68,664
VC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

0.5, 0.6, 0.6
PC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

5.4, 4.9, 5.6

#18

Mason

(

)

Population

33,939
Median Income

$96,511
VC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

0.3, 0.2, 0.4
PC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

6.4, 7.9, 10.7

#19

American Township

(

+14

)

Population

12,050
Median Income

$51,875
VC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

0.0, 0.2, 0.1
PC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

8.0, 11.9, 17.1

#20

Aurora

(

+11

)

Population

16,319
Median Income

$94,141
VC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

0.1, 0.6, 0.2
PC Rate 2021, 2020, 2019

7.8, 9.2, 11.7

How we determined the safest cities

Learn how we identified the safest cities on our methodology page.

How to make a safe home anywhere

Whether your city made our list or not, we encourage everyone to be proactive about home security. Learn more about your home security options—and find out which companies we recommend for every budget and lifestyle in our roundup of the Best Home Security Systems.

Didn't find your city in the top 20?

We calculated crime rates for every city in the state that met our population threshold, based on the state’s median population. See how the remaining cities ranked in the list below.

NOTE: If you don’t see your city on the list, it means that it was below the population threshold or didn’t submit a complete crime report to the FBI in 2019.

2021 Rank	City	Population	VC per 1,000	PC per 1,000
21	New Franklin	14,162	0.6	5.9
22	Twinsburg	19,103	0.9	4.8
23	Vermilion	10,420	0.2	8.7
24	Hilliard	37,578	0.7	6.4
25	Montgomery	10,867	0.4	8.9
26	Fairview Park	16,201	0.4	8.8
27	Perrysburg Township	13,013	0.2	9.8
28	Dublin	49,626	0.5	8.6
29	Loveland	13,245	1.2	5.5
30	Dover	12,741	1.1	6.0
31	Harrison	11,837	0.5	9.1
32	New Albany	11,332	0.4	9.9
33	Solon	22,830	0.5	9.5
34	Upper Arlington	35,754	0.3	10.2
35	Sylvania	19,046	0.7	8.7
36	Shawnee Township	12,056	0.8	8.1
37	Goshen Township, Clermont County	16,300	1.0	8.6
38	Madison Township, Franklin County	19,682	0.9	9.0
39	Miami Township, Clermont County	42,764	0.5	11.0
40	Delhi Township	29,811	0.7	10.2
41	North Olmsted	31,421	0.3	12.4
42	Amherst	12,166	0.3	12.1
43	Copley Township	17,309	0.8	11.1
44	Strongsville	44,814	0.4	13.1
45	Centerville	23,744	0.6	12.0
46	Wapakoneta	9,717	0.2	14.1
47	Lyndhurst	13,407	1.0	10.4
48	Mayfield Heights	18,519	0.6	12.4
49	Madison Township, Lake County	15,646	0.6	12.8
50	New Philadelphia	17,434	0.5	13.9
51	Parma	78,322	1.4	9.7
52	Green Township	59,273	0.6	13.6
53	Pickerington	21,590	1.3	10.3
54	Tallmadge	17,583	0.7	13.6
55	Marysville	24,544	0.6	14.3
56	East Liverpool	10,653	1.2	11.6
57	Stow	34,862	0.4	15.4
58	North Canton	17,251	0.9	13.6
59	Willoughby	23,081	0.8	13.9
60	Kent	29,761	1.0	13.2
61	Lakewood	49,802	1.2	12.9
62	Delaware	40,616	1.5	11.7
63	Worthington	14,875	0.7	15.9
64	Athens	24,745	0.6	16.1
65	Kettering	54,974	1.0	14.4
66	Streetsboro	16,561	1.2	13.7
67	Wickliffe	12,758	1.3	13.6
68	Springfield Township, Hamilton County	36,696	1.4	13.2
69	Norwalk	16,903	0.9	15.5
70	Bedford	12,485	1.5	12.6
71	Defiance	16,601	1.3	13.6
72	Marietta	13,547	1.3	14.2
73	Wadsworth	24,058	0.6	17.2
74	Riverside	25,148	1.4	13.6
75	Troy	26,250	0.9	16.5
76	Mentor	47,289	1.3	14.9
77	Eastlake	18,074	0.7	18.1
78	Perry Township, Stark County	28,121	1.5	14.6
79	Blue Ash	12,307	1.1	16.6
80	Bainbridge Township	11,493	0.3	21.0
81	Tiffin	17,498	0.5	20.2
82	Miamisburg	19,913	2.0	13.3
83	Bowling Green	31,719	1.2	17.2
84	Brimfield Township	10,388	0.7	19.6
85	Howland Township	16,420	1.2	17.1
86	Norton	12,007	1.5	15.8
87	Struthers	10,148	1.8	15.0
88	Pierce Township	11,742	0.9	19.4
89	Bellefontaine	13,145	1.9	15.4
90	West Chester Township	62,517	1.1	19.5
91	Cuyahoga Falls	49,236	1.0	19.9
92	University Heights	12,852	1.5	18.4
93	Bexley	13,956	0.9	21.5
94	Gahanna	35,847	1.2	20.1
95	Cleveland Heights	44,098	2.2	15.8
96	Union Township, Clermont County	48,486	1.0	21.4
97	Fairfield Township	22,956	0.9	22.1
98	Ashland	20,410	1.6	18.8
99	Ironton	10,576	1.8	18.1
100	Mount Vernon	16,663	1.6	18.9
101	Forest Park	18,673	2.6	14.8
102	Westerville	40,903	1.8	18.8
103	Colerain Township	59,479	1.1	22.6
104	Sylvania Township	29,754	1.1	22.8
105	Beavercreek	47,672	0.7	25.0
106	Elyria	53,806	2.5	17.1
107	Fairfield	42,620	2.0	20.6
108	Jackson Township, Stark County	40,347	1.3	24.4
109	Urbana	11,309	1.3	24.3
110	Richmond Heights	10,346	3.1	16.2
111	Fairborn	33,726	2.6	18.6
112	Monroe	16,531	0.8	27.2
113	Maumee	13,656	1.0	26.4
114	Alliance	21,536	1.3	25.9
115	Reading	10,995	1.8	23.7
116	Huber Heights	38,183	2.0	23.3
117	Grove City	42,423	1.0	28.1
118	London	10,320	2.5	20.9
119	Englewood	13,478	1.2	27.2
120	South Euclid	21,351	1.3	27.3
121	Massillon	32,433	2.2	22.9
122	Findlay	41,350	2.6	21.8
123	West Carrollton	12,886	3.5	18.1
124	Reynoldsburg	38,578	1.9	25.6
125	Bucyrus	11,712	2.1	24.5
126	Xenia	26,926	2.7	25.1
127	Salem	11,644	1.9	29.3
128	Barberton	26,015	2.7	26.5
129	Miami Township, Montgomery County	29,188	2.2	29.1
130	Sidney	20,437	1.9	30.9
131	Beachwood	11,612	0.6	37.7
132	Van Wert	10,662	2.2	31.5
133	Oregon	19,868	2.3	32.5
134	Niles	18,222	3.8	25.5
135	Lorain	64,022	4.5	22.4
136	Wooster	26,615	4.1	27.7
137	Newark	50,340	3.0	33.3
138	East Cleveland	17,001	5.7	21.7
139	Washington Court House	14,150	2.8	35.6
140	Middletown	48,878	4.2	29.8
141	Lancaster	40,622	2.7	37.9
142	Sandusky	24,572	3.0	37.6
143	Euclid	46,659	5.2	27.5
144	Heath	10,933	2.2	42.2
145	Trotwood	24,435	5.4	27.0
146	Steubenville	17,768	1.9	45.2
147	Springfield Township, Summit County	14,555	2.5	43.4
148	Hamilton	62,155	4.3	35.8
149	Franklin	11,675	2.9	42.9
150	Columbus	906,120	5.0	33.1
151	Zanesville	25,346	3.5	42.3
152	Circleville	14,025	3.4	43.4
153	Mansfield	46,418	4.0	43.0
154	Wilmington	12,391	2.1	52.5
155	Warren	38,012	5.6	38.9
156	Springfield	59,128	4.9	50.6
157	Lima	36,653	7.1	40.7
158	Akron	197,882	9.0	33.2
159	Toledo	273,505	9.5	34.6
160	Cincinnati	303,335	8.4	43.0
161	Dayton	140,427	9.6	40.4
162	Whitehall	19,121	6.0	57.6
163	Chillicothe	21,670	4.8	72.7
164	Cleveland	381,829	15.2	44.7
165	Canton	70,139	14.0	52.9

Find the safest cities in each state

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Calvin Wise Tips

Sunday, March 14, 2021