Safety News: The SafeWise Blog

Indiana’s 10 Safest Cities of 2023

Staff Writer, Safety & Security

March 13, 2023

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

Here are the 10 Safest Cities in Indiana for 2023

St. John
Zionsville
Dyer
Carmel
Fishers
Brownsburg
Westfield
West Lafayette
Huntington
Greenfield

See if your city made the full list.

Indiana has plenty to be proud of this year thanks to decreasing violent crime and property crime. However, our State of Safety survey results show that most Hoosiers think crime is increasing, and fewer than half feel safe in the state.

2023 Indiana crime rates

Indiana is 1 of just 17 states that experienced decreases in both violent crime and property crime this reporting year. Both its violent crime and property crime rates fall below the national averages.

Property and violent crime rates in Indiana

Image: SafeWise

Level of concern and experience with crime in Indiana

According to our latest State of Safety survey, Hoosiers’ level of concern about safety and security is lower than the national average (IN 44% vs. US 50%).

About 61% of Indiana residents feel concerned about package theft, and property crime comes in second at 53%. Hoosiers worry less about violent crime (49%) and gun violence (49%), which makes sense because our survey respondents were more likely to have experienced property crime than violent crime.

Less than half of the Hoosiers we surveyed felt safe in their state (44%), which is lower than the US average of 50%. Indiana residents are also the third-most likely Americans to believe crime is increasing (IN 80% vs. US 71%).

Level of concern and experience with natural disasters in Indiana

For our 2023 State of Safety Survey, we asked participants about their natural disaster concerns, preparations, and experiences. Most Hoosiers worried about strong or high winds (62% IN, 62% US). Hurricanes (33%) and earthquakes (34%) were of least concern.

Compared to the average American, Hoosiers were more likely to have an emergency kit (45% IN, 44% US) but less likely to use every other disaster preparedness strategy on our survey.

About 7% of Indiana residents said they evacuated due to a natural disaster in the 12 months prior to the survey, which is lower than the national average of 11%.

Crime concerns in Indiana

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

Image: SafeWise

View the complete 2023 State of Safety report.

Violent crime in Indiana: Fear vs. reality

Indiana’s violent crime rate of 3.1 is below the national average of 4.0 and represents a 13% decrease year over year. The nationwide violent crime rate decreased by less than 1% during the same period.

Our State of Safety Survey results also reflected this decrease, with 11% of Indiana residents claiming to have experienced a violent crime in the 12 months prior to the survey (a 15% decrease year over year).

That said, 49% of the Hoosiers we surveyed felt concerned about violent crime, which represents a 5% increase compared to the previous year's survey. Gun violence concerns rose by 8%.

Compared to its regional neighbors (Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin), Indiana saw the most significant decrease in violent crime year over year.
42% of Indiana residents use some form of personal protection (US 39%).
Of the Hoosiers who use personal protection, most (57%) prefer pocket knives.

Attitudes about gun violence in Indiana

49% of Hoosiers worry about gun violence (47% US).
10% experienced gun violence in the 12 months prior to the survey.
Hoosiers' level of gun violence experience hasn't changed year over year.
Of the Indiana residents who use some form of personal protection, 48% use concealed firearms (41% US).
15 mass shooting events occurred in Indiana during the 2022 reporting year, which is the eleventh-highest rate in the nation.

Property crime in Indiana: Fear vs. reality

Indiana’s property crime rate of 16.6 is lower than the national average (19.3) but above the East North Central regional average (16.2). Property crime in Indiana decreased by nearly 7% year over year.

The Hoosiers we surveyed felt more concerned about property crime than the average American, with 53% reporting daily levels of concern (US 50%). That said, 26% of Hoosiers claimed to have experienced property crime in the 12 months prior to the survey, which is lower than the national average of 27%.

Of the Hoosiers who use some form of property protection, most preferred guard dogs (41%) followed by firearms and security cameras (33% each).
Package theft concerns 61% of Indiana residents (US 53%).
42% of Hoosiers claimed to have experienced a package theft in the 12 months prior to the survey, which is higher than the national average of 34% and represents an increase of 112% year over year.
"None of the above" was the most common response (34%) among Hoosiers when asked about their package theft prevention strategies, followed by verified delivery (30%).

A closer look at the safest cities in Indiana

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.

43 Indiana cities met the criteria for ranking this year.
Only 3 of Indiana's 10 safest cities saw a decrease in both violent and property crime rates: St. John, Brownsburg, and Greenfield.
St. John reported 1 violent crime in the 2023 reporting year: a robbery.
All 3 of Dyer's violent crimes were aggravated assaults.
Carmel and Fishers were also featured in our list of the Safest Cities to Raise a Family.
Dyer, St. John, and Zionsville also appeared on our most recent list of Safest Cities in America

Image: SafeWise

The 10 safest cities in Indiana

St. John

(

)

Population

20,168
Median Income

$115,230
VC Rate 2023, 2022, 2021

0.0, 0.2, 0.2
PC Rate 2023, 2022, 2021

2.0, 4.1, 6.7
VC=Violent crime, PC=Property crime

Zionsville

(

-0-

)

Population

29,876
Median Income

$141,546
VC Rate 2023, 2022, 2021

0.3, 0.5, 0.1
PC Rate 2023, 2022, 2021

3.6, 3.0, 2.8
VC=Violent crime, PC=Property crime

Dyer

(

-2

)

Population

15,914
Median Income

$90,848
VC Rate 2023, 2022, 2021

0.2, 0.1, N/A
PC Rate 2023, 2022, 2021

5.0, 3.2, N/A
VC=Violent crime, PC=Property crime

Carmel

(

-0-

)

Population

103,540
Median Income

$119,772
VC Rate 2023, 2022, 2021

0.5, 0.5, 0.3
PC Rate 2023, 2022, 2021

6.5, 5.9, 8.5
VC=Violent crime, PC=Property crime

Fishers

(

-0-

)

Population

99,184
Median Income

$117,503
VC Rate 2023, 2022, 2021

0.8, 0.7, 0.5
PC Rate 2023, 2022, 2021

6.7, 6.5, 7.7
VC=Violent crime, PC=Property crime

Brownsburg

(

)

Population

28,227
Median Income

$93,147
VC Rate 2023, 2022, 2021

0.7, 0.8, 1.5
PC Rate 2023, 2022, 2021

8.0, 9.6, 9.4
VC=Violent crime, PC=Property crime

Westfield

(

-1

)

Population

48,140
Median Income

$106,777
VC Rate 2023, 2022, 2021

0.8, 0.5, 0.4
PC Rate 2023, 2022, 2021

7.5, 7.5, 7.8
VC=Violent crime, PC=Property crime

West Lafayette

(

New

)

Population

52,675
Median Income

$28,744
VC Rate 2023, 2022, 2021

0.7, N/A, 0.7
PC Rate 2023, 2022, 2021

8.0, N/A, 7.3
VC=Violent crime, PC=Property crime

Huntington

(

)

Population

17,006
Median Income

$47,232
VC Rate 2023, 2022, 2021

0.5, 0.5, N/A
PC Rate 2023, 2022, 2021

10.6, 14.6, N/A
VC=Violent crime, PC=Property crime

#10

Greenfield

(

)

Population

23,650
Median Income

$63,952
VC Rate 2023, 2022, 2021

0.9, 1.4, 0.9
PC Rate 2023, 2022, 2021

9.2, 12.0, 13.3
VC=Violent crime, PC=Property crime

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. One of the best ways to stop a burglary before it happens is to add a home security system.

Get a home security system

Find out which companies we recommend for every budget and lifestyle in our roundup of the Best Home Security Systems—and learn the basics with our guide on Everything You Need to Know About Home Security.

Compare the best home security systems

Brand	Best for	Monthly cost	Starter equipment price	Contract required	Smart home compatibility	Learn more	Read review
Vivint	Best overall	$29.99/mo.	$599.00	No *	Amazon, Google, Z-Wave	View packages	Read review
SimpliSafe	Budget pick	$17.99/mo.	$245.00	No	Amazon, Google	View packages	Read review
ADT	Most experienced	$28.99/mo.	$0.00	Yes	Amazon, Google, Z-Wave	View packages	Read review
Cove	Best customer experience	$17.99/mo.	Quote required	No	Amazon, Google	View packages	Read review
ADT Self Setup	Best optional monitoring	$19.99/mo.	$199.15	No	Amazon, Google, Z-Wave	View packages	Read review

*Amazon.com price as of post date. Offers and availability may vary by location and are subject to change. Read full disclaimer.

Full ADT disclaimer

Didn't find your city?

We calculated crime rates for every city in the state that met our population threshold, based on the state’s median population as calculated using FBI data. To request a report of the remaining cities in your state email info@safewise.com with the subject line: Safest Cities Full Report.

NOTE: If your city is missing from our full report, it means that it was below the population threshold or didn’t submit a complete crime report to the FBI in 2021.