Memphis and Arkansas Bridge · Photo: Thomas R Machnitzki ([email protected]) · CC BY 3.0West Memphis sees more crime per resident than almost any other U.S. town
Violent crime here is higher than in 100% of U.S. towns; property crime, higher than in 97%. Each year brought 20.6 violent crimes and 43.5 incidents of property crime for every 1,000 residents (6.7 and 24.4 in the rest of Arkansas). The Safety Grade comes out at D−, drawn from crimes West Memphis’ police reported through 2023 to 2025. Per resident, the graded crimes were down 29% from 2023 to 2025.
Crimes reported to the FBI per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025. “Rest of AR” is every other Arkansas city and town in the FBI’s tables; the U.S. figure is the FBI’s national estimate as published, averaged over the three years. The FBI publishes no national homicide or robbery rate in our data, so those compare with all U.S. cities and towns in its tables.
What stands out about safety in West Memphis
1 of the 1 graded towns next door reports less crime
Of the 1 Arkansas towns on West Memphis’ borders, 1 have a Safety Grade: Marion (D). Neighbors ↓
Reported crime is falling
Crime reported per resident fell from 2023 to 2025 by more than ordinary year-to-year swings, on the grade’s own score. Trend ↓
Written from the FBI data on this page. Figures are crimes reported to police, not convictions.
What’s behind West Memphis’ grade
Property crimes plus four times violent crimes reported to the FBI per resident, 2023–2025, on a national curve. Both violent and property crime are higher than in most U.S. towns; property crime is the closer of the two to typical.
Violent crime, by year and by type
Show as a table
| Year | West Memphis | Rest of Arkansas | U.S. (FBI national estimate) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 26.4 | 7.6 | 4.0 |
| 2023 | 24.7 | 7.3 | 3.9 |
| 2024 | 19.2 | 6.7 | 3.6 |
| 2025 | 17.8 | 6.1 | 3.3 |
Violent crimes per 1,000 residents
By type 2023–2025, counts
West Memphis’ police reported 1,450 violent crimes to the FBI over 2023–2025, about 20.6 per 1,000 residents a year, against 6.7 in the rest of Arkansas and the FBI’s national estimate of 3.6.
Reported crime per resident, 2023 to 2025
Show as a table
| Year | West Memphis property | Rest of Arkansas property | West Memphis violent | Rest of Arkansas violent |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 47.5 | 31.1 | 26.4 | 7.6 |
| 2023 | 49.0 | 28.6 | 24.7 | 7.3 |
| 2024 | 46.6 | 24.5 | 19.2 | 6.7 |
| 2025 | 34.8 | 20.3 | 17.8 | 6.1 |
Crimes per 1,000 residents
Reported crime per resident fell from 2023 to 2025, by more than ordinary year-to-year swings. Per 1,000 residents, 2022–2025, against the rest of Arkansas.
Crime in West Memphis per 1,000 residents
Violent crime per 1,000 residents, 2025
Property crime per 1,000 residents, 2025
Crimes reported to police in 2025 per resident; one person can be the victim of more than one, and some reports involve visitors.
And about 18 violent crimes, in 2025. Below are 1,000 dots, one per resident; each colored dot is one reported crime.
1,227 crimes reported in 2025
2025 offenses reported
Offenses reported to police, not convictions. FBI Uniform Crime Reporting. The last row is counted outside the property total.
416 violent and 811 property, as reported to the FBI by West Memphis’ police.
30 people died in crashes on West Memphis’s roads in 2019–2023
West Memphis had 29 fatal crashes in five years, in which 30 people died; 7 were pedestrians and 2 were cyclists. 11 died in crashes on an Interstate.
That is 25.1 deaths per 100,000 residents a year, above the median for Arkansas towns of 5,000–25,000 people (10.1, 52 towns).
Deaths are counted where the crash happened, not where the people lived: a highway through town adds through-traffic deaths, and residents’ own risk on roads elsewhere isn’t here. Town rates sit below state and U.S. rates because a third of fatal crashes happen outside any town. Road safety is described here and is not part of the Safety Grade. Source: NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), 2019–2023.
West Memphis and its neighbors
| Town | Grade | Violent | Property |
|---|---|---|---|
| West Memphis | D− | 20.6 | 43.5 |
| Marion | D | 6.6 | 21.3 |
Crimes reported to the FBI per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025.
Arkansas towns of a similar size
| Town | Grade | Violent | Property |
|---|---|---|---|
| West Memphis | D− | 20.6 | 43.5 |
| Centerton | A− | 1.6 | 2.7 |
| Bryant | C | 1.5 | 21.2 |
| Siloam Springs | C− | 4.5 | 14.0 |
| Van Buren | C− | 3.4 | 23.1 |
| Searcy | D | 4.4 | 25.5 |
The five graded Arkansas towns closest to West Memphis’ population (23,336), by grade.
How reported crime compares across the town line. Tap a town to see its safety page.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- It’s reported crime. Only incidents reported to and recorded by police appear here. Many crimes are never reported to police.
- One number for all of West Memphis. A town-wide rate doesn’t show where incidents happen, and that can differ a lot from one part of town to another.
- Visitors count too. Incidents involving people who work, shop or visit are counted against West Memphis’ residents, which raises the per-resident rate.
- Whose population. Rates use the FBI’s population for the department (23,311 in 2025); our figure for West Memphis is 23,336 (2025 Census estimate).
- Gaps are real gaps. A missing year means the department didn’t report a full year, not that nothing happened.
How the grade is calculated, for every town: How TownRatings grades safety →
Questions about safety in West Memphis
Is West Memphis, AR safe?
On crimes reported to the FBI in 2023–2025, West Memphis reports more crime per resident than 100% of U.S. towns, a D− Safety Grade. Its police reported 20.6 violent crimes per 1,000 residents a year, against 6.7 in the rest of Arkansas and the FBI’s national estimate of 3.6.
What is the crime rate in West Memphis?
20.6 violent and 43.5 property crimes per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025, as reported to the FBI. The rest of Arkansas reports 6.7 and 24.4; the FBI’s national estimate is 3.6 and 17.6.
Is West Memphis safer than Marion?
Marion reports less crime per resident than West Memphis: Marion grades D for safety and West Memphis D−. Marion’s police reported 6.6 violent and 21.3 property crimes per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025.
Who polices West Memphis?
West Memphis’s own police department, which reports to the FBI as “West Memphis”. Its figures are the ones on this page.
Heads-up board
Your answer becomes a post in Town Square.
Please don’t name or describe individuals. In an emergency, call 911.
Neighbors looking out for each other in West Memphis.
Crime: FBI Uniform Crime Reporting Program, Crime Data Explorer: offenses known to law enforcement by city, 2025, and state and national rates. Counts are crimes reported to police, not convictions. The Safety Grade is our own summary of that data, not an official rating. Road deaths: NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), 2019–2023. This isn’t an official statement of public safety. In an emergency, call 911.