Photo: Glenlarson~commonswiki · Public domainCrime per resident in Slave Lake runs higher than in 93% of Canadian towns
Against usual levels of 85.7 and 62.8, violent and non-violent offences here reach 153.9 and 200.5. Police counts work out at 38.1 violent incidents and 92.3 incidents of property crime per 1,000 residents annually; in the typical town its size they are 12.9 and 31.2. Scored on crime the police covering Slave Lake reported across 2023 to 2025, the town lands on D for safety: #456 of 474 in Alberta.
Statistics Canada, police-reported crime, 2023–2025 means. The index weighs each crime by its seriousness; rates are incidents per 1,000 residents a year.
What stands out about safety in Slave Lake
Mischief: high for a town its size
Slave Lake records 44.5 incidents of mischief per 1,000 residents a year, against 4.9 in the typical town among Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people. By type ↓
Heavier than Alberta’s middle
Within Alberta, the median town comes to 110 on the index, against 186.1 in Slave Lake. Towns its size ↓
A higher index than most towns its size
Line up the 40 Canadian towns nearest in size by their index and Slave Lake stands 35th, the lowest first. Towns its size ↓
Heavier on property and other crime
Slave Lake’s index splits into violent crime, 153.9 here and 85.7 for the typical Canadian town its size, and everything else, 200.5 against 62.8. By type ↓
Written from Statistics Canada’s police-reported crime by police service and detachment, 2023–2025. Figures are what police recorded, not convictions.
The grade: D for Slave Lake
The grade weighs the Crime Severity Index and its violent half, averaged over 2023–2025, against every Canadian town and city neighbourhood of 1,000 people or more.
Its place: #456 of 474 in Alberta and #2,490 of 2,572 Canadian towns.
The Crime Severity Index and its two halves, beside the typical figure for Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What police record in Slave Lake, by type
Against the typical town its size, Slave Lake runs highest on mischief (44.5 per 1,000 against 4.9), drug offences (4.1 per 1,000 against 0.7) and break and enter (14.3 per 1,000 against 2.8).
Every Statistics Canada violation line
| Violation | Incidents a year | Per 1,000 | Cleared |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homicide | 0 | 0 | — |
| Sexual violations against children | 4.3 | 0.6 | — |
| Assaults against a peace officer | 8.7 | 1.2 | 100% |
| Firearms: use, discharge, pointing | 1.7 | 0.2 | — |
| Robbery | 3 | 0.4 | — |
| Forcible confinement or kidnapping | 0.3 | 0.05 | — |
| Other violent violations | 6 | 0.8 | 45% |
| Breaking and entering | 102 | 14.3 | 11% |
| Possession of stolen property | 9.3 | 1.3 | 57% |
| Theft of a motor vehicle | 41.7 | 5.8 | 12% |
| Theft over $5,000 | 9 | 1.3 | 14% |
| Theft under $5,000 | 115.3 | 16.2 | 15% |
| Mischief | 315.7 | 44.5 | 54% |
| Weapons violations | 12 | 1.7 | 64% |
| Administration of justice violations | 78.7 | 11 | 84% |
| Other Criminal Code violations | 15.7 | 2.2 | 75% |
| Drug violations | 29.3 | 4.1 | 49% |
| Impaired driving | 30 | 4.2 | 84% |
| Failing to stop or remain | 1 | 0.1 | — |
Statistics Canada’s violation groups for the whole police service or detachment, incidents a year its own. Cleared: incidents solved by a charge or otherwise, as a share of those reported.
Incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 means, against the typical figure for Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people.
By its index, Slave Lake stands 35th of 40 towns its size
| # | Town | People | Severity index | Violent index | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Trent Lakes Ontario | 7,357 | 20.6 | 24.8 | A+ |
| … | |||||
| 30 | Westlock County Alberta | 7,556 | 129.8 | 116.4 | D |
| … | |||||
| 32 | Fort Frances Ontario | 7,607 | 143.8 | 209.3 | D |
| 33 | Yarmouth Nova Scotia | 7,129 | 146.8 | 215.2 | D |
| 34 | Athabasca County Alberta | 7,280 | 165 | 138.6 | D |
| 35 | Slave Lake Alberta | 7,334 | 186.1 | 153.9 | D |
| 36 | Hope British Columbia | 7,183 | 208.1 | 173 | D |
| 37 | Peace River Alberta | 7,220 | 254.7 | 229 | D |
| 38 | Merritt British Columbia | 7,190 | 270.6 | 338.1 | D |
| 39 | Bonnyville Alberta | 7,366 | 285.4 | 211.4 | D |
| 40 | Algoma, Unorganized, North Part Ontario | 7,008 | 302.3 | 509 | D− |
The 40 Canadian towns of 2,500+ people closest in population; city neighbourhoods, city totals and reserves are left out. Towns on one police service or detachment share its index.
The Canadian towns closest to Slave Lake in population, the lowest Crime Severity Index first (2023–2025 means).
Slave Lake’s police: about 270 violent incidents a year over 2023–2025
Violent incidents per 1,000 a year, 2023–2025
Property crimes per 1,000 a year, 2023–2025
Statistics Canada counts actual incidents; those police record as unfounded are listed apart and kept out of its crime rates and severity index. Each incident is filed under its most serious violation, which the survey sets partly by the maximum penalty.
Property crime adds about 660 a year and other violations 330 (2023–2025 average). Of 1,000 dots, one per resident, the coloured ones are a year’s incidents at these rates.
Year by year in Slave Lake: down 8%, 2023 to 2025
Crime Severity Index
Its heaviest year fell in the middle, 2024, at 213.3; 2025 was the lightest, at 165.3. The comparison line, the typical Canadian town its size, runs from 74.3 in 2023 to 64.2 by 2025.
Every year as a table
| Year | Slave Lake | Typical town its size |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 165.3 | 64.2 |
| 2024 | 213.3 | 68.8 |
| 2023 | 179.6 | 74.3 |
Statistics Canada, Crime Severity Index by police service, each year as published. Typical: the median of Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people.
The Crime Severity Index of the police covering Slave Lake, each year, against the typical Canadian town its size.
Crime in the places around Slave Lake
| Town | People | Severity index | Violent index | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Slave Lake | 7,334 | 186.1 | 153.9 | D |
| Lesser Slave River No. 124 (11 km) | 2,980 | 170.9 | 107.9 | D |
| Swan Hills (74 km) | 1,430 | 194.9 | 106.8 | D |
| Big Lakes County (93 km) | 5,106 | 167.3 | 179 | D |
| Opportunity No. 17 (98 km) | 3,592 | 495.1 | 602.4 | D− |
| High Prairie (109 km) | 2,607 | 334.5 | 521.9 | D− |
Of 5 places nearby with their own figures, 2 come in under Slave Lake. The nearest of them, Lesser Slave River No. 124 (11.2 km away), scores 170.9 against 186.1.
Each place’s police figures, 2023–2025 means. The nearest places to Slave Lake with figures are 11–109 km away.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- What the index measures. Statistics Canada builds the index from every crime police record, weighted by how seriously the courts treat it, and divides by the population. It adds a warning of its own: “The CSI is not an indicator of overall safety and should be interpreted in the broader community context.”
- 100 is Canada in 2006. Its scale starts from Canada in 2006, set at 100, so a figure above 100 means more serious crime per resident than the country had then.
- Cleared, not convicted. The clearance rate is the share of incidents police solve, by a charge or otherwise, weighted by seriousness like the index. It isn’t a conviction rate.
Questions about safety in Slave Lake
Is Slave Lake safe?
The short answer is an index of 186.1 for Slave Lake (2023–2025), built from 38.1 violent incidents and 92.3 property crimes a year for every 1,000 residents. Set that beside 68.5, the median for Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is the most common crime in Slave Lake?
Police record mischief most, 44.5 per 1,000 residents a year, ahead of other Criminal Code offences (35.1) and assault (21.8).
Is crime going up in Slave Lake?
It went down 8% between 2023 and 2025, from 179.6 to 165.3.
How much of Slave Lake’s crime do police solve?
Weighted by seriousness, police cleared 36% of crime (61% of violent crime, 29% of the rest). The typical Canadian town its size clears 34%.
Whose figures are these?
A police service or contract that serves Slave Lake alone, so the figures are the town’s.
Source: Statistics Canada, police-reported crime by police service and detachment, 2023–2025 (Statistics Canada Open Licence); TownRatings calculation.
Sources: Statistics Canada, Crime severity index and weighted clearance rates, police services (tables 35-10-0186 to 0190, 0061, 0063, 0064), 2023–2025 · Statistics Canada, Incident-based crime statistics by detailed violations, police services (35-10-0178 to 0185) · Safety Grade: TownRatings calculation. Under the Statistics Canada Open Licence.
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).