Photo: Shoju foge · CC BY-SA 3.0Vermilion sees more crime per resident than 90% of Canadian towns
Its violent half comes to 129.6 and its non-violent half to 149, where the norm is 85.7 and 62.8. Scored on crime the police covering Vermilion reported across 2023 to 2025, the town lands on D for safety: #446 of 474 in Alberta. Violence and property crime split as 22.8 violent incidents and 59.7 incidents of property crime per 1,000 residents a year, beside 12.9 and 31.2 in the typical town its size.
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. Area behind the crime severity, crime rate and incident counts figures: the Vermilion detachment area.
What stands out about safety in Vermilion
Mischief: high for a town its size
Vermilion records 17.6 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 ↓
A higher index than most towns its size
Of the 40 Canadian towns nearest it in size, Vermilion places 38th from the lowest index. Towns its size ↓
Higher than most of Alberta
Vermilion’s index of 142.6 compares with 110 for the typical town in Alberta. Towns its size ↓
Property and other crime weigh more
Violent crime scores 129.6 on Vermilion’s index against 85.7 for the typical Canadian town its size; non-violent crime, 149 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 D for Vermilion, and how it is built
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: #446 of 474 in Alberta and #2,458 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.
Which crimes make up Vermilion’s figures
Against the typical town its size, Vermilion runs highest on mischief (17.6 per 1,000 against 4.9), break and enter (9.8 per 1,000 against 2.8) and drug offences (1.8 per 1,000 against 0.7). Theft under $5,000 sits below it.
Every Statistics Canada violation line
| Violation | Incidents a year | Per 1,000 | Cleared |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homicide | 0.3 | 0.04 | — |
| Sexual violations against children | 5 | 0.5 | 86% |
| Assaults against a peace officer | 4.7 | 0.5 | — |
| Firearms: use, discharge, pointing | 4 | 0.4 | — |
| Robbery | 2.3 | 0.2 | — |
| Forcible confinement or kidnapping | 1.3 | 0.1 | — |
| Other violent violations | 3.7 | 0.4 | — |
| Breaking and entering | 93.7 | 9.8 | 15% |
| Possession of stolen property | 50.7 | 5.3 | 30% |
| Theft of a motor vehicle | 58.3 | 6.1 | 12% |
| Theft over $5,000 | 19.3 | 2 | 7% |
| Theft under $5,000 | 96 | 10.1 | 11% |
| Mischief | 167.3 | 17.6 | 23% |
| Weapons violations | 11 | 1.2 | 73% |
| Administration of justice violations | 89.3 | 9.4 | 87% |
| Other Criminal Code violations | 7 | 0.7 | 71% |
| Drug violations | 17.3 | 1.8 | 77% |
| Impaired driving | 61 | 6.4 | 53% |
| 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, Vermilion stands 38th of 40 towns its size
| # | Town | People | Severity index | Violent index | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lac-Etchemin Quebec | 4,089 | 30.8 | 48.9 | A+ |
| … | |||||
| 30 | Claresholm Alberta | 4,242 | 91.1 | 68.1 | C |
| … | |||||
| 35 | Northern Lights County Alberta | 4,115 | 119.8 | 132.1 | C− |
| 36 | Ormstown Quebec | 4,259 | 120.3 | 141 | D |
| 37 | Crossfield Alberta | 4,075 | 137 | 122.9 | D |
| 38 | Vermilion Alberta | 4,192 | 142.6 | 129.6 | D |
| 39 | Port Hardy British Columbia | 4,201 | 259.5 | 435.4 | D |
| 40 | Fort Nelson British Columbia | 4,144 | 263.7 | 376.9 | 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 Vermilion in population, the lowest Crime Severity Index first (2023–2025 means).
Vermilion’s index fell 16% from 2023 to 2025
Crime Severity Index
Its highest year was 2023, at 152.8, and its lowest 2025, at 128.4. The typical Canadian town its size went from 74.3 in 2023 to 64.2 in 2025.
Every year as a table
| Year | Vermilion | Typical town its size |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 128.4 | 64.2 |
| 2024 | 146.5 | 68.8 |
| 2023 | 152.8 | 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 Vermilion, each year, against the typical Canadian town its size.
Around 220 violent incidents a year in the 9,630-resident police area around Vermilion, 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 570 a year and other violations 240 (2023–2025 average). Of 1,000 dots, one per resident, the coloured ones are a year’s incidents at these rates.
Crime in the places around Vermilion
| Town | People | Severity index | Violent index | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vermilion | 4,192 | 142.6 | 129.6 | D |
| Vermilion River County (20 km) | 8,282 | 96.6 | 62.7 | C− |
| Lloydminster (Part) (56 km) | 21,267 | 211.6 | 177.2 | D |
| Wainwright (57 km) | 6,996 | 113 | 121.8 | C− |
| Lloydminster (Part) (58 km) | 13,137 | 211.6 | 177.2 | D |
| Britannia No. 502 (59 km) | 2,212 | 125.2 | 105.4 | D |
Vermilion sits above 3 of the 5 neighbours with figures of their own. Vermilion River County, 19.6 km away, is the nearest lower one, at 96.6 to 142.6.
Each place’s police figures, 2023–2025 means. The nearest places to Vermilion with figures are 20–59 km away.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- How serious, not how safe. One robbery outweighs a run of minor thefts here, since every crime counts by the sentences courts give it. Statistics Canada adds: “The CSI is not an indicator of overall safety and should be interpreted in the broader community context.”
- Town and surroundings together. An RCMP or OPP detachment reports one set of figures for everywhere it polices, so Vermilion’s are shared with its surroundings.
- Reading the number. A reading of 100 is the whole country in 2006. Half of that, 50, means half the severity per resident.
- Solved cases. Weighted like the index, so solving one assault counts for more than solving a mischief; a charge laid, recommended or otherwise resolved all count.
Questions about safety in Vermilion
Is Vermilion safe?
Averaged over 2023–2025, the Crime Severity Index for Vermilion comes to 142.6. Per 1,000 residents a year, police logged 22.8 violent incidents and 59.7 property crimes. The middle of Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people is 68.5.
What is the most common crime in Vermilion?
Mischief is the most common, at 17.6 per 1,000 residents a year, then other Criminal Code offences (15.3) and theft under $5,000 (10.1).
Is crime going up in Vermilion?
The reverse: 152.8 in 2023 came down to 128.4 by 2025, 16% lower.
How much of Vermilion’s crime do police solve?
The weighted clearance rate is 38%: 73% for violent crime and 25% for non-violent. For the typical Canadian town its size it is 34%.
Whose figures are these?
A police service or detachment that covers Vermilion and other places, so the figures are shared.
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).