Photo: Original uploader was Fawcett5 at en.wikipedia Later version(s) were uploaded by Peteforsyth at en.wikipedia . · Public domainPer resident, Penticton records more crime than 92% of Canadian towns
Violence accounts for an index of 142.9 and other offences for 173.9, against usual levels of 89.4 and 56. The yearly rates were 27.4 violent incidents and 86.9 incidents of property crime per 1,000 residents, set against 12.0 and 30.5 in the typical town its size. On top of that, the Safety Grade comes out at D, drawn from crime the police covering Penticton reported through 2023 to 2025: #235 of 251 in British Columbia. Police cleared 21% of incidents, weighted by seriousness, against 33% for the typical Canadian 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.
What stands out about safety in Penticton
Mischief: high for a town its size
Penticton records 31.8 incidents of mischief per 1,000 residents a year, against 3.7 in the typical town among Canadian towns of 10,000 to 50,000 people. By type ↓
Higher than most of British Columbia
The typical British Columbia town scores 83.2; Penticton, 164. Towns its size ↓
A higher index than most towns its size
Set among the 40 Canadian towns closest to it in population, Penticton comes 38th, counting from the lowest Crime Severity Index. Towns its size ↓
Heavier on property and other crime
Penticton scores 142.9 for violence and 173.9 for other crime; the typical Canadian town its size scores 89.4 and 56. By type ↓
Written from Statistics Canada’s police-reported crime by police service and detachment, 2023–2025. Figures are what police recorded, not convictions.
Penticton: D for safety, and why
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: #235 of 251 in British Columbia and #2,483 of 2,572 Canadian towns.
The Crime Severity Index and its two halves, beside the typical figure for Canadian towns of 10,000 to 50,000 people.
Crime in Penticton, type by type
Against the typical town its size, Penticton runs highest on mischief (31.8 per 1,000 against 3.7), break and enter (6.4 per 1,000 against 2.2) and theft under $5,000 (31.8 per 1,000 against 11.8).
Every Statistics Canada violation line
| Violation | Incidents a year | Per 1,000 | Cleared |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homicide | 0.7 | 0.02 | — |
| Sexual violations against children | 23.3 | 0.6 | 18% |
| Assaults against a peace officer | 17 | 0.4 | 98% |
| Firearms: use, discharge, pointing | 7 | 0.2 | 57% |
| Robbery | 23 | 0.6 | 32% |
| Forcible confinement or kidnapping | 3 | 0.08 | — |
| Other violent violations | 6 | 0.2 | 22% |
| Breaking and entering | 248 | 6.4 | 13% |
| Possession of stolen property | 55.3 | 1.4 | 33% |
| Theft of a motor vehicle | 162.3 | 4.2 | 4% |
| Theft over $5,000 | 40 | 1 | 7% |
| Theft under $5,000 | 1,232 | 31.8 | 14% |
| Mischief | 1,228.7 | 31.8 | 24% |
| Weapons violations | 47.3 | 1.2 | 47% |
| Administration of justice violations | 519.7 | 13.4 | 88% |
| Other Criminal Code violations | 143.7 | 3.7 | 30% |
| Drug violations | 63 | 1.6 | 60% |
| Impaired driving | 93.7 | 2.4 | 78% |
| Failing to stop or remain | 21 | 0.5 | 18% |
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 10,000 to 50,000 people.
Among 40 towns its size, Penticton places 38th
| # | Town | People | Severity index | Violent index | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | LaSalle Ontario | 36,452 | 22.9 | 17.8 | A+ |
| … | |||||
| 11 | Port Moody British Columbia | 38,285 | 43.5 | 43.4 | A− |
| … | |||||
| 23 | West Kelowna British Columbia | 40,274 | 78.4 | 79.1 | C+ |
| … | |||||
| 29 | North Cowichan British Columbia | 34,525 | 99 | 124 | C− |
| … | |||||
| 35 | Langley British Columbia | 35,444 | 127.5 | 145 | D |
| 36 | Courtenay British Columbia | 32,869 | 131.2 | 129 | D |
| 37 | Campbell River British Columbia | 38,300 | 162.9 | 166.6 | D |
| 38 | Penticton British Columbia | 39,068 | 164 | 142.9 | D |
| 39 | Whitehorse Yukon | 34,129 | 171.7 | 196.7 | D |
| 40 | Prince Albert Saskatchewan | 40,728 | 295.8 | 470.9 | 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 Penticton in population, the lowest Crime Severity Index first (2023–2025 means).
Year by year in Penticton: down 19%, 2023 to 2025
Crime Severity Index
Its heaviest year came first: 2023, at 179.5, against a low of 144.8 in 2025. Set beside it, the typical Canadian town its size went from 69.5 in 2023 to 60 in 2025.
Every year as a table
| Year | Penticton | Typical town its size |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 144.8 | 60 |
| 2024 | 167.8 | 67.9 |
| 2023 | 179.5 | 69.5 |
Statistics Canada, Crime Severity Index by police service, each year as published. Typical: the median of Canadian towns of 10,000 to 50,000 people.
The Crime Severity Index of the police covering Penticton, each year, against the typical Canadian town its size.
Around 1,060 violent incidents a year on Penticton’s police records (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.
Add about 3,360 property crimes and 1,960 other violations a year (2023–2025 average). The grid is 1,000 residents, a coloured dot for each incident a year at these rates.
Crime in the places around Penticton
| Town | People | Severity index | Violent index | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Penticton | 39,068 | 164 | 142.9 | D |
| Penticton 1 | 2,147 | — | — | — |
| Electoral Area F, Okanagan-Similkameen | 2,149 | 71.9 | 63.7 | C+ |
| Electoral Area I, Okanagan-Similkameen | 2,372 | 71.9 | 63.7 | C+ |
| Naramata | 2,077 | 71.9 | 63.7 | C+ |
| Okanagan Falls | 4,002 | 71.9 | 63.7 | C+ |
| Summerland | 12,343 | 56.2 | 38.6 | B |
The places around Penticton all score lower on the index. The nearest of them, Electoral Area F, Okanagan-Similkameen (8.3 km away), scores 71.9 against 164.
Each place’s police figures, 2023–2025 means.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- 100 is Canada in 2006. Figures are relative to one fixed point, Canada in 2006 at 100, rather than to this year’s national number.
- Cleared, not convicted. Cleared means solved by police, charged or not; it says nothing about what courts decide.
- What the index measures. 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.”
Questions about safety in Penticton
Is Penticton safe?
Penticton scores 164 on Statistics Canada’s Crime Severity Index (2023–2025 mean), where the typical figure for Canadian towns of 10,000 to 50,000 people is 66; per 1,000 residents a year that is 27.4 violent incidents and 86.9 property crimes.
What is the most common crime in Penticton?
The three biggest groups are other Criminal Code offences at 45.1, theft under $5,000 at 31.8 and mischief at 31.8, each per 1,000 residents a year.
Is crime going up in Penticton?
Down 19%: 179.5 in 2023, 144.8 in 2025.
How much of Penticton’s crime do police solve?
About 21% of crime is cleared, weighted by seriousness, with 30% of violent and 19% of other crime; the figure for the typical Canadian town its size is 33%.
Whose figures are these?
They are Penticton’s own: its police cover the town and no other.
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).