Photo: Drozwik Drones · CC BY 3.0Crime per resident in Bowmanville runs lower than in 75% of Canadian towns
Measured on crime the police covering Bowmanville reported between 2023 and 2025, it earns a Safety Grade of A−: #234 of 862 in Ontario. Split in two, the index gives 61.4 for violence and 39.9 for everything else (normally 75.2 and 54.2). Its police logs show 7.9 violent incidents and 20.4 incidents of property crime per 1,000 residents a year, while in the typical town its size the numbers are 10.8 and 25.1. On top of that, the index fell from 47 in 2023 to 43.2 in 2025.
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. Not measured by town: crime severity, crime rate and incident counts (the Durham Region (Oshawa/Whitby/Ajax) service area).
What stands out about safety in Bowmanville
Lower than many towns its size
Line up the 40 Canadian towns nearest in size by their index and Bowmanville stands 11th, the lowest first. Towns its size ↓
Close to Ontario’s typical town
Within Ontario, the median town comes to 56.2 on the index, against 45.8 in Bowmanville. Towns its size ↓
Written from Statistics Canada’s police-reported crime by police service and detachment, 2023–2025. Figures are what police recorded, not convictions.
The grade: A− for Bowmanville
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: #234 of 862 in Ontario and #432 of 2,572 Canadian towns.
The Crime Severity Index and its two halves, beside the typical figure for Canadian towns of 50,000 people or more.
Among 40 towns its size, Bowmanville places 11th
| # | Town | People | Severity index | Violent index | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Repentigny Quebec | 91,290 | 28.1 | 48.2 | A+ |
| 2 | Lindsay Ontario | 85,351 | 31.7 | 42.8 | A |
| … | |||||
| 4 | Bolton Ontario | 90,201 | 39.2 | 51 | A |
| … | |||||
| 8 | Airdrie Alberta | 92,544 | 44.3 | 48.7 | A− |
| 9 | Ajax Ontario | 141,111 | 45.8 | 61.4 | A− |
| 10 | Pickering Ontario | 118,378 | 45.8 | 61.4 | A− |
| 11 | Bowmanville Ontario | 114,180 | 45.8 | 61.4 | A− |
| 12 | Newmarket Ontario | 95,763 | 52.8 | 67.4 | B+ |
| 13 | Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu Quebec | 100,806 | 53.1 | 81 | B+ |
| 14 | Brossard Quebec | 97,597 | 53.7 | 69.5 | B |
| 15 | Niagara Falls Ontario | 113,983 | 56.1 | 72.6 | B |
| … | |||||
| 18 | Peterborough Ontario | 97,834 | 71.7 | 89.4 | C+ |
| … | |||||
| 40 | Prince George British Columbia | 85,944 | 209.1 | 239.6 | 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 Bowmanville in population, the lowest Crime Severity Index first (2023–2025 means).
Which crimes make up Bowmanville’s figures
Mischief and break and enter sit below it.
Every Statistics Canada violation line
| Violation | Incidents a year | Per 1,000 | Cleared |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homicide | 10.7 | 0.01 | 78% |
| Sexual violations against children | 118.7 | 0.2 | 61% |
| Assaults against a peace officer | 92.7 | 0.1 | 100% |
| Firearms: use, discharge, pointing | 68.3 | 0.09 | 41% |
| Robbery | 303 | 0.4 | 49% |
| Forcible confinement or kidnapping | 24 | 0.03 | 75% |
| Other violent violations | 106.3 | 0.1 | 53% |
| Breaking and entering | 1,113.7 | 1.4 | 29% |
| Possession of stolen property | 152.3 | 0.2 | 89% |
| Theft of a motor vehicle | 1,359.7 | 1.7 | 10% |
| Theft over $5,000 | 256.3 | 0.3 | 19% |
| Theft under $5,000 | 7,521.7 | 9.5 | 24% |
| Mischief | 2,015.3 | 2.6 | 23% |
| Weapons violations | 122.3 | 0.2 | 88% |
| Administration of justice violations | 5,130.7 | 6.5 | 94% |
| Other Criminal Code violations | 249.3 | 0.3 | 69% |
| Drug violations | 551.7 | 0.7 | 93% |
| Impaired driving | 813.3 | 1 | 99% |
| Failing to stop or remain | 153 | 0.2 | 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 50,000 people or more.
Bowmanville, year by year
Crime Severity Index
At 47.2, 2024 topped the three years, and 2025 was lowest at 43.2. The comparison line, the typical Canadian town its size, runs from 64.3 in 2023 to 59.2 by 2025.
Every year as a table
| Year | Bowmanville | Typical town its size |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 43.2 | 59.2 |
| 2024 | 47.2 | 59.9 |
| 2023 | 47 | 64.3 |
Statistics Canada, Crime Severity Index by police service, each year as published. Typical: the median of Canadian towns of 50,000 people or more.
The Crime Severity Index of the police covering Bowmanville, each year, against the typical Canadian town its size.
Around 6,230 violent incidents a year in the 810,100-resident police area around Bowmanville, 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 16,100 a year and other violations 7,580 (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 Bowmanville
| Town | People | Severity index | Violent index | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bowmanville | 114,180 | 45.8 | 61.4 | A− |
| Oshawa (13 km) | 213,592 | 45.8 | 61.4 | A− |
| Whitby (20 km) | 162,413 | 45.8 | 61.4 | A− |
| Ajax (27 km) | 141,111 | 45.8 | 61.4 | A− |
| Port Perry (29 km) | 23,928 | 45.8 | 61.4 | A− |
Where neighbours share its police, they share the figure too: 4 aren’t counted above.
Each place’s police figures, 2023–2025 means. Distances here run 13–29 km: that is how far the nearest places with figures are from Bowmanville.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- An index, not a verdict. Each incident counts by its seriousness, judged from court sentences, and the total is set per resident. As Statistics Canada puts it, “The CSI is not an indicator of overall safety and should be interpreted in the broader community context.”
- A wider service area. A regional or shared police service reports one set of figures for every municipality it covers, Bowmanville included.
- The index’s scale. Canada’s own index has been below its 2006 base of 100 for years, so 100 marks a fixed reference, not today’s national average.
- What clearance means. Police clear an incident by charging someone, recommending a charge, or closing it another way. The rate weighs serious crimes more, as the index does.
Questions about safety in Bowmanville
Is Bowmanville safe?
Its police recorded 7.9 violent incidents and 20.4 property crimes a year per 1,000 residents over 2023–2025, which gives Bowmanville a Crime Severity Index of 45.8. For Canadian towns of 50,000 people or more, the typical index is 60.3.
What is the most common crime in Bowmanville?
Police record theft under $5,000 most, 9.5 per 1,000 residents a year, ahead of other Criminal Code offences (7.3) and fraud (4.6).
Is crime going up in Bowmanville?
Over 2023–2025 the index dropped 8%, to 43.2 from 47.
How much of Bowmanville’s crime do police solve?
Weighted by seriousness, police cleared 42% of crime (55% of violent crime, 35% of the rest). The typical Canadian town its size clears 38%.
Whose figures are these?
A shared service or detachment’s, reported as one for Bowmanville and everywhere else it polices.
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).