Photo: JFVoll · CC BY-SA 4.0Crime per resident in Watford runs higher than in 97% of Canadian towns
Of the two halves, violence comes to 378.3 and other offences to 318.9, beside norms of 85.7 and 62.8. From 2023 to 2025, crime the police covering Watford reported put it at D− for safety: #857 of 862 in Ontario. Annual rates stand at 53.3 violent incidents and 95.0 incidents of property crime for every thousand residents, next to 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. Crime severity, crime rate and incident counts published for the Lambton (Walpole Island First Nation) detachment area, not by town.
What stands out about safety in Watford
Drug offences: high for a town its size
Watford records 8.4 incidents of drug offences per 1,000 residents a year, against 0.7 in the typical town among Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people. By type ↓
Over the Ontario norm
Watford’s index of 333.9 compares with 56.2 for the typical town in Ontario. Towns its size ↓
A higher index than most towns its size
Of the 40 Canadian towns nearest it in size, Watford places 39th from the lowest index. Towns its size ↓
Above-typical clearance
Weighted by seriousness, 50% of crime in Watford ends in a charge or is otherwise solved: 74% of violent crime and 38% of the rest. Across Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people the figure is 34%. Questions ↓
Written from Statistics Canada’s police-reported crime by police service and detachment, 2023–2025. Figures are what police recorded, not convictions.
Watford: 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: #857 of 862 in Ontario and #2,545 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 Watford’s figures
Against the typical town its size, Watford runs highest on drug offences (8.4 per 1,000 against 0.7), break and enter (16.5 per 1,000 against 2.8) and mischief (23.3 per 1,000 against 4.9).
Every Statistics Canada violation line
| Violation | Incidents a year | Per 1,000 | Cleared |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homicide | 0 | 0 | — |
| Sexual violations against children | 2 | 1.1 | — |
| Assaults against a peace officer | 4.3 | 2.4 | — |
| Firearms: use, discharge, pointing | 3 | 1.7 | — |
| Robbery | 1.7 | 0.9 | — |
| Forcible confinement or kidnapping | 1.7 | 0.9 | — |
| Other violent violations | 0.7 | 0.4 | — |
| Breaking and entering | 30 | 16.5 | 30% |
| Possession of stolen property | 4.3 | 2.4 | — |
| Theft of a motor vehicle | 14.7 | 8.1 | 29% |
| Theft over $5,000 | 8 | 4.4 | 13% |
| Theft under $5,000 | 61.7 | 33.9 | 13% |
| Mischief | 42.3 | 23.3 | 25% |
| Weapons violations | 17 | 9.4 | 29% |
| Administration of justice violations | 54 | 29.7 | 60% |
| Other Criminal Code violations | 10.7 | 5.9 | 35% |
| Drug violations | 15.3 | 8.4 | 72% |
| Impaired driving | 39.7 | 21.8 | 99% |
| Failing to stop or remain | 2.3 | 1.3 | — |
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.
Among 40 towns its size, Watford places 39th
| # | Town | People | Severity index | Violent index | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mulmur Ontario | 3,813 | 24 | 17.5 | A+ |
| … | |||||
| 4 | Lake of Bays Ontario | 4,105 | 32.8 | 34.7 | A |
| … | |||||
| 6 | Morris-Turnberry Ontario | 4,028 | 35 | 39.3 | A |
| … | |||||
| 14 | Perth South Ontario | 4,055 | 52.5 | 75.2 | B+ |
| … | |||||
| 36 | Crossfield Alberta | 4,075 | 137 | 122.9 | D |
| 37 | Smoky Lake County Alberta | 4,043 | 255 | 152.4 | D |
| 38 | Alexander Manitoba | 4,032 | 298.9 | 493 | D− |
| 39 | Watford Ontario | 3,955 | 333.9 | 378.3 | D− |
| 40 | Swan River Manitoba | 4,048 | 435.7 | 403.3 | 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 Watford in population, the lowest Crime Severity Index first (2023–2025 means).
About 97 violent incidents a year across the police area of 1,840 residents that includes Watford, 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.
And about 170 property crimes, plus 200 other violations, a year (2023–2025 average). Each dot is one resident; each coloured dot, one incident a year at the area’s rates.
The index in Watford, each year
Crime Severity Index
2023 opened the run as its heaviest year (360.3); 2025 was the lightest, at 287.3. For the typical Canadian town its size, 2023 gave 74.3 and 2025 gave 64.2.
Every year as a table
| Year | Watford | Typical town its size |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 287.3 | 64.2 |
| 2024 | 354.1 | 68.8 |
| 2023 | 360.3 | 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 Watford, each year, against the typical Canadian town its size.
Crime in the places around Watford
| Town | People | Severity index | Violent index | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Watford | 3,955 | 333.9 | 378.3 | D− |
| Brooke-Alvinston | 2,557 | 333.9 | 378.3 | D− |
| Adelaide-Metcalfe | 3,196 | 25.7 | 29 | A+ |
Where a neighbour shares its police, it shares the figure too, and isn’t counted above.
Each place’s police figures, 2023–2025 means.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Severity, weighed. Police-reported incidents, each multiplied by a weight drawn from court sentences, summed and divided by the population: that is the index, and its makers attach a caution, “The CSI is not an indicator of overall safety and should be interpreted in the broader community context.”
- Read with care. The police behind these figures serve about 1,836 people, so a handful of incidents moves every rate. Statistics Canada’s note: “Data for police services or detachments with populations less than 5,000 should be used with caution.”
- A wider policing area. An RCMP or OPP detachment reports one set of figures for everywhere it polices, so Watford’s are shared with its surroundings.
- What 100 means. 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.
- The clearance rate. 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 Watford
Is Watford safe?
On Statistics Canada’s figures, Watford scores 333.9 on the Crime Severity Index for 2023–2025, with 53.3 violent and 95 property incidents per 1,000 residents a year. For Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people, the typical index is 68.5.
What is the most common crime in Watford?
Other Criminal Code offences is the most common, at 52.3 per 1,000 residents a year, then theft under $5,000 (33.9) and Criminal Code traffic offences (32.8).
Is crime going up in Watford?
No: the index fell 20%, from 360.3 in 2023 to 287.3 in 2025. With few people or missing years behind it, the change is a rough one.
How much of Watford’s crime do police solve?
About 50% of crime is cleared, weighted by seriousness, with 74% of violent and 38% of other crime; the figure for the typical Canadian town its size is 34%.
Whose figures are these?
A shared service or detachment’s, reported as one for Watford 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).