Photo: Unknown author Unknown author · Public domainCrime in Welland sits close to the middle of Canadian towns
Of the two halves, violence comes to 72.6 and other offences to 49.9, beside norms of 75.2 and 54.2. Weighing it all, Welland earns B for safety (#377 of 862 in Ontario), with close to the middle of Canadian towns, on crime its police reported over 2023 to 2025. Behind the grade sit 9.4 violent incidents and 25.1 incidents of property crime per 1,000 people a year, where the comparison is 10.8 and 25.1 in the typical town its size. The index held steady between 2023 (55.4) and 2025 (53.8).
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 Niagara Region (St. Catharines) service area).
What stands out about safety in Welland
In the middle of towns its size
Line up the 40 Canadian towns nearest in size by their index and Welland stands 18th, the lowest first. Towns its size ↓
About the Ontario norm
Within Ontario, the median town comes to 56.2 on the index, against 56.1 in Welland. 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: B for Welland
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: #377 of 862 in Ontario and #736 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.
Crime in Welland, type by type
Assault and drug offences sit below it.
Every Statistics Canada violation line
| Violation | Incidents a year | Per 1,000 | Cleared |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homicide | 11.7 | 0.02 | 79% |
| Sexual violations against children | 139.7 | 0.3 | 47% |
| Assaults against a peace officer | 115.3 | 0.2 | 99% |
| Firearms: use, discharge, pointing | 23.7 | 0.04 | 55% |
| Robbery | 184.3 | 0.3 | 47% |
| Forcible confinement or kidnapping | 31 | 0.06 | 90% |
| Other violent violations | 100 | 0.2 | 56% |
| Breaking and entering | 1,186.7 | 2.2 | 19% |
| Possession of stolen property | 118.3 | 0.2 | 89% |
| Theft of a motor vehicle | 959.7 | 1.8 | 10% |
| Theft over $5,000 | 240.3 | 0.4 | 11% |
| Theft under $5,000 | 6,173.3 | 11.5 | 17% |
| Mischief | 1,897 | 3.5 | 18% |
| Weapons violations | 100 | 0.2 | 74% |
| Administration of justice violations | 3,185 | 5.9 | 95% |
| Other Criminal Code violations | 278.3 | 0.5 | 51% |
| Drug violations | 280.3 | 0.5 | 89% |
| Impaired driving | 558.3 | 1 | 97% |
| Failing to stop or remain | 129.3 | 0.2 | 8% |
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.
Welland, year by year
Crime Severity Index
At 58.9, 2024 topped the three years, and 2025 was lowest at 53.8. 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 | Welland | Typical town its size |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 53.8 | 59.2 |
| 2024 | 58.9 | 59.9 |
| 2023 | 55.4 | 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 Welland, each year, against the typical Canadian town its size.
551,100 residents, about 5,080 violent incidents a year: the police area Welland belongs to, 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 13,500 property crimes and 4,880 other violations a year (2023–2025 average). The grid is 1,000 residents, a coloured dot for each incident a year at these rates.
By its index, Welland stands 18th of 40 towns its size
| # | Town | People | Severity index | Violent index | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Georgetown Ontario | 68,265 | 31.4 | 28.3 | A |
| 2 | Bradford Ontario | 51,346 | 32.5 | 41.8 | A |
| 3 | Innisfil Ontario | 50,686 | 32.5 | 41.8 | A |
| 4 | Alliston Ontario | 50,739 | 33.2 | 50.9 | A |
| … | |||||
| 15 | Keswick Ontario | 53,630 | 52.8 | 67.4 | B+ |
| 16 | Quinte West Ontario | 50,385 | 52.9 | 73.2 | B+ |
| 17 | Victoriaville Quebec | 49,863 | 55 | 86.5 | B |
| 18 | Welland Ontario | 66,480 | 56.1 | 72.6 | B |
| 19 | Port Coquitlam British Columbia | 67,724 | 58.2 | 52 | B |
| 20 | St. Albert Alberta | 74,621 | 58.8 | 51.1 | B |
| 21 | Granby Quebec | 72,180 | 62.6 | 92.5 | B− |
| … | |||||
| 40 | Grande Prairie Alberta | 71,160 | 149.3 | 157.2 | 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 Welland in population, the lowest Crime Severity Index first (2023–2025 means).
Crime in the places around Welland
| Town | People | Severity index | Violent index | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Welland | 66,480 | 56.1 | 72.6 | B |
| Pelham | 19,980 | 56.1 | 72.6 | B |
| Port Colborne | 21,921 | 56.1 | 72.6 | B |
| Thorold | 33,844 | 56.1 | 72.6 | B |
| Wainfleet | 7,329 | 56.1 | 72.6 | B |
| Niagara Falls | 113,983 | 56.1 | 72.6 | B |
The table leaves out 5 neighbours whose figure is this one, reported by the same police.
Each place’s police figures, 2023–2025 means.
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. Welland is policed by a service that covers other municipalities too, and Statistics Canada reports the service as a whole.
- The index’s scale. Statistics Canada set the national index at 100 for 2006; every figure here is read against that.
- What clearance means. A crime is cleared when police lay or recommend a charge, or solve it another way; the weighted rate counts serious crimes for more.
Questions about safety in Welland
Is Welland safe?
Its police recorded 9.4 violent incidents and 25.1 property crimes a year per 1,000 residents over 2023–2025, which gives Welland a Crime Severity Index of 56.1. For Canadian towns of 50,000 people or more, the typical index is 60.3.
What is the most common crime in Welland?
The three biggest groups are theft under $5,000 at 11.5, other Criminal Code offences at 6.8 and fraud at 5.4, each per 1,000 residents a year.
Is crime going up in Welland?
It held about level between 2023 and 2025, 55.4 to 53.8.
How much of Welland’s crime do police solve?
37%, by the weighted clearance rate, where the typical Canadian town its size manages 38%. Violent crime is cleared at 49% and non-violent crime at 30%.
Whose figures are these?
A police service or detachment that covers Welland 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).