Photo: KeanoManu · CC BY-SA 4.0Recorded crime per resident is higher in Fort Lauderdale than in 96% of U.S. towns
It grades D− for safety on crimes Fort Lauderdale’s police reported from 2023 to 2025: #123 of 128 graded towns in Florida, and #278 of 325 U.S. cities over 100,000. Even so, the rate the grade counts dropped 29% from 2023 to 2025. Per 1,000 residents a year, 6.9 violent crimes and 39.8 incidents of property crime were recorded, against 3.3 and 16.6 in the rest of Florida.
Crimes reported to the FBI per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025. “Rest of FL” is every other Florida city and town in the FBI’s tables; the U.S. figure is the FBI’s national estimate as published, averaged over the three years. The FBI publishes no national homicide or robbery rate in our data, so those compare with all U.S. cities and towns in its tables.
What stands out about safety in Fort Lauderdale
1 of the 1 graded towns next door reports less crime
Of the 8 Florida towns on Fort Lauderdale’s borders, 1 have a Safety Grade: Plantation (C). Oakland Park, Wilton Manors, Pompano Beach, Tamarac, Dania Beach and North Lauderdale have no FBI figures of their own for 2023–2025. Davie reported to the FBI for 2023 but not 2024 or 2025. Neighbors ↓
Homicides: above U.S. cities overall
Fort Lauderdale’s police reported 11 homicides to the FBI in 2025. Over 2023–2025 that is 11.8 per 100,000 residents a year, 2.6 times the rest of Florida (4.5) and 2.1 times all U.S. cities and towns in the FBI’s tables (5.7). Violent crime ↓
Robberies: 3.3 times the rest of Florida
168 robberies per 100,000 residents a year over 2023–2025 (293 reported in 2025), 3.3 times the rest of Florida (51.7) and 2.1 times all U.S. cities and towns in the FBI’s tables (79.4). Violent crime ↓
Against other big cities
Among the 325 U.S. cities over 100,000 we grade, Fort Lauderdale reports less crime per resident than 14% (#278). Places like it ↓
A college town
Fort Lauderdale is home to Broward College, with 20,921 students taking classes on campus (federal college data), and 4% of residents are enrolled in college (Census). Students who live in town count as residents, so they are part of the per-resident rate. How to read it ↓
A job center
Fort Lauderdale has 169,682 jobs based in town for 188,677 residents (Census LEHD), so some reports involve people who work or shop there rather than residents. How to read it ↓
Reported crime is falling
Crime reported per resident fell from 2023 to 2025 by more than ordinary year-to-year swings, on the grade’s own score. Trend ↓
Written from the FBI data on this page. Figures are crimes reported to police, not convictions.
What’s behind Fort Lauderdale’s grade
Property crimes plus four times violent crimes reported to the FBI per resident, 2023–2025, on a national curve. Both violent and property crime are higher than in most U.S. towns; violent crime is the closer of the two to typical.
Reported crime per resident, 2023 to 2025
Show as a table
| Year | Fort Lauderdale property | Rest of Florida property | Fort Lauderdale violent | Rest of Florida violent |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 47.3 | 18.4 | 7.2 | 3.5 |
| 2024 | 40.6 | 17.7 | 6.9 | 3.4 |
| 2025 | 31.8 | 13.8 | 6.6 | 2.9 |
Crimes per 1,000 residents
Reported crime per resident fell from 2023 to 2025, by more than ordinary year-to-year swings. Per 1,000 residents, 2023–2025, against the rest of Florida.
Homicides and robberies
Show as a table
| Year | Fort Lauderdale | Rest of Florida | U.S. cities (FBI tables) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 19.6 | 5.4 | 6.8 |
| 2024 | 10.3 | 5.0 | 5.7 |
| 2025 | 5.8 | 3.4 | 4.6 |
Homicides per 100,000 residents
Show as a table
| Year | Fort Lauderdale | Rest of Florida | U.S. cities (FBI tables) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 185 | 57.9 | 90.6 |
| 2024 | 167 | 54.1 | 81.9 |
| 2025 | 153 | 43.6 | 66.0 |
Robberies per 100,000 residents
Fort Lauderdale’s police reported 11 homicides, 293 robberies and 1,264 violent crimes in all to the FBI in 2025. By year, against the rest of Florida and all U.S. cities and towns in the FBI’s tables.
Crime in Fort Lauderdale per 1,000 residents
Violent crime per 1,000 residents, 2025
Property crime per 1,000 residents, 2025
Crimes reported to police in 2025 per resident; one person can be the victim of more than one, and some reports involve visitors.
And about 7 violent crimes, in 2025. Below are 1,000 dots, one per resident; each colored dot is one reported crime.
7,346 crimes reported in 2025
2025 offenses reported
Offenses reported to police, not convictions. FBI Uniform Crime Reporting. The last row is counted outside the property total.
1,264 violent and 6,082 property, as reported to the FBI by Fort Lauderdale’s police.
213 people died in crashes on Fort Lauderdale’s roads in 2019–2023
Fort Lauderdale had 205 fatal crashes in five years, in which 213 people died; 84 were pedestrians and 15 were cyclists. 31 died in crashes on an Interstate.
That is 23.0 deaths per 100,000 residents a year, above the median for Florida towns of 100,000+ people (13.1, 27 towns).
Deaths are counted where the crash happened, not where the people lived: a highway through town adds through-traffic deaths, and residents’ own risk on roads elsewhere isn’t here. Town rates sit below state and U.S. rates because a third of fatal crashes happen outside any town. Road safety is described here and is not part of the Safety Grade. Source: NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), 2019–2023.
Fort Lauderdale and its neighbors
| Town | Grade | Violent | Property |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fort Lauderdale | D− | 6.9 | 39.8 |
| Oakland Park | — | — | — |
| Wilton Manors | — | — | — |
| Pompano Beach | — | — | — |
| Tamarac | — | — | — |
| Dania Beach | — | — | — |
| Davie | — | — | — |
| North Lauderdale | — | — | — |
| Plantation | C | 1.9 | 19.5 |
Crimes reported to the FBI per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025. Oakland Park, Wilton Manors, Pompano Beach, Tamarac, Dania Beach and North Lauderdale have no FBI figures of their own for 2023–2025. Davie reported to the FBI for 2023 but not 2024 or 2025.
Florida towns of a similar size
| Town | Grade | Violent | Property |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fort Lauderdale | D− | 6.9 | 39.8 |
| Miramar | B | 1.4 | 8.3 |
| Palm Bay | C+ | 3.1 | 9.5 |
| Hialeah | C+ | 1.8 | 16.1 |
| Tallahassee | D | 7.2 | 25.9 |
| Gainesville | D | 7.0 | 25.9 |
The five graded Florida towns closest to Fort Lauderdale’s population (188,677), by grade.
How reported crime compares across the town line. Tap a town to see its safety page.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- It’s reported crime. Only incidents reported to and recorded by police appear here. Many crimes are never reported to police.
- One number for all of Fort Lauderdale. A citywide rate doesn’t show where incidents happen, and that can differ a lot from one part of the city to another.
- Visitors count too. Incidents involving people who work, shop or visit are counted against Fort Lauderdale’s residents, which raises the per-resident rate.
- Whose population. Rates use the FBI’s population for the department (191,199 in 2025); our figure for Fort Lauderdale is 188,677 (2025 Census estimate).
- Gaps are real gaps. A missing year means the department didn’t report a full year, not that nothing happened.
How the grade is calculated, for every town: How TownRatings grades safety →
Questions about safety in Fort Lauderdale
Is Fort Lauderdale, FL safe?
On crimes reported to the FBI in 2023–2025, Fort Lauderdale reports more crime per resident than 96% of U.S. towns, a D− Safety Grade and #123 of 128 in Florida. Its police reported 6.9 violent crimes per 1,000 residents a year, against 3.3 in the rest of Florida and the FBI’s national estimate of 3.6.
What is the crime rate in Fort Lauderdale?
6.9 violent and 39.8 property crimes per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025, as reported to the FBI. The rest of Florida reports 3.3 and 16.6; the FBI’s national estimate is 3.6 and 17.6.
How many homicides were there in Fort Lauderdale in 2025?
Fort Lauderdale’s police reported 11 homicides to the FBI for 2025, 5.8 per 100,000 residents. Across U.S. cities and towns in the FBI’s tables the 2025 figure was 4.6.
Is Fort Lauderdale safer than Plantation?
Plantation reports less crime per resident than Fort Lauderdale: Plantation grades C for safety and Fort Lauderdale D−. Plantation’s police reported 1.9 violent and 19.5 property crimes per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025.
Who polices Fort Lauderdale?
Fort Lauderdale’s own police department, which reports to the FBI as “Fort Lauderdale”. Its figures are the ones on this page.
Heads-up board
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Please don’t name or describe individuals. In an emergency, call 911.
Neighbors looking out for each other in Fort Lauderdale.
Crime: FBI Uniform Crime Reporting Program, Crime Data Explorer: offenses known to law enforcement by city, 2025, and state and national rates. Counts are crimes reported to police, not convictions. The Safety Grade is our own summary of that data, not an official rating. Road deaths: NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), 2019–2023. This isn’t an official statement of public safety. In an emergency, call 911.