Photo: BallyboughDublin · CC BY-SA 4.0Ballybough has more crime per resident than 96% of Irish towns
From 2023 to 2025, incidents the Gardaí recorded in the station areas where Ballybough’s residents live put it at D− for safety: #98 of 116 in Co. Dublin. On top of that, the yearly rates were 11.9 violent incidents and 14.8 incidents of burglary and damage per 1,000 residents, set against 5.7 and 6.1 in the typical town its size. Against Ireland as a whole (11.9 per 1,000 residents a year), violence, burglary and damage run at 26.7 here. Per resident, the graded crimes were up 14% from 2016 to 2025.
Incidents per 1,000 residents (Census 2022) a year, 2023–2025 average, in the Garda station areas residents live in. Homicide and sexual offences aren’t published by station, so no figure here includes them.
What stands out about safety in Ballybough
Robbery, extortion and hijacking: high for a town its size
Ballybough records 1.7 incidents of robbery, extortion and hijacking per 1,000 residents a year, against 0.4 in the typical town among Irish towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people. By type ↓
Above the Irish rate
The station areas Ballybough’s residents live in record 26.7 incidents of violence, burglary and damage per 1,000 residents a year (2023–2025), against 11.9 across Ireland: 2.3 times the national rate. Safety Grade ↓
More crime than many places its size
Among the 40 Irish towns closest in size, Ballybough ranks 36th, counting from the least graded crime: lower than Glasnevin, South Gate and Grand Canal Dock, higher than Grantstown and Ballinakill, Waterford City Centre and Turner's Cross. Towns its size ↓
Written from CSO’s recorded crime by Garda station (CJA11) and Census 2022. Figures are incidents the Gardaí recorded, not convictions.
The grade: D− for Ballybough
How sure: The rate comes from Garda station areas, shared out by where residents live, not from crime inside the town’s own boundary.
The grade counts assaults and harassment, kidnapping, robbery, weapons offences, burglary and damage per resident, averaged over three years, and places the town among every Irish town and city neighbourhood of 1,000 people or more (the five city totals aren’t in it).
Its place: #98 of 116 in Co. Dublin and #299 of 320 Irish towns.
Violent crime, burglary and damage the Gardaí recorded per resident, 2023–2025, against Irish towns of 1,000 people or more.
What was recorded, by type
Against the typical town its size, Ballybough runs highest on robbery, extortion and hijacking (1.7 per 1,000 against 0.4), weapons and explosives (1.4 per 1,000 against 0.5) and damage to property (10.9 per 1,000 against 4.4).
Show as a table
| Category | In the grade | Per 1,000 | Typical |
|---|---|---|---|
| Theft | not graded | 22 | 11.6 |
| Road and traffic offences | not graded | 18.1 | 9.3 |
| Damage to property | Burglary & damage | 10.9 | 4.4 |
| Public order offences | not graded | 10.5 | 5 |
| Drug offences | not graded | 9.1 | 3.1 |
| Assaults and harassment | Violent | 8.7 | 4.8 |
| Burglary | Burglary & damage | 3.9 | 1.8 |
| Dangerous or negligent acts | not graded | 2.6 | 5.3 |
| Offences against justice | not graded | 1.8 | 1.5 |
| Robbery, extortion and hijacking | Violent | 1.7 | 0.4 |
| Weapons and explosives | Violent | 1.4 | 0.5 |
| Other offences | not graded | 0.4 | 0.3 |
| Kidnapping | Violent | 0.1 | 0 |
The groups are CSO’s. Dangerous or negligent acts, drug offences, road and traffic offences and offences against justice count Garda checks more than victims; they, theft, public order and other offences are shown but not graded. Homicide and sexual offences aren’t published by station; fraud is left out.
Per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average. The tick on each bar is the typical (median) town among Irish towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people.
Ballybough places 36th of 40 towns its size, the least crime first
| # | Town | People | Violent | Burglary & damage | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Frankfield and Grange Cork | 7,687 | 2.6 | 2.7 | A |
| … | |||||
| 3 | Kinsealy-Drinan Dublin | 7,526 | 2.8 | 3.8 | A− |
| … | |||||
| 9 | Sandyford Dublin | 8,844 | 3.7 | 4.6 | B |
| 10 | Booterstown Dublin | 8,505 | 3.1 | 5.2 | B |
| 11 | Lusk Dublin | 8,806 | 4.6 | 4.4 | B |
| … | |||||
| 33 | Grantstown and Ballinakill Waterford | 9,571 | 10.6 | 9.7 | D |
| 34 | Waterford City Centre Waterford | 9,031 | 10.6 | 9.7 | D |
| 35 | Turner's Cross Cork | 7,208 | 12.5 | 8.2 | D |
| 36 | Ballybough Dublin | 8,188 | 11.9 | 14.8 | D− |
| 37 | Glasnevin Dublin | 9,299 | 16 | 13.2 | D− |
| 38 | South Gate Cork | 7,185 | 25.1 | 13.6 | D− |
| 39 | Grand Canal Dock Dublin | 8,320 | 43.1 | 32.1 | D− |
| 40 | Temple Bar Dublin | 7,276 | 44.7 | 33.9 | D− |
The 40 Irish towns and city neighbourhoods of 2,500+ people closest in population; the city totals are left out. Graded crime: violent crime, burglary and damage.
Graded crime per 1,000 residents a year, 2023 to 2025, counting from the least: towns ranked near Ballybough, and others in Co. Dublin.
Ballybough, year by year
Violent · per 1,000 residents
Burglary & damage · per 1,000 residents
Its highest year was 2024, at 27.8 per 1,000 residents, and its lowest 2021, at 22.2. Across Ireland the same rate went from 12 in 2016 to 11.6 in 2025.
Every year as a table
| Year | Violent | Burglary & damage | Graded | Ireland | All recorded crime |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 13.2 | 12.4 | 25.6 | 11.6 | 94.9 |
| 2024 | 11.1 | 16.7 | 27.8 | 12.1 | 90.7 |
| 2023 | 11.4 | 15.3 | 26.7 | 11.9 | 88 |
| 2022 | 11 | 16.5 | 27.5 | 11.6 | 93.1 |
| 2021 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 22.2 | 10.2 | 82.2 |
| 2020 | 10.2 | 12.6 | 22.7 | 10.6 | 87.1 |
| 2019 | 12.3 | 12.7 | 25 | 12.8 | 84 |
| 2018 | 10.2 | 14.8 | 24.9 | 12.4 | 84.4 |
| 2017 | 8.4 | 15.8 | 24.3 | 12.8 | 84.2 |
| 2016 | 7.3 | 15.1 | 22.4 | 12 | 96.1 |
CSO CJA11, recorded crime incidents by Garda station, 2016–2025, shared to the town by where its residents live. Every year is divided by the residents counted in 2022, so the line moves with recorded crime, not with population. CSO publishes recorded crime “under reservation”, its flag on the quality of Garda recording.
Violence, burglary and damage the Gardaí recorded each year in the station areas where Ballybough’s residents live, per 1,000 residents, against Ireland as a whole.
Crime in Ballybough per 1,000 residents
Violence per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025
Burglary & damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025
A crime isn’t a victim: one person can report several, and crimes in a town centre often involve visitors rather than residents.
And about 15 burglaries or acts of criminal damage, plus 22 thefts, a year (2023–2025 average). Each dot is one resident; each coloured dot is one recorded incident.
Crime in the places around Ballybough
| Town | People | Violent | Burglary & damage | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ballybough | 8,188 | 11.9 | 14.8 | D− |
| Summerhill | 11,911 | 24 | 20.6 | D− |
| Parnell Square | 10,117 | 20.4 | 18.8 | D− |
| Drumcondra | 11,149 | 5.9 | 9.2 | C− |
| East Wall | 15,907 | 38.7 | 27.6 | D− |
| Phibsborough | 11,657 | 17.4 | 14.3 | D− |
| O'Connell Street | 6,749 | 40.7 | 28.6 | D− |
Ballybough records more graded crime per resident than 1 of its 6 neighbours. Drumcondra, 1.1 km away, records 5.9 recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year (3-year average), against Ballybough’s 11.9.
Per 1,000 residents a year, the same three-year average. Tap a town for its safety page.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Station areas, not the town’s boundary. Crime is published by Garda station. Each station’s incidents are divided by the people living in its area (Census 2022), and Ballybough takes the rates of the areas its residents live in, weighted by how many live in each.
- Checks are shown, not graded. Road traffic, dangerous driving, drug and justice offences mostly record Garda activity: one rural station can book thousands of camera detections. The grade leaves them out, with theft and public order, and counts violence, burglary and damage.
- Each year, and one average. CSO publishes crime by station once a year. The chart follows every year since 2016; the grade averages 2023, 2024 and 2025, because a small station area’s count swings from year to year. There are no months.
- No streets. No street- or ward-level crime is published in Ireland: the finest grain is the Garda station area.
Questions about safety in Ballybough
Is Ballybough safe?
The Gardaí recorded about 11.9 violent incidents and 14.8 burglaries or acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year in the station areas Ballybough’s residents live in, averaged over 2023–2025. That earns a D− for safety: more crime per resident than 96% of Irish towns.
What is the most common crime in Ballybough?
Theft: about 180 a year (2023–2025 average). Next came road and traffic offences (148) and damage to property (89).
Is crime going up in Ballybough?
The recorded rate in the graded categories rose 14% from 2016 to 2025: 22.4 per 1,000 residents in 2016, 25.6 in 2025. The grade uses the three-year average, so one unusual year moves it less.
How does Ballybough compare with Ireland as a whole?
The station areas Ballybough’s residents live in record 26.7 incidents of violence, burglary and damage per 1,000 residents a year (2023–2025). Across Ireland the figure is 11.9.
Is Ballybough safer than the towns around it?
1 of the 6 neighbouring towns with figures record less violence, burglary and damage per resident than Ballybough (26.7 per 1,000 a year). The lowest is Drumcondra, at 15.1.
How sure is Ballybough’s Safety Grade?
The rate comes from Garda station areas, shared out by where residents live, not from crime inside the town’s own boundary.
Source: CSO, Recorded crime incidents by Garda station (CJA11), 2023–2025, and Census 2022 (CC BY 4.0); TownRatings calculation.
Sources: CSO, Recorded crime incidents by Garda station (CJA11), 2023–2025 · CSO, Census 2022 Small Areas and the 2011 Garda sub-districts · Safety Grade: TownRatings calculation. Under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0).
Contains Central Statistics Office (CSO) data, Census 2022, and Tailte Éireann boundaries (CSO Urban Areas, Small Areas, local electoral areas, constituencies), under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0).