#1Groveland
Essex County · 7,102 people0.64 weighted crimes per 1,000 a year·violent 0.1, property 0.2
Groveland, #1 on this list · Photo: en:User:LymanSchool (Richard B. Johnson) · CC BY-SA 3.0Massachusetts rankings · Safety
Safest towns in Massachusetts
Groveland reports the least crime per resident of Massachusetts’ 276 towns with crime figures for 2023–2025; 122 of the 276 grade A− or better on safety nationally.
Crimes reported by each town’s own police, 2023–2025, per 1,000 residents, violent crimes counted four times. The same measure as the Safety grade. For 2 of them one year isn’t in the FBI’s published tables and comes from the FBI Crime Data Explorer or the state’s own reports (named in the row). How grades work
#1A+
#2Boxford
Essex County · 8,520 people1.37 weighted crimes per 1,000 a year·violent 0.0, property 1.4
#3Clinton
Worcester County · 15,718 people1.95 weighted crimes per 1,000 a year·violent 0.4, property 0.5
All 276 towns
Weighted crimes per 1,000 residents a year, lowest first, to two decimals (the sort uses the exact rate, so there are no rounding ties). Grade = the national Safety grade.
276 towns ranked. Not here? See towns without their own figures.
#TownWeighted rateViolentPropertyGrade
Per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025. Last on the list: Holyoke, 85.65. The rate counts crimes reported to police, not how safe any one street feels.
Not ranked
7 towns without figures of their own
These towns of 2,500+ are not on the list because there are no police figures for them alone for all of 2023–2025, from the FBI or the state. In 2025 the FBI’s tables list State Police figures for 13 of Massachusetts’ counties and county sheriff figures for 0; those cover many towns at once and can’t be split by town, so they aren’t ranked here. Their other grades stand; the overall grade uses the rest.
- Lanesborough Berkshire County · 2,999 people: no figures of its own in the FBI’s tables for 2023–2025.
- North Brookfield Worcester County · 4,793 people: figures for 2025 only (all three years are needed).
- Norwell Plymouth County · 11,546 people: figures for 2023 and 2024 only (all three years are needed).
- Rowley Essex County · 6,356 people: figures for 2023 and 2025 only (all three years are needed).
- Sheffield Berkshire County · 3,314 people: no figures of its own in the FBI’s tables for 2023–2025.
- Tyngsborough Middlesex County · 12,721 people: no figures of its own in the FBI’s tables for 2023–2025.
- Worcester Worcester County · 213,862 people: figures for 2024 only (all three years are needed).
Quick answers
Questions people ask
Which is the safest town in Massachusetts?
Groveland (Essex County) reports the least crime per resident: 0.64 weighted crimes per 1,000 a year over 2023–2025 (0.10 violent and 0.24 property crimes per 1,000), from its police department’s reports to the FBI. Boxford (1.37) and Clinton (1.95) follow.
How are these towns ranked?
By crimes reported by each town’s police per 1,000 residents over three years (FBI figures, or the state’s own where the FBI table lacks a year), with violent crimes counted four times as heavily as property crimes. It is the same measure as the Safety grade on each town’s page. How grades work.
Why isn’t my town on this list?
The list needs 2,500+ residents and the town’s own police figures for all three years. 7 Massachusetts towns of 2,500+ lack them; they are listed above with the reason. Smaller towns have a Safety grade on their page but no rank.
Go deeper
All Massachusetts rankings →More Massachusetts lists
Every list ranks the same 2,500+ towns, so a town’s rank means the same thing on each.
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