Photo: westroopnerd · CC BY-SA 4.0Bethesda has no grade of its own; Chevy Chase Village, 2 miles away, is the nearest that does
Bethesda has no police department of its own: it’s an unincorporated community (a census-designated place) in Montgomery County. The Montgomery County Police Department reports to the FBI for the parts of the county without police of their own, so there are no figures for Bethesda alone, and no Safety Grade. There are 7 graded towns within 10 miles.
What stands out about safety in Bethesda
Policed by the county
Bethesda is a census-designated place, with no town government. Crimes there are reported to the FBI inside the Montgomery County Police Department’s totals for the county. County police ↓
Counts, not rates
The FBI doesn’t publish how many people the Montgomery County Police Department covers, so its totals can’t be turned into a per-resident rate or a grade for Bethesda. County police ↓
The nearest graded towns
The closest Maryland towns with their own police figures are Chevy Chase Village (C+, 2 mi), Takoma Park (D−, 6 mi), Rockville (B−, 7 mi). Nearby towns can differ a lot from Bethesda. Nearest ↓
Written from the FBI data on this page. Figures are crimes reported to police, not convictions.
What the Montgomery County Police Department reports
Reports to the FBI for the parts of Montgomery County without police of their own, which include Bethesda.
Property crimes
Violent crimes
Also reports crimes in Montgomery County to the FBI.
Property crimes
Violent crimes
2025 offenses reported by the Montgomery County Police Department
Counts, not rates: the FBI doesn’t publish how many people each agency covers. Agencies that reported only zeros (the Sheriff’s Office here) are left out. FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, Tables 10–11.
Crimes reported to the FBI for the whole area the department covers, by year.
The nearest Maryland towns with a Safety Grade
| Town | Grade | Distance | Violent | Property |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chevy Chase Village | C+ | 2 mi | 0.0 | 25.6 |
| Takoma Park | D− | 6 mi | 4.7 | 53.7 |
| Rockville | B− | 7 mi | 1.3 | 13.6 |
| Mount Rainier | D | 9 mi | 5.8 | 28.1 |
| Hyattsville | D− | 9 mi | 7.2 | 38.5 |
| Brentwood | C+ | 9 mi | 2.7 | 14.3 |
Straight-line distance from the center of Bethesda. Nearby towns can differ a lot from Bethesda.
Each town’s own police figures, per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025.
10 people died in crashes on Bethesda’s roads in 2019–2023
Bethesda had 10 fatal crashes in five years, in which 10 people died; 1 was a pedestrian and 2 were cyclists. 2 died in crashes on an Interstate.
That is 2.9 deaths per 100,000 residents a year, below the median for Maryland towns of 25,000–100,000 people (5.1, 54 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.
Bethesda and its neighbors
| Town | Grade | Violent | Property |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Kensington | — | — | — |
| Brookmont | — | — | — |
| Chevy Chase (CDP) | — | — | — |
| North Bethesda | — | — | — |
| Potomac | — | — | — |
| Somerset | — | — | — |
| Chevy Chase (town) | — | — | — |
| Chevy Chase Village | C+ | 0.0 | 25.6 |
Crimes reported to the FBI per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025. South Kensington, Brookmont, Chevy Chase (CDP), North Bethesda and Potomac are unincorporated communities (census-designated places) with no police department of their own. Somerset and Chevy Chase (town) have no FBI figures of their own for 2023–2025.
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.
- A county agency covers a wide area. Its totals mix many communities, so they say little about any one of them.
- 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 Bethesda
Is Bethesda, MD safe?
There is no Safety Grade for Bethesda. The nearest Maryland towns with a grade are Chevy Chase Village (C+, 2 mi), Takoma Park (D−, 6 mi), Rockville (B−, 7 mi).
Who polices Bethesda?
The Montgomery County Police Department. Bethesda is an unincorporated community, and the department reports to the FBI for the parts of Montgomery County without police of their own.
Heads-up board
Your answer becomes a post in Town Square.
Please don’t name or describe individuals. In an emergency, call 911.
Neighbors looking out for each other in Bethesda.
Crime: FBI Uniform Crime Reporting Program, Crime Data Explorer: offenses known to law enforcement by city, 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.