Photo: Brian Stansberry · CC BY 4.0Crime reported in Matthews, MO
Matthews’ police reported to the FBI for 2023 and 2024 but not 2025, so there is no Safety Grade: the grade needs all three years, 2023–2025.
32 crimes reported in 2024
In a town this small, a few incidents move the numbers a lot, so we show counts rather than rates.
32 crimes reported in 2024
4 violent and 28 property, as reported to the FBI by Matthews’ police.
2024 offenses reported
Offenses reported to police, not convictions. FBI Uniform Crime Reporting. The last row is counted outside the property total.
The nearest Missouri towns with a Safety Grade
Each town’s own police figures, per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025.
| Town | Grade | Distance | Violent | Property |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sikeston | D− | 9 mi | 11.8 | 34.6 |
| East Prairie | B | 10 mi | 2.1 | 7.5 |
| New Madrid | D | 12 mi | 6.5 | 19.4 |
| Charleston | D | 17 mi | 8.5 | 17.9 |
| Dexter | C− | 22 mi | 2.5 | 21.9 |
| Bernie | A− | 23 mi | 0.7 | 6.6 |
Straight-line distance from the center of Matthews. Nearby towns can differ a lot from Matthews.
Two people died in crashes on Matthews’s roads in 2019–2023
Matthews had 2 fatal crashes in five years, in which two people died.
That is about what is typical for Missouri towns of 2,500–5,000 people: at their median rate (7.2 deaths per 100,000 residents a year), a town of Matthews’s size would see about 0 in five years. With numbers this small, a death or two either way changes the picture, so Matthews’s own rate (71.3) is context, not a ranking.
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.
Matthews and its neighbors
How reported crime compares across the town line. Tap a town to see its safety page.
| Town | Grade | Violent | Property |
|---|
Crimes reported to the FBI per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025.
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 Matthews. A town-wide rate doesn’t show where incidents happen, and that can differ a lot from one part of town to another.
- Visitors count too. Incidents involving people who work, shop or visit are counted against Matthews’ residents, which raises the per-resident rate.
- Whose population. Rates use the FBI’s population for the department (498 in 2024); our figure for Matthews is 493 (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 Matthews
Is Matthews, MO safe?
There is no Safety Grade for Matthews. Matthews’ police reported to the FBI for 2023 and 2024 but not 2025, so there is no Safety Grade: the grade needs all three years, 2023–2025. The nearest Missouri towns with a grade are Sikeston (D−, 9 mi), East Prairie (B, 10 mi), New Madrid (D, 12 mi).
Who polices Matthews?
Matthews’s own police department, which reports to the FBI as “Matthews”. Its figures are the ones on this page.
Heads-up board
Neighbors looking out for each other in Matthews.
Your answer becomes a post in Town Square.
Please don’t name or describe individuals. In an emergency, call 911.
Crime: FBI Uniform Crime Reporting Program, Crime Data Explorer: offenses known to law enforcement by city, 2024, 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.