Photo: Mpftmead at English Wikipedia · Public domainPer resident, Manchester Township records less crime than 85% of U.S. towns
It has less violent crime than 77% of U.S. towns, and less property crime than 84%. In a usual year, 0.7 violent crime and 4.2 incidents of property crime are logged per 1,000 inhabitants; in the rest of New Jersey, 2.1 and 13.8. From 2023 to 2025, crimes Manchester Township’s police reported put it at A for safety: #84 of 342 graded towns in New Jersey.
Crimes reported to the FBI per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025. “Rest of NJ” is every other New Jersey 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 Manchester Township
1 of the 3 graded towns next door reports less crime
Of the 4 New Jersey towns on Manchester Township’s borders, 3 have a Safety Grade: Jackson Township (A), Lacey Township (B+), Toms River Township (B). Plumsted Township reported to the FBI for 2023 but not 2024 or 2025. Neighbors ↓
Written from the FBI data on this page. Figures are crimes reported to police, not convictions.
What’s behind Manchester Township’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 lower than in most U.S. towns; property crime is the stronger of the two.
Violent crime, by year and by type
Show as a table
| Year | Manchester Township | Rest of New Jersey | U.S. (FBI national estimate) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 0.5 | 1.9 | 4.0 |
| 2023 | 0.6 | 2.2 | 3.9 |
| 2024 | 0.6 | 2.2 | 3.6 |
| 2025 | 0.9 | 2.0 | 3.3 |
Violent crimes per 1,000 residents
By type 2023–2025, counts
Manchester Township’s police reported 100 violent crimes to the FBI over 2023–2025, about 0.7 per 1,000 residents a year, against 2.1 in the rest of New Jersey and the FBI’s national estimate of 3.6.
Crime in Manchester Township 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 1 violent crime, in 2025. Below are 1,000 dots, one per resident; each colored dot is one reported crime.
Reported crime is steady
Show as a table
| Year | Manchester Township property | Rest of New Jersey property | Manchester Township violent | Rest of New Jersey violent |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 4.2 | 13.9 | 0.5 | 1.9 |
| 2023 | 3.8 | 14.8 | 0.6 | 2.2 |
| 2024 | 4.5 | 14.0 | 0.6 | 2.2 |
| 2025 | 4.2 | 12.6 | 0.9 | 2.0 |
Crimes per 1,000 residents
Reported crime per resident was steady from 2023 to 2025: the change is within ordinary year-to-year swings. Per 1,000 residents, 2022–2025, against the rest of New Jersey.
236 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.
42 violent and 194 property, as reported to the FBI by Manchester Township’s police.
23 people died in crashes on Manchester Township’s roads in 2019–2023
Manchester Township had 22 fatal crashes in five years, in which 23 people died; 3 were pedestrians.
That is 10.0 deaths per 100,000 residents a year, above the median for New Jersey towns of 25,000–100,000 people (5.8, 102 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.
Manchester Township and its neighbors
| Town | Grade | Violent | Property |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manchester Township | A | 0.7 | 4.2 |
| Toms River Township | B | 1.2 | 11.1 |
| Lacey Township | B+ | 0.8 | 8.2 |
| Jackson Township | A | 0.4 | 3.6 |
| Plumsted Township | — | — | — |
Crimes reported to the FBI per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025. Plumsted Township reported to the FBI for 2023 but not 2024 or 2025.
New Jersey towns of a similar size
| Town | Grade | Violent | Property |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manchester Township | A | 0.7 | 4.2 |
| South Brunswick Township | B+ | 1.2 | 7.4 |
| Berkeley Township | B+ | 1.3 | 7.1 |
| North Brunswick Township | B− | 1.6 | 14.4 |
| Mount Laurel Township | C | 2.2 | 19.1 |
| Hackensack | C | 2.4 | 20.9 |
The five graded New Jersey towns closest to Manchester Township’s population (46,556), 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 Manchester Township. 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 Manchester Township’s residents, which raises the per-resident rate.
- Whose population. Rates use the FBI’s population for the department (46,585 in 2025); our figure for Manchester Township is 46,556 (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 Manchester Township
Is Manchester Township, NJ safe?
On crimes reported to the FBI in 2023–2025, Manchester Township reports less crime per resident than 85% of U.S. towns, an A Safety Grade and #84 of 342 in New Jersey. Its police reported 0.7 violent crimes per 1,000 residents a year, against 2.1 in the rest of New Jersey and the FBI’s national estimate of 3.6.
What is the crime rate in Manchester Township?
0.7 violent and 4.2 property crimes per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025, as reported to the FBI. The rest of New Jersey reports 2.1 and 13.8; the FBI’s national estimate is 3.6 and 17.6.
How many homicides were there in Manchester Township in 2025?
Manchester Township’s police reported 0 homicides to the FBI for 2025, 0.0 per 100,000 residents. Across U.S. cities and towns in the FBI’s tables the 2025 figure was 4.6.
Is Manchester Township safer than Toms River Township?
Toms River Township reports more crime per resident than Manchester Township: Toms River Township grades B for safety and Manchester Township A. Toms River Township’s police reported 1.2 violent and 11.1 property crimes per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025.
Who polices Manchester Township?
Manchester Township’s own police department, which reports to the FBI as “Manchester Township”. Its figures are the ones on this page.
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 Manchester Township.
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.