Aubrey R. Watzek House · Photo: Visitor7 · CC BY-SA 3.0Portland records more crime per resident than 98% of U.S. towns
Its 4 neighbors with figures all record less crime per resident. Add to that, the local count comes to 7.1 violent crimes and 54.7 incidents of property crime per 1,000 people each year, with 2.9 and 22.9 in the rest of Oregon. From 2023 to 2025, crimes Portland’s police reported put it at D− for safety: #305 of 325 U.S. cities over 100,000. The crimes the grade counts fell 13% per resident from 2023 to 2025.
Crimes reported to the FBI per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025. “Rest of OR” is every other Oregon 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 Portland
4 of the 4 graded towns next door report less crime
Of the 8 Oregon towns on Portland’s borders, 4 have a Safety Grade: Lake Oswego (B), Milwaukie (C+), Beaverton (C−), Gresham (C−). Dunthorpe, West Haven-Sylvan, Garden Home-Whitford and Cedar Mill are unincorporated communities (census-designated places) with no police department of their own. Neighbors ↓
Homicides: above U.S. cities overall
Portland’s police reported 51 homicides to the FBI in 2025. Over 2023–2025 that is 10.2 per 100,000 residents a year, 4.2 times the rest of Oregon (2.4) and 1.8 times all U.S. cities and towns in the FBI’s tables (5.7). Violent crime ↓
Robberies: 3.6 times the rest of Oregon
174 robberies per 100,000 residents a year over 2023–2025 (962 reported in 2025), 3.6 times the rest of Oregon (48.9) and 2.2 times all U.S. cities and towns in the FBI’s tables (79.4). Violent crime ↓
Against other big cities
Among the 325 U.S. cities over 100,000 we grade, Portland reports less crime per resident than 6% (#305). Places like it ↓
A job center
Portland has 433,583 jobs based in town for 635,109 residents (Census LEHD), so some reports involve people who work or shop there rather than residents. How to read it ↓
Reported crime is falling
Crime reported per resident fell from 2023 to 2025 by more than ordinary year-to-year swings, on the grade’s own score. Trend ↓
Written from the FBI data on this page. Figures are crimes reported to police, not convictions.
What’s behind Portland’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 higher than in most U.S. towns; violent crime is the closer of the two to typical.
Homicides and robberies
Show as a table
| Year | Portland | Rest of Oregon | U.S. cities (FBI tables) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 14.9 | 2.6 | 7.7 |
| 2023 | 11.8 | 3.1 | 6.8 |
| 2024 | 10.8 | 2.3 | 5.7 |
| 2025 | 8.1 | 1.9 | 4.6 |
Homicides per 100,000 residents
Show as a table
| Year | Portland | Rest of Oregon | U.S. cities (FBI tables) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 203 | 57.9 | 95.5 |
| 2023 | 193 | 52.6 | 90.6 |
| 2024 | 177 | 49.1 | 81.9 |
| 2025 | 152 | 44.9 | 66.0 |
Robberies per 100,000 residents
Portland’s police reported 51 homicides, 962 robberies and 4,386 violent crimes in all to the FBI in 2025. By year, against the rest of Oregon and all U.S. cities and towns in the FBI’s tables.
Crime in Portland 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 7 violent crimes, in 2025. Below are 1,000 dots, one per resident; each colored dot is one reported crime.
Reported crime per resident, 2023 to 2025
Show as a table
| Year | Portland property | Rest of Oregon property | Portland violent | Rest of Oregon violent |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 63.2 | 28.2 | 7.5 | 3.0 |
| 2023 | 58.6 | 25.0 | 7.2 | 2.9 |
| 2024 | 55.3 | 23.3 | 7.2 | 3.0 |
| 2025 | 50.4 | 20.4 | 6.9 | 2.7 |
Crimes per 1,000 residents
Reported crime per resident fell from 2023 to 2025, by more than ordinary year-to-year swings. Per 1,000 residents, 2022–2025, against the rest of Oregon.
36,192 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.
4,386 violent and 31,806 property, as reported to the FBI by Portland’s police.
106 of the 298 people who died in crashes on Portland’s roads in 2019–2023 were pedestrians
Portland had 280 fatal crashes in five years, in which 298 people died. 12 of those killed were cyclists. 40 died in crashes on an Interstate.
That is 9.3 deaths per 100,000 residents a year, above the median for Oregon towns of 100,000+ people (7.1, 6 towns).
Among the 39 U.S. cities of 500,000 or more, Portland has the 16th lowest rate.
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.
Portland and its neighbors
| Town | Grade | Violent | Property |
|---|---|---|---|
| Portland | D− | 7.1 | 54.7 |
| Gresham | C− | 3.9 | 25.8 |
| Dunthorpe | — | — | — |
| Beaverton | C− | 3.0 | 24.1 |
| West Haven-Sylvan | — | — | — |
| Garden Home-Whitford | — | — | — |
| Lake Oswego | B | 0.6 | 11.2 |
| Milwaukie | C+ | 2.1 | 13.6 |
| Cedar Mill | — | — | — |
Crimes reported to the FBI per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025. Dunthorpe, West Haven-Sylvan, Garden Home-Whitford and Cedar Mill are unincorporated communities (census-designated places) with no police department of their own.
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 Portland. A citywide rate doesn’t show where incidents happen, and that can differ a lot from one part of the city to another.
- Visitors count too. Incidents involving people who work, shop or visit are counted against Portland’s residents, which raises the per-resident rate.
- Whose population. Rates use the FBI’s population for the department (631,483 in 2025); our figure for Portland is 635,109 (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 Portland
Is Portland, OR safe?
On crimes reported to the FBI in 2023–2025, Portland reports more crime per resident than 98% of U.S. towns, a D− Safety Grade. Its police reported 7.1 violent crimes per 1,000 residents a year, against 2.9 in the rest of Oregon and the FBI’s national estimate of 3.6.
What is the crime rate in Portland?
7.1 violent and 54.7 property crimes per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025, as reported to the FBI. The rest of Oregon reports 2.9 and 22.9; the FBI’s national estimate is 3.6 and 17.6.
How many homicides were there in Portland in 2025?
Portland’s police reported 51 homicides to the FBI for 2025, 8.1 per 100,000 residents. Across U.S. cities and towns in the FBI’s tables the 2025 figure was 4.6.
Is Portland safer than Gresham?
Gresham reports less crime per resident than Portland: Gresham grades C− for safety and Portland D−. Gresham’s police reported 3.9 violent and 25.8 property crimes per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025.
Who polices Portland?
Portland’s own police department, which reports to the FBI as “Portland”. 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 Portland.
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.