Florida isn’t exactly at the bottom of the list of the safest states in the country, but it certainly isn’t at the top, either. The Sunshine State logged violent and property crime rates just a notch above national levels in both categories.
Elevated levels of crime in Florida’s many large cities, including Jacksonville, Miami, and Tampa, no doubt raise statewide crime rates, though the state is home to many smaller communities with impressive safety records.
Satellite Beach is the safest city in Florida. The coastal city of 11K experienced a remarkably low amount of crime in 2018, including a violent crime rate less than 10% of the national rate, and a property crime rate six times less than statewide levels.
Florida’s 2nd safest community is Key Biscayne, a small island town east of Miami in Miami-Dade County. While Key Biscayne is often one of the first areas to be evacuated in the case of a hurricane, due to its exposed location, residents need not add crime to their list of potential threats: the city recorded just 5 violent crimes in 2018 for a low rate of 0.38 offenses per 1,000 people.
#3 Marco Island has a lot in common with Key Biscayne: both are tourist-frequented island communities where crime is scarce. Marco Island’s violent and property crime rates are even lower than those of the prior entry’s, yet the city falls slightly due its lower law enforcement-to-residents ratio.
North Palm Beach, the 4th safest municipality in Florida, is another sun-soaked community known for its beaches and golf courses, rather than a high level of crime. Like the preceding entries on the list, North Palm Beach earned a violent crime rate below 1 offense per 1,000 and a property crime rate below 10 per 1,000 in 2018.
#5 Parkland is the only non-oceanside community in Florida’s top 5 safest cities, though it’s just a short drive from the coast. While the city gained national attention for the tragedy occurring in the city in February, 2018, Parkland is generally exceedingly safe, boasting violent and property crime rates several times below statewide levels.
Florida’s Safest Cities
FL City Population Violent
crimeProperty
crimeLaw enforcement
employeesTotal crimes Crime rate per 1,000 Violent crimes per 1,000 Property crimes per 1,000 Law enforcement per 1,000
1 Satellite Beach 11197 3 41 32 44 3.93 0.27 3.66 2.86
2 Key Biscayne 13299 5 90 47 95 7.14 0.38 6.77 3.53
3 Marco Island 18122 6 98 38 104 5.74 0.33 5.41 2.10
4 North Palm Beach 13214 12 105 38 117 8.85 0.91 7.95 2.88
5 Parkland 33760 38 240 44 278 8.23 1.13 7.11 1.30
6 Naples 22308 9 320 93 329 14.75 0.40 14.34 4.17
7 Lynn Haven 21285 28 202 43 230 10.81 1.32 9.49 2.02
8 Oviedo 41937 66 374 75 440 10.49 1.57 8.92 1.79
9 Sebastian 25672 31 279 59 310 12.08 1.21 10.87 2.30
10 Groveland 14342 24 190 46 214 14.92 1.67 13.25 3.21
11 Port St. Lucie 193137 218 1851 299 2069 10.71 1.13 9.58 1.55
12 Cooper City 36896 36 433 77 469 12.71 0.98 11.74 2.09
13 Lighthouse Point 11372 12 173 39 185 16.27 1.06 15.21 3.43
14 Niceville 15621 23 187 35 210 13.44 1.47 11.97 2.24
15 Sunny Isles Beach 22563 34 302 62 336 14.89 1.51 13.38 2.75
16 St. Cloud 53560 76 666 123 742 13.85 1.42 12.43 2.30
17 Maitland 17846 37 303 60 340 19.05 2.07 16.98 3.36
18 Punta Gorda 20170 11 330 53 341 16.91 0.55 16.36 2.63
19 Lake Mary 16896 36 270 50 306 18.11 2.13 15.98 2.96
20 Rockledge 27852 61 408 67 469 16.84 2.19 14.65 2.41
21 Coral Springs 134640 209 2027 307 2236 16.61 1.55 15.05 2.28
22 Jupiter 66457 132 959 145 1091 16.42 1.99 14.43 2.18
23 Coral Gables 51716 68 1225 255 1293 25.00 1.31 23.69 4.93
24 Lady Lake 15517 16 227 29 243 15.66 1.03 14.63 1.87
25 Margate 59186 98 997 146 1095 18.50 1.66 16.85 2.47
26 Tampa 392945 1598 6576 1206 8174 20.80 4.07 16.74 3.07
27 Atlantic Beach 13750 30 246 39 276 20.07 2.18 17.89 2.84
28 Miramar 143103 337 2128 290 2465 17.23 2.35 14.87 2.03
29 Cape Coral 187869 267 2701 311 2968 15.80 1.42 14.38 1.66
30 Coconut Creek 62237 89 1027 129 1116 17.93 1.43 16.50 2.07
31 Vero Beach 17172 34 415 75 449 26.15 1.98 24.17 4.37
32 Tavares 17318 48 250 31 298 17.21 2.77 14.44 1.79
33 Fernandina Beach 12411 19 280 42 299 24.09 1.53 22.56 3.38
34 North Port 67682 117 1186 140 1303 19.25 1.73 17.52 2.07
35 Village of Pinecrest 19854 26 473 66 499 25.13 1.31 23.82 3.32
36 Milton 10158 18 195 23 213 20.97 1.77 19.20 2.26
37 Hialeah Gardens 24510 30 517 61 547 22.32 1.22 21.09 2.49
38 Clermont 36233 58 723 82 781 21.55 1.60 19.95 2.26
39 Haines City 24887 36 528 62 564 22.66 1.45 21.22 2.49
40 Pembroke Pines 173053 314 3333 361 3647 21.07 1.81 19.26 2.09
41 Doral 63680 77 1464 172 1541 24.20 1.21 22.99 2.70
42 Boca Raton 100162 205 2361 302 2566 25.62 2.05 23.57 3.02
43 Lake Wales 16349 57 369 48 426 26.06 3.49 22.57 2.94
44 Palm Beach Gardens 55999 83 1409 170 1492 26.64 1.48 25.16 3.04
45 Temple Terrace 26777 67 571 60 638 23.83 2.50 21.32 2.24
46 Edgewater 22643 25 410 32 435 19.21 1.10 18.11 1.41
47 Palm Bay 112902 404 2109 209 2513 22.26 3.58 18.68 1.85
48 Key West 25286 100 808 122 908 35.91 3.95 31.95 4.82
49 West Melbourne 22665 27 550 53 577 25.46 1.19 24.27 2.34
50 Port Orange 64208 25 1397 109 1422 22.15 0.39 21.76 1.70
51 Sunrise 95812 186 2350 230 2536 26.47 1.94 24.53 2.40
52 Stuart 16689 50 493 60 543 32.54 3.00 29.54 3.60
53 Kissimmee 72894 288 1839 209 2127 29.18 3.95 25.23 2.87
54 South Daytona 13038 56 319 35 375 28.76 4.30 24.47 2.68
55 Eustis 21182 39 522 48 561 26.48 1.84 24.64 2.27
56 Miami Springs 14508 48 446 54 494 34.05 3.31 30.74 3.72
57 Tamarac 66454 206 1239 100 1445 21.74 3.10 18.64 1.50
58 Plantation 95204 239 2706 277 2945 30.93 2.51 28.42 2.91
59 Davie 107120 270 2763 258 3033 28.31 2.52 25.79 2.41
60 Longwood 15273 46 441 46 487 31.89 3.01 28.87 3.01
61 Fort Pierce 46109 283 1184 137 1467 31.82 6.14 25.68 2.97
62 Clearwater 116504 510 3087 321 3597 30.87 4.38 26.50 2.76
63 Fort Myers 82805 582 2285 285 2867 34.62 7.03 27.59 3.44
64 Hollywood 155503 363 4343 394 4706 30.26 2.33 27.93 2.53
65 Lakeland 109616 361 3417 351 3778 34.47 3.29 31.17 3.20
66 Gulfport 12424 15 398 36 413 33.24 1.21 32.03 2.90
67 South Miami 12365 41 487 58 528 42.70 3.32 39.39 4.69
68 Palmetto 13807 72 439 48 511 37.01 5.21 31.80 3.48
69 New Smyrna Beach 26937 96 684 57 780 28.96 3.56 25.39 2.12
70 Apopka 53106 218 1508 139 1726 32.50 4.10 28.40 2.62
71 Fort Walton Beach 22263 69 655 56 724 32.52 3.10 29.42 2.52
72 North Lauderdale 44650 246 805 59 1051 23.54 5.51 18.03 1.32
73 Hialeah 241778 533 5355 335 5888 24.35 2.20 22.15 1.39
74 Mount Dora 14179 67 548 60 615 43.37 4.73 38.65 4.23
75 Bradenton 57647 388 1564 146 1952 33.86 6.73 27.13 2.53
76 Jacksonville 903213 5381 30112 3032 35493 39.30 5.96 33.34 3.36
77 Crestview 24293 86 702 55 788 32.44 3.54 28.90 2.26
78 Miami 473047 2978 16837 1741 19815 41.89 6.30 35.59 3.68
79 Titusville 46650 289 1397 127 1686 36.14 6.20 29.95 2.72
80 Altamonte Springs 44664 136 1446 115 1582 35.42 3.04 32.38 2.57
81 Pensacola 52672 285 2012 197 2297 43.61 5.41 38.20 3.74
82 Auburndale 16358 36 578 44 614 37.54 2.20 35.33 2.69
83 St. Petersburg 265942 1660 8784 781 10444 39.27 6.24 33.03 2.94
84 Largo 85568 322 2593 186 2915 34.07 3.76 30.30 2.17
85 Delray Beach 69970 409 2522 229 2931 41.89 5.85 36.04 3.27
86 West Park 15297 109 490 43 599 39.16 7.13 32.03 2.81
87 Riviera Beach 34991 413 1333 157 1746 49.90 11.80 38.10 4.49
88 Jacksonville Beach 23842 143 915 84 1058 44.38 6.00 38.38 3.52
89 Plant City 39305 186 1198 86 1384 35.21 4.73 30.48 2.19
90 New Port Richey 16459 160 599 61 759 46.11 9.72 36.39 3.71
91 Ocoee 48128 162 1430 90 1592 33.08 3.37 29.71 1.87
92 Ormond Beach 43315 131 1367 85 1498 34.58 3.02 31.56 1.96
93 Sebring 10741 80 431 39 511 47.57 7.45 40.13 3.63
94 Miami Shores 10673 34 523 46 557 52.19 3.19 49.00 4.31
95 North Miami Beach 44485 323 1683 140 2006 45.09 7.26 37.83 3.15
96 West Palm Beach 111659 1026 4249 377 5275 47.24 9.19 38.05 3.38
97 Bartow 19954 114 756 56 870 43.60 5.71 37.89 2.81
98 Casselberry 28744 152 946 60 1098 38.20 5.29 32.91 2.09
99 Ocala 59505 405 2871 253 3276 55.05 6.81 48.25 4.25
100 Deerfield Beach 81371 329 2490 137 2819 34.64 4.04 30.60 1.68
101 Sanford 60154 421 2133 149 2554 42.46 7.00 35.46 2.48
102 Melbourne 82844 601 2941 208 3542 42.76 7.25 35.50 2.51
103 Dania Beach 32376 209 1210 84 1419 43.83 6.46 37.37 2.59
104 Boynton Beach 79142 477 2964 196 3441 43.48 6.03 37.45 2.48
105 DeLand 33384 182 1256 81 1438 43.07 5.45 37.62 2.43
106 Cocoa 18739 141 1021 93 1162 62.01 7.52 54.49 4.96
107 Palm Springs 25146 126 981 60 1107 44.02 5.01 39.01 2.39
108 Fort Lauderdale 182150 1006 9050 679 10056 55.21 5.52 49.68 3.73
109 Oakland Park 45564 277 1606 95 1883 41.33 6.08 35.25 2.08
110 Lauderhill 72694 551 2313 137 2864 39.40 7.58 31.82 1.88
111 Homestead 71314 714 2282 150 2996 42.01 10.01 32.00 2.10
112 Daytona Beach 69030 764 3358 292 4122 59.71 11.07 48.65 4.23
113 Gainesville 133400 989 5229 330 6218 46.61 7.41 39.20 2.47
114 Aventura 38544 82 1963 122 2045 53.06 2.13 50.93 3.17
115 Holly Hill 12302 63 495 28 558 45.36 5.12 40.24 2.28
116 Pompano Beach 112045 876 4307 258 5183 46.26 7.82 38.44 2.30
117 Miami Gardens 114670 816 4530 264 5346 46.62 7.12 39.50 2.30
118 Leesburg 23029 175 1214 88 1389 60.32 7.60 52.72 3.82
119 Orlando 286679 2282 13803 944 16085 56.11 7.96 48.15 3.29
120 Pinellas Park 53383 224 2423 123 2647 49.59 4.20 45.39 2.30
121 Panama City 37318 234 2150 142 2384 63.88 6.27 57.61 3.81
122 Panama City Beach 12935 110 960 82 1070 82.72 8.50 74.22 6.34
123 Lantana 12006 91 612 37 703 58.55 7.58 50.97 3.08
124 Tallahassee 192443 1404 8695 447 10099 52.48 7.30 45.18 2.32
125 Miami Beach 92928 871 6947 508 7818 84.13 9.37 74.76 5.47
126 Palatka 10365 110 630 39 740 71.39 10.61 60.78 3.76
127 Lauderdale Lakes 36575 312 1209 46 1521 41.59 8.53 33.06 1.26
128 Lake City 12182 148 858 53 1006 82.58 12.15 70.43 4.35
129 Orange City 11805 45 782 30 827 70.06 3.81 66.24 2.54
Methodology
To identify the safest cities, we reviewed the most recent FBI Uniform Crime Report statistics. We eliminated any cities that failed to submit a complete crime report to the FBI and cities with populations under 10,000. This left 3,381 cities (out of a total of 9,251).
There are two broad classifications of crimes: violent crimes and non-violent crimes. According to the FBI, “Violent crime is composed of four offenses: murder and non-negligent manslaughter, rape, robbery, and aggravated assault. Violent crimes are defined in the UCR Program as those offenses that involve force or threat of force. Property crime includes the offenses of burglary, larceny-theft, motor vehicle theft, and arson. The object of the theft-type offenses is the taking of money or property, but there is no force or threat of force against the victims. ”
We computed the total number of crimes reported by each city by adding violent crimes and property crimes. We then created a crime rate as the number of crimes per 1,000 population. Then we transformed the total crime rate variable so that the skewness was reduced and normalized.
Data from 2,831 law enforcement agencies was then collected to determine police adequacy (TotalCrimes / Number of police employees). We consider that the smaller the police adequacy statistic is, the safer the city is. This variable was also transformed and normalized.
Finally, the two variables were combined to create a safety score for each city.
