As the largest city in California, Los Angeles has a population of over 4 million – 4,015,546 to be exact. There were 29,400 reported violent crimes in the city. The violent crime rate in Los Angeles is 732 per 100,000 people.
1. Rancho Santa Margarita. Rancho Santa Margarita, a suburb of Irvines, is one of the top safest cities in California. It has a violent crime rate of 0.62 per 1000 population, which is 85% lower than the average violent crime rate in California.
Coming in at number one is San Bernardino. Contributing factors include having one of the highest crime rates in Southern California combined with the city's low investment in police protection.
NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) - Three people were shot in New Orleans in the past 24 hours, and there's no sign violence will slow down. According to the city council data analyst, New Orleans could have the nation's highest murder rate per 100,000 people.
Danville, CA comes in as the safest city in California. Located in Contra Costa County, it has a lower population than Rancho Santa Margarita but a higher one than Moorpark (no. 2 and 3 on the list), at about 44 000 residents. In 2020, it was named the safest town in California and is so again in 2022.
The San Francisco crime rate is 6,175 total crimes per 100,000 people compared to 3,115 crimes per 100,000 people in LA. That means San Fran has 69% more crime than LA.
According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the violent crime rate in California was 441.2 per 100,000 residents while it was 5 percent lower in Texas at 418.9 (FBI, 2020 ). In contrast, the property crime rate in Texas was slightly higher at 2,390.7 per 100,000 versus 2,331.2 per 100,000 in California.
More people move to Texas from California than any other state. But... why? 37 percent of Californians say they've seriously considered leaving because of high housing costs. Texas doesn't have that problem.
The affordability of California's housing market is another key driver in the mass migration of Californians to Texas. Californian home prices have skyrocketed in recent years and while Texas prices are on the rise, there's no arguing that your money will get you more in Austin than it will Los Angeles.
Race and ethnicity (White alone 61.6%; Black alone 12.4%; Hispanic 18.7%; Asian alone 6%; American Indian and Alaska Native alone 1.1%; Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone 0.2%; Some Other Race alone 8.4%; Two or More Races 10.2%).
San Diego is Safer
The level of crime in San Diego is much lower (38.41) than that of Los Angeles (55.6). Various crime indices support the argument that San Diego is a safer town. The ability to safely walk alone during daylight hours shows Los Angeles (70.74) being less safe than San Diego (82.39).
If you're looking to live in an extremely diverse, cosmopolitan, and bustling big city, you are likely going to prefer Los Angeles. If you prefer a more laid-back lifestyle that prioritizes a high quality of life, you'll probably prefer San Diego.
Crime Rates
According to Sperling's Best Places, New York has a lower rate of both violent crime and property crime compared to San Francisco. New York has a violent crime rate of 28.2 against San Francisco's 39.6. For property crime, New York rates 39.6, while the number almost doubles with San Francisco's 79.2.
Crime in Orange County vs Los Angeles
You'll definitely find that the O.C. wins this round. Comparing crime in Los Angeles vs. Orange County, you'll find Orange County is a much safer place to live.
Long Beach is one of the cheapest and safest places to live in California. You can live on a monthly budget of $2,600 per month.
While the median rent in Los Angeles is $1450.00 per month, in San Diego, it's $1700.00, a substantial difference. (While not really a factor, about 10% more people rent in Los Angeles than in San Diego.)
Los Angeles is 8.2% more expensive than San Diego. Los Angeles housing costs are 6.8% more expensive than San Diego housing costs. Health related expenses are 0.4% more in Los Angeles.
San Diego has a better Violent Crime rating (24.4) than the Orange County seat, Santa Ana (29.3), and the Property Crime rank for San Diego (31.4) is just slightly higher than Santa Ana (30.6). Santa Ana, by the way, has a population of 331,301 people.
Is it safe at night? Yes, San Diego is very safe but you should always keep your wits about you–wherever you are traveling. When you're visiting any new city, you shouldn't walk alone late at night in a neighborhood you're not familiar with. Avoid suspicious activity and dangerous neighborhoods.
The increase in the city's unsheltered homeless population is most noticeable in several city blocks near Father Joe's Villages on Imperial Avenue, and it was documented in an unrelated monthly count of homeless people conducted by the Downtown San Diego Partnership.
Downtown San Diego – being the city center and most populous area, Downtown San Diego crime rate is higher than in the smaller more residential towns.
Catholics remain the largest religious family in California, but the proportion of Californians identifying as Catholic is declining. "Mainline" Christian denominations are shrinking fast in the state.