Data through Aug 2026 (Los Angeles) and Dec 2025 (San Francisco), FBI
Los Angeles vs San Francisco crime rates
Los Angeles’ violent crime rate was 33% higher than San Francisco’s over each one’s latest 12 months (to Aug 2026 for Los Angeles and Dec 2025 for San Francisco): 646 against 486 per 100,000 residents a year. San Francisco’s property crime rate was 42% higher than Los Angeles’ over the same period: 2,960 against 2,083 per 100,000 residents a year. Los Angeles recorded 218 homicides (5.6 per 100,000 residents) and San Francisco 28 (3.4). Over the same period violent crime was down 5% in Los Angeles and down 17% in San Francisco, each against its own previous 12 months.
Side by side
per 100k, per year| Measure | Los Angeles, CAcity, California | San Francisco, CAcity, California |
|---|---|---|
| Violent crimeper 100,000 residents a year | 646 | 486 |
| Property crimeper 100,000 residents a year | 2,083 | 2,960 |
| Homicidescount in the period | 2185.6 per 100k | 283.4 per 100k |
| Violent crime trendagainst the 12 months before | −5% | −17% |
| Property crime trendagainst the 12 months before | +15% | −24% |
| Residents | 3,898,747 | 815,330 |
| Period | 12 months to Aug 2026 | 12 months to Dec 2025 |
| Source | Los Angeles Police Departmentas reported to the FBI | San Francisco Police Departmentas reported to the FBI |
Violent crime, month by month
Each line has its own scale, so read the direction, not the height; the table above has the rates.
Robbery and theft
| Offense | Los Angeles | San Francisco |
|---|---|---|
| Robberytaken by force or threat | 7,043181 per 100k | 1,645202 per 100k |
| Burglaryentering a home or business to steal | 9,961255 per 100k | 3,795465 per 100k |
| Theft from vehiclesitems or parts taken from a vehicle | 22,737583 per 100k | — |
| Other theftshoplifting, pickpocketing and the rest | 30,874792 per 100k | — |
Counts over each period; San Francisco does not report thefts from vehicles separately to the FBI, so its theft lines are not shown.
The FBI cautions against ranking or comparing places on these numbers alone: how dense a place is, its economy, how often residents report crime and how each agency records it all shape them. How to read crime numbers
What this comparison does not measure
read before deciding- These are crimes reported to the police. In the federal victim survey for 2024, about half of violent crime (47.9%, homicide aside) and under a third of property crime (30.5%) was reported, and that share can differ from one city to another.
- The two periods are not the same months: Los Angeles’ figures run to Aug 2026 and San Francisco’s to Dec 2025, the latest each agency has reported in full.
- Los Angeles has 4.8 times as many residents as San Francisco. A rate evens out the size, but in the smaller place a few dozen incidents move it more.
- City limits are drawn differently: one city may take in suburbs and open land that another leaves to its neighbors, and that alone moves a citywide rate. A citywide figure says little about any one neighborhood; Los Angeles and San Francisco have neighborhood figures on their page.
More on each place
7 related pairsCrime in Los Angeles, CACrime in San Francisco, CALos Angeles vs San DiegoSan Francisco vs San JoseOakland vs San FranciscoLos Angeles vs New YorkHouston vs Los AngelesSan Francisco vs SeattleLas Vegas vs Los Angeles
Source and dates
FBI Crime Data Explorer- Los Angeles, CA
- Los Angeles Police Department, as reported to the FBI. 12 months to Aug 2026; 3,898,747 residents.
- San Francisco, CA
- San Francisco Police Department, as reported to the FBI. 12 months to Dec 2025; 815,330 residents.
- How we count
- Violent crime is homicide, rape, robbery and aggravated assault; property crime is burglary, theft, vehicle theft and arson, the FBI’s definitions for every agency. Methodology