CurrentCrimeMap

Data through September 2026, Des Moines Police Department

Crime in Des Moines, IA

The violent crime rate in Des Moines is 661 per 100,000 residents per year over the 12 months to September 2026, 51% above the average of the 302 cities and county areas we cover. That is +4% compared with the previous 12 months.

The Des Moines River leading to the Des Moines, Iowa skyline, as viewed from the SE 6th Street bridge.
Photo: Tony Webster, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons, cropped

The numbers

12 months to Sep 2026

Violent crime

661 per 100,000 residents, per year

1,408 reported in the 12 months to Sep 2026

+4% vs. the previous 12 months

Property crime

2,257 per 100,000 residents, per year

4,805 reported in the 12 months to Sep 2026

−25% vs. the previous 12 months

All reported

2,918 per 100,000 residents, per year

6,213 reported in the 12 months to Sep 2026

Annual rates: reported incidents over the last 12 months per 100,000 residents (population 212,933, U.S. Census).

What counts as violent and property crime

Counted the FBI's way, the same for every city: violent crime is homicide, rape, robbery and aggravated assault; property crime is burglary, theft, vehicle theft and arson. Simple assault is not counted as violent. How we count

Where Des Moines sits among covered places

violent, per 100k, per year

661

Des Moines has the 61st-highest rate of the 302 cities and county areas on this site, higher than 241 of the other 301.

Carmel 51avg 437Detroit 1,632

The ring is Des Moines; the tick is the average of all 302 cities and county areas.

PlaceViolent per 100kRank
Seattle, WA69056
Portland, OR68857
Phoenix, AZ67858
Oklahoma City, OK67259
Sacramento, CA66860
Des Moines, IA66161
Colorado Springs, CO65762
Billings, MT65363
Fresno, CA65264
Gainesville, FL64765
Los Angeles, CA64666

The places closest to Des Moines in the ranking, highest rate first. See all 302 cities and county areas

Des Moines crime map

cities around it
Loading map…

SaferHigher rateViolent crimes per 100,000 residents per year, for each whole city. The colors are not crime locations.

The FBI publishes citywide totals from Des Moines Police Department, not where each crime happened, so this map fills Des Moines with its whole-city rate instead of plotting crimes. The nearest covered cities are more than 60 miles away: zoom out to see them, or use the table below.

Of the 8 covered cities nearest Des Moines, 2 have a higher violent crime rate and 6 a lower one. The closest is Cedar Rapids, IA, 103 miles away.

Des Moines and the covered places nearest to it, with each one’s violent crime rate and distance
PlaceViolent per 100kDistance
Des Moines, IA661
Cedar Rapids, IA247103 mi
Omaha, NE342128 mi
Davenport, IA611155 mi
Lincoln, NE391168 mi
Independence, MO478176 mi
Kansas City, MO1,325176 mi
Rochester, MN139178 mi
Kansas City, KS886179 mi
About the colors and distances

Colors use the same scale as the rest of the site, from the lowest to the highest violent crime rate among the 302 cities and county areas we cover. City outlines from the U.S. Census Bureau. Distances are straight-line, between city centers.

Reported crime by type

12 months to Sep 2026
OffenseReportedPer 100kvs. previous monthvs. a year earlier
HomicideViolent83.8—+167%
About these categories

The FBI publishes city totals by family, not a full breakdown by offence, so homicide is the only type Des Moines Police Department reports separately here. Red means more than before, green means fewer. “Not yet” means the site does not have that month from a year earlier.

Month by month

Oct 2025 to Sep 2026

Violent crime +4%

050100150200OctNovDecJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSep109111
Violent crimes per month in Des Moines, IA, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026 and a year earlier
MonthViolent crimesMonth a year earlierViolent crimes
Oct 2025134Oct 2024100
Nov 202599Nov 2024116
Dec 2025105Dec 2024104
Jan 202692Jan 2025102
Feb 202695Feb 202599
Mar 2026124Mar 2025133
Apr 2026119Apr 2025115
May 2026148May 2025104
Jun 2026121Jun 2025112
Jul 2026114Jul 2025118
Aug 2026148Aug 2025135
Sep 2026109Sep 2025111

Homicides 8 vs. 3

01234OctNovDecJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSep00
Homicides per month in Des Moines, IA, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026 and a year earlier
MonthHomicidesMonth a year earlierHomicides
Oct 20250Oct 20241
Nov 20251Nov 20240
Dec 20250Dec 20240
Jan 20262Jan 20250
Feb 20260Feb 20250
Mar 20263Mar 20250
Apr 20262Apr 20250
May 20260May 20250
Jun 20260Jun 20250
Jul 20260Jul 20252
Aug 20260Aug 20250
Sep 20260Sep 20250

7 in 2026 through September, 2 in the same months of 2025. Compare with other places

Every month since Oct 2023
Reported crime per month in Des Moines, IA
MonthViolentPropertyHomicides
Sep 20261093650
Aug 20261485030
Jul 20261144620
Jun 20261214410
May 20261484060
Apr 20261193152
Mar 20261244003
Feb 2026953120
Jan 2026923632
Dec 20251053660
Nov 2025993941
Oct 20251344780
Sep 20251115410
Aug 20251355850
Jul 20251186062
Jun 20251125820
May 20251045010
Apr 20251155020
Mar 20251335380
Feb 2025994170
Jan 20251025330
Dec 20241045180
Nov 20241165080
Oct 20241006151
Sep 20241446463
Aug 20241545950
Jul 20241495861
Jun 20241675841
May 20241425530
Apr 2024964963
Mar 20241225070
Feb 2024895130
Jan 2024974840
Dec 2023895480
Nov 2023856161
Oct 20231296080

How Des Moines compares

per 100k, per year

Similar size

#PlaceViolentPropertyResidentsData to
61Des Moines, IA6612,257212,933Sep 2026
77Worcester, MA6001,433212,985Jan 2026
84Fayetteville, NC5632,608209,151Aug 2026
116Moreno Valley, CA4351,278215,203Aug 2026
156Sioux Falls, SD3472,123213,449Feb 2026
178Hawaii County, HI (County Police)3021,815210,328May 2026
198Yonkers, NY249781211,056Aug 2026
202Hernando County, FL (Sheriff)245644210,286Aug 2026
214Clay County, FL (Sheriff)230639218,420Aug 2026
220Grand Prairie, TX2231,212210,147Aug 2026

The 10 places closest to Des Moines in population, Des Moines included, highest violent crime rate first.

Same state

#PlaceViolentPropertyResidentsData to
61Des Moines, IA6612,257212,933Sep 2026
75Davenport, IA6112,726100,761Sep 2026
201Cedar Rapids, IA2471,900137,918Sep 2026

All 3 places in Iowa on this site, highest violent crime rate first.

Nearby

#PlaceViolentPropertyResidentsData to
5Kansas City, MO1,3253,411518,039Jul 2026
26Kansas City, KS8862,936156,815May 2026
61Des Moines, IA6612,257212,933Sep 2026
75Davenport, IA6112,726100,761Sep 2026
109Independence, MO4782,897121,329Jul 2026
132Lincoln, NE3911,767302,860Aug 2026
150Columbia, MO3581,584132,072Aug 2026
159Omaha, NE3422,524488,395Aug 2026
201Cedar Rapids, IA2471,900137,918Sep 2026
260Rochester, MN1391,104124,142Sep 2026

The 9 places on this site closest to Des Moines by distance, highest violent crime rate first.

#PlaceViolentPropertyResidentsData to

Figures are what each agency reports to the FBI, over the last 12 months it has reported in full, so the months differ. See all 302 cities and county areas in the rankings

Compare Des Moines side by side with Cedar Rapids, Davenport or Worcester, or with any other place.

Other cities in Iowa

2 city pages, closest first

Iowa as a whole has 236 violent crimes per 100,000 residents per year, as reported to the FBI over the 12 months to Jun 2026; Des Moines’s rate is 180% above the state’s.

Cedar RapidsDavenport

All 3 cities in Iowa

Common questions

answered with the data above
Is Des Moines safe?

By reported violent crime, Des Moines is well above the average of the 302 cities and county areas on this site: 661 violent crimes per 100,000 residents per year over the 12 months to September 2026, +4% versus the previous 12 months. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood, so the citywide figure is only a starting point.

Is there a crime map for Des Moines?

This site does not have one for Des Moines. The figures on this page come from the FBI, which receives city totals rather than locations, so CurrentCrimeMap shows how Des Moines compares with nearby places such as Cedar Rapids, IA instead of a street-level map.

What is the crime rate in Des Moines?

661 violent and 2,257 property crimes per 100,000 residents per year, based on 6,213 incidents reported to Des Moines Police Department over the 12 months to September 2026.

Is crime in Des Moines going up or down?

It is going up: violent crime +4% and property crime −25% over the last 12 months compared with the 12 months before.

How many homicides has Des Moines had in 2026?

Des Moines Police Department reported 7 homicides from January to September 2026, the latest month it has reported in full, against 2 in the same months of 2025. Over the 12 months to Sep 2026 the count was 8, or 4 per 100,000 residents.

Where does the data come from?

From Des Moines Police Department, via FBI Crime Data Explorer (dataset IA0770300). We count reported incidents by month and offense type and divide by the Census population. Reported crime undercounts actual crime; see the methodology page for what the numbers leave out.

Moving to or visiting Des Moines

12 months to September 2026

What these numbers leave out: most crime never reaches the police. In the federal victim survey (BJS, 2024), about half of violent crimes and less than a third of property crimes were reported, and only a quarter of everyday thefts. Rates are per resident, so busy downtowns and tourist areas look worse than they are for the people who visit them.

The official source is FBI Crime Data Explorer. For what to look for, and what not to read into a rate, see how to read US crime numbers.

Source and dates

IA0770300
Source
Des Moines Police Department, via FBI Crime Data Explorer (dataset IA0770300)
Latest complete month
September 2026
History on this site
October 2023 to September 2026 (45 months)
Update schedule
Des Moines Police Department reports monthly to the FBI under the national NIBRS standard. We refresh every morning and publish the most recent 12 months the agency has reported in full.
Download
Monthly counts by offense (JSON)