CurrentCrimeMap

Data through August 2026, Knoxville Police Department

Crime in Knoxville, TN

The violent crime rate in Knoxville is 633 per 100,000 residents per year over the 12 months to August 2026, 45% above the average of the 302 cities and county areas we cover. That is −12% compared with the previous 12 months.

The southeast corner of Market Square in Knoxville, Tennessee, USA.
Photo: Brian Stansberry, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons, cropped

The numbers

12 months to Aug 2026

Violent crime

633 per 100,000 residents, per year

1,271 reported in the 12 months to Aug 2026

−12% vs. the previous 12 months

Property crime

2,046 per 100,000 residents, per year

4,106 reported in the 12 months to Aug 2026

−18% vs. the previous 12 months

All reported

2,680 per 100,000 residents, per year

5,377 reported in the 12 months to Aug 2026

Annual rates: reported incidents over the last 12 months per 100,000 residents (population 200,645, 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 Knoxville sits among covered places

violent, per 100k, per year

633

Knoxville has the 68th-highest rate of the 302 cities and county areas on this site, higher than 234 of the other 301.

Carmel 51avg 437Detroit 1,632

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

PlaceViolent per 100kRank
Billings, MT65363
Fresno, CA65264
Gainesville, FL64765
Los Angeles, CA64666
Fort Lauderdale, FL63967
Knoxville, TN63368
North Charleston, SC63369
Tallahassee, FL63370
New York, NY62571
Long Beach, CA62172
Louisville, KY61273

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

Knoxville 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 Knoxville Police Department, not where each crime happened, so this map fills Knoxville 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 Knoxville, 3 have a higher violent crime rate and 5 a lower one. The closest is Chattanooga, TN, 96 miles away.

Knoxville and the covered places nearest to it, with each one’s violent crime rate and distance
PlaceViolent per 100kDistance
Knoxville, TN633
Chattanooga, TN70596 mi
Lexington, KY216146 mi
Atlanta, GA796155 mi
Nashville, TN828159 mi
Huntsville, AL351177 mi
Louisville, KY612178 mi
Charlotte, NC499183 mi
Clarksville, TN313194 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 Aug 2026
  • RobberyTaking property by force or threatViolent, 116 reported58−9% vs. a year ago
  • HomicideViolent, 13 reported6.5+18% vs. a year ago
  • TheftShoplifting, pickpocketing and other theft without force or entryProperty, 2,308 reported1,150−8% vs. a year ago
  • Theft from vehiclesItems or parts taken from a vehicle, break-ins includedProperty, 773 reported385−34% vs. a year ago
  • BurglaryEntering a home or business to stealProperty, 541 reported270−25% vs. a year ago
  • Vehicle theftProperty, 473 reported236−23% vs. a year ago
See the table
OffenseReportedPer 100kvs. previous monthvs. a year earlier
RobberyViolent11658—−9%
HomicideViolent136.5—+18%
TheftProperty2,3081,150—−8%
Theft from vehiclesProperty773385—−34%
BurglaryProperty541270—−25%
Vehicle theftProperty473236—−23%
About these categories

Homicide, robbery, burglary, theft and vehicle theft come from the same reports Knoxville Police Department sends the FBI. Theft from vehicles is NIBRS codes 23F and 23G (items and parts taken from a vehicle) and theft is the rest of larceny. Robbery is part of violent crime and the others of property crime; assault and rape count in violent crime but are not listed separately, so the rows do not add up to the totals. Red means more than before, green means fewer. “Not yet” means the site does not have that month from a year earlier.

Against other places of 100,000+ residents: vehicle theft (79th highest rate of 155), robbery (78th highest rate of 152) and burglary (56th highest rate of 168).

Month by month

Sep 2025 to Aug 2026

Violent crime −12%

050100150200SepOctNovDecJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAug137120
Violent crimes per month in Knoxville, TN, Sep 2025 to Aug 2026 and a year earlier
MonthViolent crimesMonth a year earlierViolent crimes
Sep 2025137Sep 2024114
Oct 202595Oct 2024158
Nov 2025115Nov 2024104
Dec 202585Dec 2024123
Jan 202669Jan 2025104
Feb 202666Feb 2025107
Mar 2026137Mar 2025126
Apr 202697Apr 2025131
May 2026113May 202596
Jun 202678Jun 2025124
Jul 2026142Jul 2025134
Aug 2026137Aug 2025120

Homicides +18%

01234SepOctNovDecJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAug11
Homicides per month in Knoxville, TN, Sep 2025 to Aug 2026 and a year earlier
MonthHomicidesMonth a year earlierHomicides
Sep 20253Sep 20240
Oct 20251Oct 20241
Nov 20252Nov 20241
Dec 20253Dec 20242
Jan 20260Jan 20250
Feb 20260Feb 20252
Mar 20260Mar 20251
Apr 20260Apr 20250
May 20263May 20250
Jun 20260Jun 20251
Jul 20260Jul 20252
Aug 20261Aug 20251

4 in 2026 through August, 7 in the same months of 2025. Compare with other places

Every month since Sep 2023
Reported crime per month in Knoxville, TN
MonthViolentPropertyHomicides
Aug 20261374221
Jul 20261423540
Jun 2026783700
May 20261133543
Apr 2026973220
Mar 20261372560
Feb 2026662530
Jan 2026693200
Dec 2025853323
Nov 20251153452
Oct 2025953801
Sep 20251373983
Aug 20251203731
Jul 20251343672
Jun 20251244021
May 2025964570
Apr 20251314150
Mar 20251264241
Feb 20251074302
Jan 20251044140
Dec 20241233862
Nov 20241043841
Oct 20241585051
Sep 20241144640
Aug 20241204220
Jul 20241625155
Jun 20241474922
May 20241194962
Apr 20241245224
Mar 20241074940
Feb 20241074214
Jan 20241043792
Dec 2023914163
Nov 20231274350
Oct 20231604773
Sep 20231595071

How Knoxville compares

per 100k, per year

Similar size

#PlaceViolentPropertyResidentsData to
3Little Rock, AR1,4634,090205,320Jul 2026
13Birmingham, AL1,1593,901195,393Sep 2026
28Grand Rapids, MI8662,171200,467Jul 2026
68Knoxville, TN6332,046200,645Aug 2026
88Oxnard, CA5391,289200,296Jul 2026
91Vancouver, WA5332,669200,968May 2026
103Amarillo, TX4982,123204,528Jul 2026
120Columbus, GA4191,802200,622Sep 2026
194Peoria, AZ2551,091201,962Apr 2026
243Overland Park, KS1731,443204,173Aug 2026

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

Same state

#PlaceViolentPropertyResidentsData to
4Memphis, TN1,4453,612606,629Aug 2026
34Nashville, TN8283,377718,499Aug 2026
53Chattanooga, TN7053,102193,881Sep 2026
68Knoxville, TN6332,046200,645Aug 2026
173Clarksville, TN313891190,532Aug 2026

All 5 places in Tennessee on this site, highest violent crime rate first.

Nearby

#PlaceViolentPropertyResidentsData to
34Nashville, TN8283,377718,499Aug 2026
37Atlanta, GA7962,712525,939Sep 2026
53Chattanooga, TN7053,102193,881Sep 2026
68Knoxville, TN6332,046200,645Aug 2026
73Louisville, KY6123,250691,630Jul 2026
102Charlotte, NC4993,0181,035,037Sep 2026
154Huntsville, AL3512,037234,043Aug 2026
173Clarksville, TN313891190,532Aug 2026
226Lexington, KY2162,035330,994Jul 2026
246Raleigh County, WV (Sheriff)15880053,245Aug 2026

The 9 places on this site closest to Knoxville 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 Knoxville side by side with Chattanooga, Clarksville or Columbus, or with any other place.

Other cities in Tennessee

4 city pages, closest first

Tennessee as a whole has 452 violent crimes per 100,000 residents per year, as reported to the FBI over the 12 months to Jun 2026; Knoxville’s rate is 40% above the state’s.

ChattanoogaNashvilleClarksvilleMemphis

All 5 cities in Tennessee

Common questions

answered with the data above
Is Knoxville safe?

By reported violent crime, Knoxville is well above the average of the 302 cities and county areas on this site: 633 violent crimes per 100,000 residents per year over the 12 months to August 2026, −12% 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 Knoxville?

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

What is the crime rate in Knoxville?

633 violent and 2,046 property crimes per 100,000 residents per year, based on 5,377 incidents reported to Knoxville Police Department over the 12 months to August 2026. Violent crime includes 116 robberies (property taken by force or threat); property crime includes 541 burglaries, 773 thefts from vehicles and 2,308 other thefts.

Is crime in Knoxville going up or down?

It is going down: violent crime −12% and property crime −18% over the last 12 months compared with the 12 months before.

How many homicides has Knoxville had in 2026?

Knoxville Police Department reported 4 homicides from January to August 2026, the latest month it has reported in full, against 7 in the same months of 2025. Over the 12 months to Aug 2026 the count was 13, or 6 per 100,000 residents.

Where does the data come from?

From Knoxville Police Department, via FBI Crime Data Explorer (dataset TN0470100). 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 Knoxville

12 months to August 2026
What most people ask aboutReportedPer 100kvs. the 12 months before
RobberyTaking property by force or threat11658−9%
BurglaryEntering a home or business to steal541270−25%
Theft from vehiclesItems or parts taken from a vehicle, break-ins included773385−34%
Vehicle theft473236−23%

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

TN0470100
Source
Knoxville Police Department, via FBI Crime Data Explorer (dataset TN0470100)
Latest complete month
August 2026
History on this site
September 2023 to August 2026 (44 months)
Update schedule
Knoxville 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)