Violent crime
312 per 100,000 residents, per year
31,981 reported in the 12 months to Jun 2026
−14% vs. the previous 12 months
Data through June 2026, FBI Crime Data Explorer
Crime in North Carolina
The violent crime rate in North Carolina is 312 per 100,000 residents per year over the 12 months to June 2026, about the same as the U.S. rate of 318, and the 24th-highest of the 50 states and D.C. Violent crime is down 14% from the previous 12 months, and down 4% since 2018.
The numbers
12 months to Jun 2026Property crime
1,676 per 100,000 residents, per year
171,989 reported in the 12 months to Jun 2026
−13% vs. the previous 12 months
All reported
1,988 per 100,000 residents, per year
203,970 reported in the 12 months to Jun 2026
Annual rates per 100,000 residents, counted the FBI’s way, the same as every city on this site.
What counts, and who reported
Violent crime is homicide, rape, robbery and aggravated assault; property crime is burglary, theft, vehicle theft and arson. The agencies that reported serve 91.6% of the state’s 11,197,968 residents, and rates are taken over the population they serve. How we count
Where North Carolina sits among the states
violent, per 100k, per year312
North Carolina has the 24th-highest violent crime rate of the 50 states and D.C., and the 14th-highest property crime rate.
Maine 89U.S. 318Washington, D.C. 786
The ring is North Carolina; the tick is the rate for the whole country.
Reported crime by type
12 months to Jun 2026- Homicide5.9 (U.S. 3.9)+51% vs. U.S.
- Rape25 (U.S. 35)−27% vs. U.S.
- Robbery37 (U.S. 46)−20% vs. U.S.
- Aggravated assault244 (U.S. 233)+4% vs. U.S.
- Property crimeBurglary, theft, vehicle theft and arson1,676 (U.S. 1,473)+14% vs. U.S.
See the table, with the change on the previous 12 months
| Offense | Reported | Per 100k | U.S. per 100k | vs. U.S. | vs. previous 12 months |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HomicideViolent | 604 | 5.9 | 3.9 | +51% | −17% |
| RapeViolent | 2,604 | 25 | 35 | −27% | −8% |
| RobberyViolent | 3,777 | 37 | 46 | −20% | −23% |
| Aggravated assaultViolent | 24,996 | 244 | 233 | +4% | −13% |
| Property crimeBurglary, theft, vehicle theft and arson | 171,989 | 1,676 | 1,473 | +14% | −13% |
The FBI publishes property crime for states as a single total, so it is not broken down here. Red means more than in the previous 12 months, green means fewer.
Since 2018
per 100k, per yearViolent crime rate by year
Homicide, rape, robbery and aggravated assault per 100,000 residents
| Year | Violent crime rate in North Carolina |
|---|---|
| 2018 | 342 |
| 2019 | 410 |
| 2020 | 442 |
| 2022 | 411 |
| 2023 | 404 |
| 2024 | 383 |
| 2025 | 328 |
Homicide rate by year
Homicides per 100,000 residents
| Year | Homicide rate in North Carolina |
|---|---|
| 2018 | 5.6 |
| 2019 | 6.8 |
| 2020 | 8.3 |
| 2022 | 8.3 |
| 2023 | 8.2 |
| 2024 | 7.7 |
| 2025 | 6.4 |
Why there is no 2021
No figure for 2021: that year the FBI switched every agency to its new reporting system (NIBRS), and so many had not switched yet that national coverage fell too low for a rate. The dotted line only joins the years on either side.
Cities in North Carolina
8 city pages, per 100k, per yearThe 6 largest, month by month
Violent crimes in each city’s latest 12 months against the 12 before. Each chart has its own scale: compare the two lines within a city.
Charlotte5,170 −17%
Raleigh1,948 −12%
Greensboro2,177 −23%
Durham1,577 −5%
Winston-Salem1,867 −11%
Fayetteville1,178 −16%
| # | City | Violent per 100k | Property per 100k | vs. North Carolina | Residents | Data through |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Winston-Salem50th of 302 | 725 | 2,821 | +133% | 257,431 | Jun 2026 |
| 2 | Greensboro54th of 302 | 702 | 2,980 | +125% | 310,328 | Dec 2025 |
| 3 | Fayetteville84th of 302 | 563 | 2,608 | +81% | 209,151 | Aug 2026 |
| 4 | Durham98th of 302 | 513 | 3,439 | +65% | 307,140 | Aug 2026 |
| 5 | Charlotte102nd of 302 | 499 | 3,018 | +60% | 1,035,037 | Sep 2026 |
| 6 | Raleigh137th of 302 | 383 | 2,132 | +23% | 508,719 | Aug 2026 |
| 7 | Wilmington141st of 302 | 378 | 2,893 | +21% | 127,752 | Sep 2026 |
| 8 | Cary298th of 302 | 58 | 700 | −81% | 184,680 | Oct 2026 |
How to read this table
The line under each city is its place among the 302 cities and county areas on this site, highest rate first. City rates use the same FBI definitions as the state, so each one can be read against the North Carolina figure directly. Each department reports on its own schedule, so the 12-month windows differ a little between rows.
Neighboring states
per 100k, per year| State | Violent | Property | Homicide | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tennessee | 452 | 1,455 | 5.5 | 6 |
| South Carolina | 365 | 1,642 | 6.0 | 16 |
| North Carolina | 312 | 1,676 | 5.9 | 24 |
| Georgia | 291 | 1,279 | 5.0 | 26 |
| Virginia | 204 | 1,304 | 3.8 | 43 |
Rank among the 50 states and D.C. by violent crime rate, 1 being the highest. Same FBI window for every state: the 12 months to June 2026.
Common questions
answered with the data aboveIs North Carolina safe?
By reported violent crime, North Carolina is close to the national level: 312 violent crimes per 100,000 residents per year over the 12 months to June 2026, against 318 for the U.S. It varies a lot from city to city: among the 8 North Carolina cities on this site, Winston-Salem runs 725 and Cary 58.
What is the violent crime rate in North Carolina?
312 per 100,000 residents per year, counting homicide, rape, robbery and aggravated assault reported to the FBI over the 12 months to June 2026 (31,981 offenses). The property crime rate is 1,676 per 100,000.
Is crime in North Carolina going up or down?
It is going down: violent crime −14% and property crime −13% over the last 12 months compared with the 12 months before. Since 2018 the violent crime rate is down 4%.
Source and dates
FBI CDE- Source
- Federal Bureau of Investigation, via the FBI Crime Data Explorer: monthly offense counts and the population served by the agencies that reported
- Latest 12 months
- July 2025 to June 2026
- Reporting coverage
- Agencies serving 91.6% of residents
- History on this site
- 2018 to 2025 by year (no 2021), and month by month since January 2018
- Update schedule
- We refresh every morning and publish the most recent 12 months that agencies across the country have reported in full.
- Methodology
- How we count, and what the numbers leave out