CurrentCrimeMap

Data through August 2026, Sterling Heights Police Department

Crime in Sterling Heights, MI

The violent crime rate in Sterling Heights is 222 per 100,000 residents per year over the 12 months to August 2026, 49% below the average of the 302 cities and county areas we cover. That is −7% compared with the previous 12 months.

Sterling Heights City Hall in Michigan.
Photo: Ajay Suresh, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons, cropped

The numbers

12 months to Aug 2026

Violent crime

222 per 100,000 residents, per year

299 reported in the 12 months to Aug 2026

−7% vs. the previous 12 months

Property crime

1,013 per 100,000 residents, per year

1,362 reported in the 12 months to Aug 2026

−14% vs. the previous 12 months

All reported

1,236 per 100,000 residents, per year

1,661 reported in the 12 months to Aug 2026

Annual rates: reported incidents over the last 12 months per 100,000 residents (population 134,402, 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 Sterling Heights sits among covered places

violent, per 100k, per year

222

Sterling Heights has the 221st-highest rate of the 302 cities and county areas on this site, higher than 81 of the other 301.

Carmel 51avg 437Detroit 1,632

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

PlaceViolent per 100kRank
Portland, ME228216
Bridgeport, CT226217
Bonneville County, ID (Sheriff)226218
Kauai County, HI (County Police)224219
Grand Prairie, TX223220
Sterling Heights, MI222221
Aurora, IL220222
Pawtucket, RI220223
Southaven, MS220224
Prince George's County, MD (County Police)220225
Lexington, KY216226

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

Sterling Heights 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 Sterling Heights Police Department, not where each crime happened, so this map fills Sterling Heights and the 8 covered cities around it with each one’s whole-city rate instead of plotting crimes.

Of the 8 covered cities nearest Sterling Heights, all 8 have a higher violent crime rate. The closest is Warren, MI, 6 miles away.

Sterling Heights and the covered places nearest to it, with each one’s violent crime rate and distance
PlaceViolent per 100kDistance
Sterling Heights, MI222
Warren, MI5156 mi
Detroit, MI1,63214 mi
Ann Arbor, MI28641 mi
Toledo, OH76469 mi
Lansing, MI1,25978 mi
Cleveland, OH1,251103 mi
Akron, OH755130 mi
Grand Rapids, MI866136 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
OffenseReportedPer 100kvs. previous monthvs. a year earlier
HomicideViolent00.0—−100%
About these categories

The FBI publishes city totals by family, not a full breakdown by offence, so homicide is the only type Sterling Heights 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

Sep 2025 to Aug 2026

Violent crime −7%

0204060SepOctNovDecJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAug2331
Violent crimes per month in Sterling Heights, MI, Sep 2025 to Aug 2026 and a year earlier
MonthViolent crimesMonth a year earlierViolent crimes
Sep 202523Sep 202441
Oct 202528Oct 202426
Nov 202520Nov 202424
Dec 202522Dec 202427
Jan 202629Jan 202524
Feb 202614Feb 202522
Mar 202627Mar 202518
Apr 202627Apr 202529
May 202633May 202520
Jun 202631Jun 202533
Jul 202622Jul 202526
Aug 202623Aug 202531

Homicides 0 vs. 1

012SepOctNovDecJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAug00
Homicides per month in Sterling Heights, MI, Sep 2025 to Aug 2026 and a year earlier
MonthHomicidesMonth a year earlierHomicides
Sep 20250Sep 20240
Oct 20250Oct 20240
Nov 20250Nov 20240
Dec 20250Dec 20240
Jan 20260Jan 20250
Feb 20260Feb 20251
Mar 20260Mar 20250
Apr 20260Apr 20250
May 20260May 20250
Jun 20260Jun 20250
Jul 20260Jul 20250
Aug 20260Aug 20250

0 in 2026 through August, 1 in the same months of 2025. Compare with other places

Every month since Sep 2023
Reported crime per month in Sterling Heights, MI
MonthViolentPropertyHomicides
Aug 2026231310
Jul 202622970
Jun 2026311180
May 2026331100
Apr 2026271090
Mar 2026271020
Feb 202614940
Jan 2026291000
Dec 2025221170
Nov 2025201300
Oct 2025281350
Sep 2025231190
Aug 2025311430
Jul 2025261280
Jun 2025331290
May 2025201200
Apr 2025291270
Mar 2025181430
Feb 2025221251
Jan 2025241390
Dec 2024271490
Nov 202424910
Oct 2024261450
Sep 2024411390
Aug 2024361150
Jul 2024331190
Jun 2024221280
May 2024291160
Apr 202421970
Mar 202412941
Feb 2024171020
Jan 2024181010
Dec 2023221140
Nov 202318990
Oct 202317930
Sep 2023251120

How Sterling Heights compares

per 100k, per year

Similar size

#PlaceViolentPropertyResidentsData to
9Dayton, OH1,2544,065136,047Aug 2026
97Warren, MI5151,387137,310Sep 2026
150Columbia, MO3581,584132,072Aug 2026
165West Valley City, UT3381,609137,688Aug 2026
192Kent, WA2641,797136,591May 2026
201Cedar Rapids, IA2471,900137,918Sep 2026
207Norman, OK2391,813131,728May 2026
208Hampton, VA2392,529138,041Jul 2026
221Sterling Heights, MI2221,013134,402Aug 2026
263Sumter County, FL (Sheriff)134455137,903Aug 2026

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

Same state

#PlaceViolentPropertyResidentsData to
1Detroit, MI1,6323,712642,155Aug 2026
8Lansing, MI1,2592,161114,787Aug 2026
28Grand Rapids, MI8662,171200,467Jul 2026
97Warren, MI5151,387137,310Sep 2026
185Ann Arbor, MI2861,698122,740Sep 2026
221Sterling Heights, MI2221,013134,402Aug 2026

All 6 places in Michigan on this site, highest violent crime rate first.

Nearby

#PlaceViolentPropertyResidentsData to
1Detroit, MI1,6323,712642,155Aug 2026
8Lansing, MI1,2592,161114,787Aug 2026
10Cleveland, OH1,2513,527363,659Aug 2026
28Grand Rapids, MI8662,171200,467Jul 2026
43Toledo, OH7642,437264,490Jun 2026
44Akron, OH7552,397189,545Aug 2026
97Warren, MI5151,387137,310Sep 2026
185Ann Arbor, MI2861,698122,740Sep 2026
188Fort Wayne, IN2761,808275,451Jan 2026
221Sterling Heights, MI2221,013134,402Aug 2026

The 9 places on this site closest to Sterling Heights 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 Sterling Heights side by side with Warren, Ann Arbor or Lansing, or with any other place.

Other cities in Michigan

5 city pages, closest first

Michigan as a whole has 425 violent crimes per 100,000 residents per year, as reported to the FBI over the 12 months to Jun 2026; Sterling Heights’s rate is 48% below the state’s.

WarrenDetroitAnn ArborLansingGrand Rapids

All 6 cities in Michigan

Common questions

answered with the data above
Is Sterling Heights safe?

By reported violent crime, Sterling Heights is well below the average of the 302 cities and county areas on this site: 222 violent crimes per 100,000 residents per year over the 12 months to August 2026, −7% 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 Sterling Heights?

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

What is the crime rate in Sterling Heights?

222 violent and 1,013 property crimes per 100,000 residents per year, based on 1,661 incidents reported to Sterling Heights Police Department over the 12 months to August 2026.

Is crime in Sterling Heights going up or down?

It is going down: violent crime −7% and property crime −14% over the last 12 months compared with the 12 months before.

How many homicides has Sterling Heights had in 2026?

Sterling Heights Police Department reported 0 homicides from January to August 2026, the latest month it has reported in full, against 1 in the same months of 2025. Over the 12 months to Aug 2026 the count was 0, or 0 per 100,000 residents.

Where does the data come from?

From Sterling Heights Police Department, via FBI Crime Data Explorer (dataset MI5076500). 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 Sterling Heights

12 months to August 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

MI5076500
Source
Sterling Heights Police Department, via FBI Crime Data Explorer (dataset MI5076500)
Latest complete month
August 2026
History on this site
September 2023 to August 2026 (44 months)
Update schedule
Sterling Heights 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)