CurrentCrimeMap

Data through September 2026, Wilmington Police Department

Crime in Wilmington, NC

The violent crime rate in Wilmington is 378 per 100,000 residents per year over the 12 months to September 2026, 14% below the average of the 302 cities and county areas we cover. That is −11% compared with the previous 12 months.

The Cape Fear River and downtown Wilmington, North Carolina.
Photo: NCDOTcommunications, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons, cropped

The numbers

12 months to Sep 2026

Violent crime

378 per 100,000 residents, per year

483 reported in the 12 months to Sep 2026

−11% vs. the previous 12 months

Property crime

2,893 per 100,000 residents, per year

3,696 reported in the 12 months to Sep 2026

−5% vs. the previous 12 months

All reported

3,271 per 100,000 residents, per year

4,179 reported in the 12 months to Sep 2026

Annual rates: reported incidents over the last 12 months per 100,000 residents (population 127,752, 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 Wilmington sits among covered places

violent, per 100k, per year

378

Wilmington has the 141st-highest rate of the 302 cities and county areas on this site, higher than 161 of the other 301.

Carmel 51avg 437Detroit 1,632

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

PlaceViolent per 100kRank
Pocatello, ID383136
Raleigh, NC383137
Glendale, AZ379138
Burlington, VT379139
Salem, OR378140
Wilmington, NC378141
Jackson, MS373142
Waco, TX373143
Midland, TX371144
Lakeland, FL371145
Pasadena, TX370146

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

Wilmington 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 Wilmington Police Department, not where each crime happened, so this map fills Wilmington, NC 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 Wilmington, 6 have a higher violent crime rate and 2 a lower one. The closest is Fayetteville, NC, 86 miles away.

Wilmington and the covered places nearest to it, with each one’s violent crime rate and distance
PlaceViolent per 100kDistance
Wilmington, NC378
Fayetteville, NC56386 mi
Raleigh, NC383120 mi
Cary, NC58121 mi
Durham, NC513135 mi
North Charleston, SC633153 mi
Charleston, SC245153 mi
Greensboro, NC702170 mi
Columbia, SC699173 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
HomicideViolent1411—+56%
About these categories

The FBI publishes city totals by family, not a full breakdown by offence, so homicide is the only type Wilmington 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 −11%

020406080OctNovDecJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSep4352
Violent crimes per month in Wilmington, NC, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026 and a year earlier
MonthViolent crimesMonth a year earlierViolent crimes
Oct 202521Oct 202440
Nov 202527Nov 202425
Dec 202547Dec 202455
Jan 202640Jan 202533
Feb 202640Feb 202540
Mar 202645Mar 202557
Apr 202656Apr 202552
May 202633May 202541
Jun 202641Jun 202559
Jul 202649Jul 202549
Aug 202641Aug 202540
Sep 202643Sep 202552

Homicides +56%

01234OctNovDecJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSep10
Homicides per month in Wilmington, NC, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026 and a year earlier
MonthHomicidesMonth a year earlierHomicides
Oct 20250Oct 20241
Nov 20250Nov 20240
Dec 20252Dec 20241
Jan 20262Jan 20250
Feb 20260Feb 20250
Mar 20263Mar 20250
Apr 20262Apr 20253
May 20261May 20251
Jun 20262Jun 20251
Jul 20261Jul 20252
Aug 20260Aug 20250
Sep 20261Sep 20250

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

Every month since Oct 2023
Reported crime per month in Wilmington, NC
MonthViolentPropertyHomicides
Sep 2026433111
Aug 2026412960
Jul 2026493411
Jun 2026413052
May 2026333051
Apr 2026563062
Mar 2026453233
Feb 2026403250
Jan 2026402722
Dec 2025472732
Nov 2025272980
Oct 2025213410
Sep 2025522950
Aug 2025403350
Jul 2025492782
Jun 2025593061
May 2025413411
Apr 2025523133
Mar 2025573590
Feb 2025403270
Jan 2025332580
Dec 2024553351
Nov 2024253440
Oct 2024404091
Sep 2024633600
Aug 2024544462
Jul 2024502870
Jun 2024683310
May 2024563702
Apr 2024363850
Mar 2024423791
Feb 2024384080
Jan 2024773630
Dec 2023484191
Nov 2023343710
Oct 2023564161

How Wilmington compares

per 100k, per year

Similar size

#PlaceViolentPropertyResidentsData to
27Topeka, KS8823,467125,228Dec 2025
69North Charleston, SC6333,007128,751Jul 2026
141Wilmington, NC3782,893127,752Sep 2026
145Lakeland, FL3711,402127,935Apr 2026
150Columbia, MO3581,584132,072Aug 2026
185Ann Arbor, MI2861,698122,740Sep 2026
207Norman, OK2391,813131,728May 2026
211Allentown, PA2341,420127,494Aug 2026
260Rochester, MN1391,104124,142Sep 2026
283Flagler County, FL (Sheriff)98400130,230Aug 2026

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

Same state

#PlaceViolentPropertyResidentsData to
50Winston-Salem, NC7252,821257,431Jun 2026
54Greensboro, NC7022,980310,328Dec 2025
84Fayetteville, NC5632,608209,151Aug 2026
98Durham, NC5133,439307,140Aug 2026
102Charlotte, NC4993,0181,035,037Sep 2026
137Raleigh, NC3832,132508,719Aug 2026
141Wilmington, NC3782,893127,752Sep 2026
298Cary, NC58700184,680Oct 2026

All 8 places in North Carolina on this site, highest violent crime rate first.

Nearby

#PlaceViolentPropertyResidentsData to
54Greensboro, NC7022,980310,328Dec 2025
55Columbia, SC6992,910147,021Aug 2026
69North Charleston, SC6333,007128,751Jul 2026
84Fayetteville, NC5632,608209,151Aug 2026
98Durham, NC5133,439307,140Aug 2026
102Charlotte, NC4993,0181,035,037Sep 2026
137Raleigh, NC3832,132508,719Aug 2026
141Wilmington, NC3782,893127,752Sep 2026
203Charleston, SC2451,461159,360Sep 2026
298Cary, NC58700184,680Oct 2026

The 9 places on this site closest to Wilmington 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 Wilmington side by side with Cary, Fayetteville or Winston-Salem, or with any other place.

Other cities in North Carolina

7 city pages, closest first

North Carolina as a whole has 312 violent crimes per 100,000 residents per year, as reported to the FBI over the 12 months to Jun 2026; Wilmington’s rate is 21% above the state’s.

FayettevilleRaleighCaryDurhamGreensboroCharlotteWinston-Salem

All 8 cities in North Carolina

Common questions

answered with the data above
Is Wilmington safe?

By reported violent crime, Wilmington is below the average of the 302 cities and county areas on this site: 378 violent crimes per 100,000 residents per year over the 12 months to September 2026, −11% 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 Wilmington?

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

What is the crime rate in Wilmington?

378 violent and 2,893 property crimes per 100,000 residents per year, based on 4,179 incidents reported to Wilmington Police Department over the 12 months to September 2026.

Is crime in Wilmington going up or down?

It is going down: violent crime −11% and property crime −5% over the last 12 months compared with the 12 months before.

How many homicides has Wilmington had in 2026?

Wilmington Police Department reported 12 homicides from January to September 2026, the latest month it has reported in full, against 7 in the same months of 2025. Over the 12 months to Sep 2026 the count was 14, or 11 per 100,000 residents.

Where does the data come from?

From Wilmington Police Department, via FBI Crime Data Explorer (dataset NC0650200). 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 Wilmington

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

NC0650200
Source
Wilmington Police Department, via FBI Crime Data Explorer (dataset NC0650200)
Latest complete month
September 2026
History on this site
October 2023 to September 2026 (45 months)
Update schedule
Wilmington 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)