Delaware Crime Rates & City Safety Scores
Population-adjusted FBI reporting rates; see the city profiles below.
Key facts
- 01
Delaware displays a 38.83-point adjusted-score range in its 2025 source-year cohort: Newark, Delaware at 63.57 points out of 100 versus Wilmington, Delaware at 24.74.
- 02
Delaware displays 3 jurisdiction profiles from a scoring run containing 77 reportable jurisdictions in its 2025 source-year directory; 3 displayed profiles have scores.
- 03
Delaware has 2 displayed jurisdictions with decreasing reported trajectories versus 0 increasing and 1 stable, comparing weighted 2024 reporting with 2025.
- 04
Wilmington, Delaware has a reporting population of 71,124 residents versus 30,309 in Newark, Delaware, in the 2025 source-year displayed cohort.
Quick answer
In the Safety Atlas 2026 public safety index, the highest-scoring city in Delaware is Newark with an adjusted safety score of 63.57 out of 100, ranked across 3 tracked jurisdictions using 2025 FBI reporting.
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Delaware city safety rankings
Ranked by adjusted Safety Atlas score. The table lists the 3 most populous jurisdictions in this directory; each rank is calculated within this displayed 3-jurisdiction cohort.
| City / Jurisdiction | Cohort Rank | Population | Safety Score | Overall Trend | Actions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Newark | #1 of 3 | 30,309 | 63.57 | ↓ Decreasing | View Report → |
| Dover | #2 of 3 | 39,491 | 29.97 | ↓ Decreasing | View Report → |
| Wilmington | #3 of 3 | 71,124 | 24.74 | → Stable | View Report → |
* Trajectory trends compare weighted year-over-year reporting from 2024 to 2025. Scores describe relative reported rates, not personal risk. Cohort rank covers only the 3 jurisdictions listed above.
Delaware in 7 numbers
- Every major offense fell in 2025. Homicide -26% (103 to 76), robbery -15%, larceny-theft -10%, burglary -10%, motor vehicle theft -9%, aggravated assault -3%.
- Almost half of all reports are property crime. 35,739 of 88,578 reports (40.3%); larceny-theft alone is 20,798 (23.5%).
- Clearances skew toward violent crime. 74% of aggravated assaults cleared vs 24% of motor vehicle thefts and 34% of larcenies (2025, reports cleared divided by reports received, reporting agencies only).
- Homicides fell by nearly a fifth. 76 reports in 2025 vs 103 in 2024 (-26%) across reporting agencies.
- The biggest volume is not violent. Simple assault (16,750) alone outweighs the entire personal-safety total (6,565, 7.4% of reports).
- Watch the monthly shape. Larceny-theft peaked in Jun (1,995) and troughed in Feb (1,317), a 1.5× swing inside a single year.
- These are reporting-agency sums. 42 of 43 agencies reported homicide in December 2025 (vs 42 in January); totals reflect who reported, not a census of crime.
Takeaways are computed from summed FBI CDE reported counts (source year 2025, 43 agencies in file). They describe reported data, not forecasts; check the methodology and coverage notes before reuse.
Every number on this page ships in the Delaware workbook.
Delaware monthly trend: reporting-agency sums through December 2025
Annual totals hide timing. The bars below show 2025 reported counts per month summed across reporting agencies for three indicator offenses. Counts only; there is no honest monthly denominator at this grain, so no rates are shown.
Larceny-theft, month by month
↓ Decreasing, 20798 reports vs 23124 in 2024 (down 10% in reported data).
| Month | Count | Agencies | Coverage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 2025 | 1,537 | 37 | Full |
| Feb 2025 | 1,317 | 37 | Full |
| Mar 2025 | 1,593 | 37 | Full |
| Apr 2025 | 1,870 | 37 | Full |
| May 2025 | 1,923 | 36 | Full |
| Jun 2025 | 1,995 | 37 | Full |
| Jul 2025 | 1,774 | 37 | Full |
| Aug 2025 | 1,781 | 37 | Full |
| Sep 2025 | 1,909 | 37 | Full |
| Oct 2025 | 1,940 | 37 | Full |
| Nov 2025 | 1,595 | 37 | Full |
| Dec 2025 | 1,564 | 37 | Full |
Simple assault, month by month
→ Stable, 16750 reports vs 16746 in 2024 (about level in reported data).
| Month | Count | Agencies | Coverage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 2025 | 1,131 | 37 | Full |
| Feb 2025 | 1,127 | 37 | Full |
| Mar 2025 | 1,329 | 37 | Full |
| Apr 2025 | 1,326 | 37 | Full |
| May 2025 | 1,599 | 36 | Full |
| Jun 2025 | 1,464 | 37 | Full |
| Jul 2025 | 1,511 | 37 | Full |
| Aug 2025 | 1,437 | 37 | Full |
| Sep 2025 | 1,621 | 37 | Full |
| Oct 2025 | 1,495 | 37 | Full |
| Nov 2025 | 1,383 | 37 | Full |
| Dec 2025 | 1,327 | 37 | Full |
Vandalism, month by month
→ Stable, 13499 reports vs 14624 in 2024 (about level in reported data).
| Month | Count | Agencies | Coverage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 2025 | 1,100 | 34 | Full |
| Feb 2025 | 1,014 | 34 | Full |
| Mar 2025 | 1,078 | 34 | Full |
| Apr 2025 | 1,181 | 34 | Full |
| May 2025 | 1,233 | 33 | Full |
| Jun 2025 | 1,146 | 34 | Full |
| Jul 2025 | 1,298 | 34 | Full |
| Aug 2025 | 1,125 | 34 | Full |
| Sep 2025 | 1,157 | 34 | Full |
| Oct 2025 | 1,243 | 34 | Full |
| Nov 2025 | 949 | 34 | Full |
| Dec 2025 | 975 | 34 | Full |
Clearances: what got cleared in 2025
74% of aggravated assaults cleared vs 24% of motor vehicle thefts, clearance follows violent crime, not volume.
| Offense | Reported | Cleared | Clearance rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homicide | 76 | 49 | 64.5% |
| Aggravated Assault | 5,089 | 3,763 | 73.9% |
| Robbery | 730 | 361 | 49.5% |
| Burglary | 2,807 | 1,188 | 42.3% |
| Larceny-theft | 20,798 | 6,970 | 33.5% |
| Motor Vehicle Theft | 3,560 | 855 | 24.0% |
Clearances ÷ reports received; clearances may concern earlier reports, so this is not a solve rate.
Monthly counts summed over reporting agencies, FBI CDE source year 2025. A hyphen (-) means not reported, not zero. Totals reflect who reported, not a census of crime.
Downloads: Delaware monthly series (JSON) · same data (CSV) · build manifest
Delaware city reports
- Newark safety report: #1 of 3, population 30,309, score 63.57, and the displayed trajectory is ↓ Decreasing.
- Dover safety report: #2 of 3, population 39,491, score 29.97, and the displayed trajectory is ↓ Decreasing.
- Wilmington safety report: #3 of 3, population 71,124, score 24.74, and the displayed trajectory is → Stable.
Reading the comparison
Scores compare reported rates; they do not predict personal risk. Methodology · Coverage
Monthly count comparisons
Delaware reporting agencies recorded 1,995 larceny-theft offenses in Jun 2025 versus 1,317 in Feb 2025, a difference of 678 reports; 37 agencies reported in the peak-count month compared with 37 in the minimum-count month, within 12 displayed months totaling 20,798 reports (FBI CDE reporting-agency sums, not statewide population rates).
Delaware reporting agencies recorded 1,621 simple assault offenses in Sep 2025 versus 1,127 in Feb 2025, a difference of 494 reports; 37 agencies reported in the peak-count month compared with 37 in the minimum-count month, within 12 displayed months totaling 16,750 reports (FBI CDE reporting-agency sums, not statewide population rates).
Delaware reporting agencies recorded 1,298 vandalism offenses in Jul 2025 versus 949 in Nov 2025, a difference of 349 reports; 34 agencies reported in the peak-count month compared with 34 in the minimum-count month, within 12 displayed months totaling 13,499 reports (FBI CDE reporting-agency sums, not statewide population rates).
Delaware reporting agencies recorded 3,763 cleared aggravated assault offenses against 5,089 reports received in 2025 (73.9%), compared with 855 cleared motor vehicle theft offenses against 3,560 reports (24.0%), a 49.9-percentage-point difference between the displayed clearance ratios; clearances can concern earlier reports.
Newark, Delaware records 63.57 adjusted score points out of 100 in the 2025 source-year directory, 24.14 points above the displayed scored-cohort mean of 39.43; its reporting population of 30,309 residents accounts for 21.5% of the 140,924 residents summed across the 3 displayed jurisdiction populations.
Wilmington, Delaware records 24.74 adjusted score points out of 100 in the 2025 source-year directory, 14.69 points below the displayed scored-cohort mean of 39.43; its reporting population of 71,124 residents accounts for 50.5% of the 140,924 residents summed across the 3 displayed jurisdiction populations.
Dover, Delaware records 29.97 adjusted score points out of 100 in the 2025 source-year directory, 9.46 points below the displayed scored-cohort mean of 39.43; its reporting population of 39,491 residents accounts for 28.0% of the 140,924 residents summed across the 3 displayed jurisdiction populations.
Delaware reporting-agency sums contain 20,798 larceny-theft reports in 2025 versus 23,124 in 2024, 2,326 reports (10.1%) fewer across the two complete twelve-month source series; monthly reporting participation ranges from 36 to 37 agencies across those years, so the count change includes differences in participation and is not a population-adjusted rate change.
Delaware reporting-agency sums contain 16,750 simple assault reports in 2025 versus 16,746 in 2024, 4 reports (0.0%) more across the two complete twelve-month source series; monthly reporting participation ranges from 36 to 37 agencies across those years, so the count change includes differences in participation and is not a population-adjusted rate change.
Delaware reporting-agency sums contain 13,499 vandalism reports in 2025 versus 14,624 in 2024, 1,125 reports (7.7%) fewer across the two complete twelve-month source series; monthly reporting participation ranges from 33 to 34 agencies across those years, so the count change includes differences in participation and is not a population-adjusted rate change.
How to read the Delaware directory
The scoring run contains 77 reportable jurisdictions in Delaware. This public directory displays the 3 most populous jurisdictions in the current scored comparison set, and each displayed city's rank is calculated within this displayed 3-jurisdiction cohort.
Within the displayed cohort, Newark has the highest adjusted score at 63.57, and Wilmington has the lowest at 24.74. The public-cohort range is 38.83 points; use the offense-rate tables on each city profile to understand that spread.
Current trajectories in the displayed cohort: 2 decreasing, 1 stable, and 0 increasing. Trends compare weighted 2024 and 2025 reporting and do not forecast future incidents.
Review the scoring method, coverage report, and buyer checklist before citing or purchasing data.
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