Brooklyn is a city onto itself. It encompasses 70 square miles, with 77 neighborhoods and more than 2.5 million inhabitants. If it were its own city, Brooklyn would be the 4th most populous city in the United States.
Brooklyn has something for everybody. It is a city filled with creativity, culture and vibrant energy. If you are thinking about visiting Brookly and have some qualms about safety, we got you covered.
Lets deep dive into the statistics, look at some maps and talk to the residents of the city to give you a better understanding of how safe the city really is.
Is Brooklyn Safe?
Looking at the crime statistics, Brooklyn is a very safe place to visit. In 2020, Brooklyn had a violent crime rate of 388.11 incidents per 100,000 residents. Out of the 100 most populous cities in the United States, Brooklyn’s violent crime rate ranks 75th. Austin, San Jose, El Paso and San Diego all have similar violent crime rates as Brooklyn.
Brooklyn’s Crime Rate Map
Brooklyn is patrolled by 23 precincts of the New York City Police Department. Here’s a map showing you the crime rate for the different precincts of Brooklyn.
Precinct
Area
Crime Rate Per 1000 residents
60th Precinct
Coney Island, Brighton Beach, West Brighton Beach, and Sea Gate
8.659
61st Precinct
Kings Bay, Gravesend, Sheepshead Bay, and Manhattan Beach.
7.5347
62nd Precinct
Bensonhurst, Mapleton, and Bath Beach.
5.3797
63rdPrecinct
Marine Park area
8.0537
66th Precinct
Borough Park, Midwood, Kensington.
5.1468
67th Precinct
East Flatbush and Remsen Village
10.7503
68th Precinct
Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights
6.627
69th Precinct
Canarsie
8.795
70th Precinct
Midwood, Fiske Terrace, Ditmas Park, and Prospect Park South.
8.7138
71s Precinct
Crown Heights, Wingate, and Prospect Lefferts
10.2612
72nd Precinct
Sunset Park and Windsor Terrace
8.6509
73rd Precinct
Brownsville and Ocean Hill
16.9889
75th Precinct
East New York and Cypress Hills.
18.4533
76thPrecinct
Carroll Gardens, Red Hook, Cobble Hill, parts of Gowanus, and the Columbia Street Waterfront District
9.7381
77th Precinct
Crown Heights, Prospect Heights
11.7584
78th Precinct
Park Slope, Prospect Park
11.6166
79th Precinct
Bedford Stuyvesant, Herbert Von King Park
15.7318
81st Precinct
Bedford Stuyvesent, Stuyvesant Heights.
19.6422
83rd Precinct
Bushwick
14.809
84th Precinct
Brooklyn Heights, Boerum Hill, and Vinegar Hill
19.068
88th Precinct
Clinton Hill, Fort Green Park, and Commodore Barry Park.
16.9775
90th Precinct
Williamsburg
12.4362
94th Precinct
Greenpoint
17.9743
Looking at the table above, the 81st, 84th, 75th, 94th, 73rd and 88th precincts all have the highest rates of crime.
The Most Dangerous Neighborhoods In Brooklyn:
Brownsville
East New York
Bedford Stuyvesent
Canarsie
Stuyvesant Heights
Crown Heights
Coney Island
Brooklyn’s Population
The population for the Brooklyn in 2020 is 2,736,074
Brooklyn Crime Stats
Here’s a breakdown of all the crimes in Brooklyn for 2020 compared with 1990 and 2001:
Looking at the chart, you can see that crime in Brooklyn has significantly decreased over a 30 year time period.
In 2020 Brooklyn reported 10,619 violent crimes and had a violent crime rate of 388.11 per 100,000 people. The national average for violent crime is 366.7 per 100,000 residents. Brooklyn’s violent crime rate is slightly more than the national average.
**Violent crimes include; homicides, rape, robbery and aggravated assaults and the violent crime rate is calculated by dividing the number of reported crimes by the total population; the result is multiplied by 100,000.
Brooklyn Murder Stats
In 2020 Brooklyn reported 175 homicides, which gives it a murder rate of 6.39 per 100,000 residents. The national murder rate is 5 per 100,000 people. Brooklyn’s murder rate is about 1.2 times more than the national average.
Brooklyn vs The Other Boroughs
Looking at the table you can see that Brooklyn had the third highest violent crime rate of all the boroughs.
Brooklyn vs The Most Dangerous Cities In The United States
Here’s a list of the top 10 most dangerous cities in the United States ranked by violent crime rate. It can give you some perspective on Brooklyn’s violent crime rate, which is 388.11 per 100,000 people.
Brooklyn’s violent crime rate is 6.2 times LESS than Memphis, the most dangerous city on the list.
What do residents of Brooklyn say about its safety
"Brownsville is probably one of the worst neighborhoods in New York. East NY and parts of Canarsie are pretty awful as well. Stay away from those places."
"Brownsville is referred to by cops as “the murder capital of New York.”
"Brooklyn is massive. It’s safety really depends on what neighborhood you are in. Avoid Brownsville, East Flatbush, Canarsie, East New York, East Bed Stuy & East Bushwick. The good areas of Brooklyn are Williamsburg, Cobble Hill, Park Slope, Greenspoint, Fort Greene, Red Hook, Gowanus, Clinton Hill, Bay Ridge, Sunset Park, Parkside/Kensington."
" I would stay away from East New York and Brownsville."
"Fox News and the conservative media love to portray New York as some kind of war zone, but New York is one of the safest cities in America."
"Brooklyn overall is safe, but there are a few areas you should avoid: Brownsville, Crown Heights, East New York, Bed Stuy and Canarsie."
"Most of Brooklyn is absolutely fine."
"Canarsie is bad. Keep away. Iif you have a car expect it to get broken into in Canarsie."
"Brooklyn is like anywhere other big city. If you’re street smart and know how to handle yourself, you shouldn’t have any problems."
"If this was the 80’s or 90’s, I would emphatically tell you that Brooklyn is dangerous. But it has cleaned up tremendously over the past 40 years and so much so that NYC (which includes Brooklyn) is often touted as the safest big city in the entire nation."
"The most dangerous area is probably Brownsville. East New York comes in second with East Flatbush, Canarsie and Bed- Stuy rounding out the list. Most of East Brooklyn has had the reputation of being dangerous."
"New York City as a whole is a lot safer than it used to be, but you still need to use common sense and pay attention to what goes on around you."
"Brooklyn is massive. It is roughly the same size as Chicago and there are over 2.5 million people living here. But unlike Chicago or Detroit, the crime rate is relatively low."
"Unless you’re looking to get mugged, I would suggest you stay out of Coney Island, Flatbush and Bed Stuy."
"The further east you go in Brooklyn, the rougher it gets."
Is Brooklyn safe at night?
Brooklyn can be safe to visit at night if you stick to the safer areas and avoid most dangerous areas of Brooklyn, specifically: Brownsville, East New York, Canarsie, Bed Stuy, Coney Island, Crown Heights and East Bushwick.
Is it safe to visit alone?
Brooklyn can a safe place to visit alone if you learn the layout of the city, avoid the bad areas and follow the safety tips posted below.
Tips To Stay Safe In Brooklyn
Stay out of the few high crime areas, especially at night
If you are riding the subway, avoid getting into empty cars. Being in an empty train car isn’t a safe option for tourists.
Always pay attention to your surroundings. Don’t wear headphones. Be alert.
Don’t walk around looking like a tourist or that you don’t belong. Walk with confidence. Don’t wander around with your head buried in a map.
Plan out your routes and know where you are going.
Don’t engage with people who try to stop you on the street. Just keep walking.
Don’t be a walking advertisement. Leave that expensive watch or purse at home.
Always try to be in the car with the conductor. If you stand in the middle of the platform, you’ll be in the cars where the conductors are.
Don’t go out late at night alone, but if you do, don’t use the subway. An Uber or taxi is a better option late at night.
Don’t walk through any parks in the middle of the night.
Don’t walk through dark alleys alone at night and if a block looks deserted, skip it.
If someone is following you, step into a shop, restaurant or bodega. People will usually leave you alone if you go into a store.
Don’t leave your drink unattended at any time.
Trust your gut. If a situation feels off, turn around and leave. Remove yourself from that situation.
There’s no need to be polite if someone is making you feel uncomfortable. Walk to the other side of the street or get into another subway car.
Final Thoughts
Brooklyn is a safe place to visit. It’s crime stats are low and many residents agree that Brooklyn is a fairly safe place to visit. The only problem areas that you should avoid are Brownsville, East New York, Canarsie, Bed Stuy, Coney Island, Crown Heights and East Bushwick.
You can mitigate your chances of becoming a victim of crime if you learn the layout of the city and follow the safety tips posted above. Happy travels!
Mariska is a recovering attorney who gave up her professional job to discover new perspectives of life while traveling in a 2009 Ford Transit.
She has been living the van life for 3 years and has not looked back since.
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