The 10 Safest Cities In California in 2022 (Ranked By Crime Rates)


To determine which cities in California are the Safest, we compiled data from the FBI’s Uniform Crime Report and sorted each city’s violent crime rate. Violent crimes include: murder, rape, robbery and aggravated assaults.

Violent crime rate is calculated by dividing the total numbers of violent crime by the total population; the result is multiplied by 100,000.

The California state average for violent crime is 446.5 per 100,000 people and its state average for property crime is 2,245 per 100,000 people.

What Is The Safest City In California?

The safest city in California is Monte Sereno, a city located in Santa Clara county and southwest of San Jose.

In 2019, Monte Sereno had a violent crime rate of 0 per 100,000 people. There was no violent crime reported in the city in all of 2019. No murders, no rapes, no robberies and no aggravated assaults. Monte Sereno also only reported 12 property crimes in 2019 and had a property crime rate of 342.

Top 10 Safest Cities In California

1. Monte Sereno – 0.0 violent crimes per 100k

safest cities in california, monte sereno

(map)

Population in 2019 3,507
Property Crime Rate 340
Median Household Income $250,000+
Per Capita Income $150,687
Median Property Value $2M

 

2. Tiburon – 0 violent crimes per 100k

safest cities in california, tiburon

(map)

Population in 2019 9,135
Property Crime Rate 898
Median Household Income $154,915
Per Capita Income $112,368
Median Property Value $2M

 

3. Clayton – 8.1 violent crimes per 100k

safest cities in california, clayton

(map)

Population in 2019 12,356
Property Crime Rate 1,254
Median Household Income $157,768
Per Capita Income $67,695
Median Property Value $771,400

 

4. Lafayette – 14.9 violent crimes per 100k

safest cities in california, lafayette

(map)

Population in 2019 26,872
Property Crime Rate 1,332
Median Household Income $178,889
Per Capita Income $91,274
Median Property Value $1.43M

 

5. Palos Verdes Estates – 29.9 violent crimes per 100k

palos verdes estates

(map)

Population in 2019 13,400
Property Crime Rate 657
Median Household Income $194,543
Per Capita Income $102,182
Median Property Value $2M

 

6. Los Altos Hills– 34.8 violent crimes per 100k

safest cities in california, los altos hills

(map)

Population in 2019 8,622
Property Crime Rate 777
Median Household Income $250,000+
Per Capita Income $153,175
Median Property Value $2M

 

7. Coronado– 42.6 violent crimes per 100k

safest cities in california, coronado

(map)

Population in 2019 21,115
Property Crime Rate 1,534
Median Household Income $108,967
Per Capita Income $61,479
Median Property Value $1.62M

 

8. Hillsborough– 43.4 violent crimes per 100k

safest cities in california, hillsborough

(map)

Population in 2019 4,663
Property Crime Rate 4,525.0
Median Household Income $250,000+
Per Capita Income $140,843
Median Property Value $2M

 

9. Laguna Woods – 43.6 violent crimes per 100k

safest cities in california, laguna woods

(map)

Population in 2019 16,043
Property Crime Rate 773
Median Household Income $44,020
Per Capita Income $42,857
Median Property Value $288,400

 

10. Los Gatos – 45.5 violent crimes per 100k

safest cities in california, los gatos

(map)

Population in 2019 30,793
Property Crime Rate 1,361
Median Household Income $155,863
Per Capita Income $87,111
Median Property Value $1.69M

 

Top 10 Safest Medim-Sized Cities In California (50,000-200,000 People)

safest cities in california, aliso viejo

City

Population

Violent Crime Rate

1. Aliso Viejo

52,247

51.7

2. Yorba Linda

68,225

61.6

3. Laguna Niguel

66,671

64.5

4. Murrieta

116,413

66.1

5. Mission Viejo

95,453

68.1

6. Thousand Oaks

127,811

68.9

7. San Ramon

76,387

75.9

8. Lake Forest

86,691

76.1

9. Camarillo

69,628

83.3

10. Cupertino

60,357

91.1

 

Top 10 Safest Large Cities In California (200,000+ people)

safest cities in california, aliso viejo

City

Population

Violent Crime Rate

1. Irvine

292,673

64.2

2. Glendale

202,601

114.0

3. Santa Clarita

218,103

127.0

4. Fremont

240,887

166.1

5. Huntington Beach

201,843

191.2

6. Anaheim

353,915

316.5

7. Chula Vista

275,230

328.5

8. Fontana

215,883

342.3

9. Oxnard

211,349

342.6

10. San Diego

1,441,737

361.7

 

The 50 Safest Cities In California

City

Population

Violent Crime Rate

1. Tiburon

9,135

0.0

2. Monte Sereno

3,507

0.0

3. Clayton

12,356

8.1

4. Lafayette

26,872

14.9

5. Palos Verdes Estates

13,400

29.9

6. Los Altos Hills

8,622

34.8

7. Coronado

21,115

42.6

8. Hillsborough

11,521

43.4

9. Laguna Woods

16,043

43.6

10. Los Gatos

30,793

45.5

11. Belvedere

2,114

47.3

12. Danville

44,997

51.1

13. Aliso Viejo

52,247

51.7

14. Saratoga

30,666

52.2

15. Hidden Hills

1,903

52.5

16. Rolling Hills

1,868

53.5

17. Benicia

28,471

56.2

18. Buellton

5,142

58.3

19. Yorba Linda

68,225

61.6

20. Rancho Santa Margarita

48,377

62.0

21. Irvine

292,673

64.2

22. Laguna Niguel

66,671

64.5

23. Hughson

7,671

65.2

24. Lincoln

48,625

65.8

25. Murrieta

116,413

66.1

26. Mission Viejo

95,453

68.1

27. Los Altos

30,716

68.4

28. Villa Park

5,840

68.5

29. Thousand Oaks

127,811

68.9

30. Rancho Palos Verdes

41,961

69.1

31. Moorpark

36,826

70.6

32. La Canada Flintridge

20,223

74.2

33. La Habra Heights

5,357

74.7

34. San Ramon

76,387

75.9

35. Lake Forest

86,691

76.1

36. Seal Beach

24,120

78.8

37. Ripon

16,103

80.7

38. Ross

2,470

81.0

39. Carpinteria

13,514

81.4

40. Paradise

26,879

81.8

41. Camarillo

69,628

83.3

42. Orinda

20,071

84.7

43. Pacific Grove

15,605

89.7

44. Cupertino

60,357

91.1

45. Bradbury

1,089

91.8

46. Central Marin

34,793

92.0

47. Kensington

5,407

92.5

48. Fountain Valley

55,858

94.9

49. Grover Beach

13,574

95.8

50. Riverbank

25,045

95.8

Mariska Lee

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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