The 10 Most Dangerous Cities In New York For 2022

The 10 Most Dangerous Places To Live In New York For 2022

When people think about the mean streets of New York, they're usually imagining New York City, not Binghamton. But it turns out there's nowhere in The Empire State with meaner streets than Binghamton, where the overall crime rate is nearly twice as high as the national average.

How bad is it in Binghamton? Well, the city averages one violent crime each day and had the third highest burglary rate in the whole state for 2020. In other words, you can enjoy a day out at

Otsiningo Park, but you'd best be on your way home when the sun starts setting.

Binghamton is located just north of the Pennsylvania border, at the junction of I-81, I-86, and I-88.

Located just 25 miles south of The Thousand Islands in Upstate New York, Watertown ranks as the second most dangerous city the state has to offer.

On the bright side, Watertown experienced zero murders in 2020. On the definitely not-bright side, the city also had the second highest rate of rape in New York.

Watertown residents also had a 1 in 25 chance of being the victim of a property crime, so you'll want to watch out for porch pirates here.

The community of Oneida became famous in the 19th century for a local religious organization. Known as the Oneida Community, this group ultimately morphed into a famous silverware manufacturer. You can still pick up a set of Oneida knives, forks, and spoons at your local Bed, Bath & Beyond.

Let's focus on those knives for a minute. This city of 10,849 people, located in central New York, also represents one of the most dangerous spots in the state. For a sleepy-seeming town located near the scenic Oneida Lake, this location has surprisingly high rates of larceny and sexual assault.

The Bills may have never won a Super Bowl, but at least Buffalo gets the fourth place medal for...being extremely dangerous. Congratulations?

New York's second-biggest city is especially bad when it comes to violent crime, with the highest rate statewide. That translates into about 1 in 98 chance of being the victim of violence over the course of a year -- not great.

Besides having the highest murder rate in New York, Buffalo also shines in property crime, with the 15th highest burglary rate. It's going to take a lot of Buffalo wings to get over these numbers.

We continue the Upstate New York trend with Rochester, New York's 3rd biggest city. With 6,887 property crimes in 2020, residents of Rochester face a whopping 1 in 6,887 chance of having their stuff stolen or damaged.

On top of that, Rochester averages four violent crimes each day. That includes the state's second highest murder rate.

At least residents can stop and smell the lilacs at Highland Park to, you know, get their minds off all the murder going on.

The smallest place to make our list, Johnston City Village didn't earn its #6 spot with a lot of violent crime. In fact, it's the least violent place on this list.

However, Johnston City Village has the highest property crime rate in New York, with residents facing a staggering 1 in 15 chance of having their stuff stolen or damaged throughout 2020.

That level of property crime actually means that the overall crime rate in Johnston City Village ranks as the highest statewide.

Johnston City Village is just outside Binghamton, a place you'll remember from the top of this list.

Malone sits at the far northern edge of New York, about a half hour south of the Canadian border. That might not seem that ominous these days. But during the War of 1812, British troops from Canada sacked the town.

Raiding parties from their neighbors to the North don't present much of a risk these days. Rather, the citizens of Malone have more to worry about from their fellow residents. Despite existing as a small town in a largely rural part of the state, the community of 5,566 people suffers from an unexpectedly high crime rate. Property crime accounts for most of this, with high rates of burglaries creating much of the danger.

The capital of New York, Albany, ranks as the state's eighth most dangerous place to live for 2020. Albany experienced 2,650 property crimes over the year, with more than one burglary every day and a car theft every other day, on average.

Additionally, Albany has the third highest violent crime rate in the state,with residents facing a 1 in 110 chance of being attacked in 2020. So make sure you buddy up if you're going for a jog at Washington Park.

Syracuse is home to The Great New York State Fair, but it's also home to a whole lot of crime. Syracuse had the fifth highest violent crime rate in New York, with 32 murders in 2020.

On top of that, Syracuse experienced the highest burglary rate in the state, so property crime is quite prevalent as well.

That being said, Syracuse is one of New York's biggest cities, so if you stick to one of Syracuse's safest neighborhoods, you should have nothing to worry about.

Coming in as the tenth most dangerous place to call home in New York is Utica. In 2020, the data reporting year, there were 298 violent crimes recorded, about one each day on average.

On top of that, residents of Utica had a 1 in 29 chance of having their belongings stolen or damaged. In other words, it's a good idea to make sure you've still got all your valuables on you after passing through Union Station.

Altogether, Utica's overall crime rate is more than twice as high as your typical town or city in New York.

Most Dangerous Places To Live In New York FAQs

Is New York a dangerous state?

No, New York is not a dangerous state as it ranks as the #14 safest state in the United States based on our analysis of the latest FBI Crime Data. The violent crime rate in new york ranks 26th highest in the United States -- 6.2% better than US average violent crime rate. The property crime rate in the Empire State ranks 4highest in the United States -- 27.96% better than US average property crime rate. The latest reporting year from the FBI was 2020.

Is New York, NY a dangerous city?

No, New York is not a dangerous city. New York ranks as the #85 safest out of 320 major cities over 100,000 people in the United States based on our analysis of the latest FBI Crime Data. Keep in mind that are always safe and dangerous parts of any city, so even though New York might be considered safe you still need to be aware of where you are. For example, Ardon Heights is the safest in New York, while Midtown is considered dangerous by many based on recent crime stats.

Compared to other big cities, the violent crime rate in New York ranks 118th highest in America -- 5.26% worse than US average violent crime rate. The property crime rate in the ranks 260th highest in the United States -- 41.32% better than US average property crime rate. Note the latest reporting year from the FBI was 2020 and that no city in America is 'dangerous'. Despite the uptick in murders, it's nothing like you'd see in Tijuana or Caracas where the murder rate is 2x any American city.

No, New York is not a dangerous state as it ranks as the #14 safest state in the United States based on our analysis of the latest FBI Crime Data. The violent crime rate in new york ranks 26th highest in the United States -- 6.2% better than US average violent crime rate. The property crime rate in the Empire State ranks 4highest in the United States -- 27.96% better than US average property crime rate. The latest reporting year from the FBI was 2020.

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No, New York is not a dangerous city. New York ranks as the #85 safest out of 320 major cities over 100,000 people in the United States based on our analysis of the latest FBI Crime Data. Keep in mind that are always safe and dangerous parts of any city, so even though New York might be considered safe you still need to be aware of where you are. For example, Ardon Heights is the safest in New York, while Midtown is considered dangerous by many based on recent crime stats.

Compared to other big cities, the violent crime rate in New York ranks 118th highest in America -- 5.26% worse than US average violent crime rate. The property crime rate in the ranks 260th highest in the United States -- 41.32% better than US average property crime rate. Note the latest reporting year from the FBI was 2020 and that no city in America is 'dangerous'. Despite the uptick in murders, it's nothing like you'd see in Tijuana or Caracas where the murder rate is 2x any American city.

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