Everything might be bigger in Texas; but in the state’s most dangerous cities, it’s definitely not better.
Yes, the most dangerous places in Texas are dealing with high unemployment, low wages, lack of rehabilitation programs; and thus, high crime. We’re not talking about driving five miles over the speed limit or not being a Dallas Cowboys fan kind of crime, we’re talking about the type of crime that will get you on Fort Worth’s KXAS at five. And lucky for you, RoadSnacks is here to tell you where the most crime is committed in The Lone Star State: we’ve created a list of the top ten most dangerous places in Texas for 2020.
In order to compile our list, we looked at FBI data for violent crimes and property crimes in Texas cities with a population of 5,000. That left us with 331 cities. We discovered that the state as a whole had 438 violent crimes and 2,562 property crimes reported per capita. And while that doesn’t seem like that many for the second largest state in the country in both area and population, it is above the national average; and coincidentally the 15th most dangerous state in the country.
It doesn’t end there folks, Texas has 244 police officers for every 100,000 residents, but they just can’t be everywhere, so bigger cities like Houston and Beaumont are really starting to feel the effects.
Have we peaked your interest? Want to know more about our methodology and where the most dangerous places in Texas are located? Keep reading.
Some might wonder why we produced this list. Well, one goal is to definitely help people navigate these dangerous Texas cities when trying to make an informed decision on what city they should call home.
With that in mind, what’s the most dangerous city in Texas? Without further adieu… the most dangerous city in The Lone Star State for 2020 would be Bellmead.
If you’re curious to see if your city made the list, take a look at our list below. And if you don’t see your city there, head to the bottom.
Learn more about the safest places in Texas.
If you’re looking for something more national, check out the most dangerous cities in America or the most dangerous states in America.
For more Texas reading, check out:
- 10 Best Places To Live In Texas
- These Are The 10 Best Counties To Live In Texas
- 10 Cheapest Places To Live In Texas
Graphing The Most Dangerous And Safest Places In Texas
The 10 Most Dangerous Places To Live In Texas For 2020
Bellmead ranks as the 1st most dangerous city in Texas because it has a marginally higher rate of violent crime.
Residents of Bellmead had a 1 in 77 chance of being the victim of a rape, murder, or assault in 2018, and a 1 in 16.1 chance of being the victim of theft or arson.
I’m from bellmead/ lacylakeview area..and its never seemed dangerous..I bought a house here..But people are throwed off here..and they ain’t scared..got heart for sure”
Tiny Humble, the smallest city by far in our top 20, is where muggers go to thrive. There were the 1st-most robberies per capita in the entire state in 2018 here.
Humble borders the George Bush International Airport to the east. Is it a coincidence that so many robberies take place so close to a major airport?
Crime is low in most areas, but there are places to avoid. I love living here overall.
Best places are Pappas Seafood and ShowBiz. No matter what part of town you live in you are always close to fun and food.
Crime in Lubbock has been heading in the right direction over the past few years, as both property and violent crimes have been on the decrease .
Lubbock residents have a 1 in 21.9 chance of being the victim of a property crime, good for 14th worst in the state. Additionally, they have a 1 in 100 chance of being the victim of a violent crime, 7th worst in Texas.
I like Lubbock in general growing up thirty minutes away. I live here now and it is a lot better and building alot of businesses and housing. The crime is getting really scary and bad here.
Their is a lot of places to eat out at. A lot of people are also moving here at a fast rate and so much construction as well.
Bastrop ranks as the 4th most dangerous city in Texas.
The Bastrop ranks as having the 5th highest violent crime rate and 18th highest property crime rate.
/10
Population: 5,842
Rank Last Year: 7 (Up 2)
Violent Crimes Per 100k: 821 (14th most dangerous)
Property Crimes Per 100k: 4,484 (15th most dangerous)
More on Palmview: Data
The largest city in Hidalgo County, Palmview has experienced a 13% increase in its violent crime rate and a 19% rise in property crime rate between 2017-2018.
Folks in Palmview had about a 1 in 22.3 chance of being robbed or burnt in 2018, which is just the heavy price you pay for living in Palmview.
Livingston is the smallest city to make this list, but don’t let that fool you — the city is also one of the most violent in the state.
Livingston residents had a 1 in 142 chance of being the victim of a violent crime in 2018.
The only reason Livingston is so low on this list is because it has the lowest frequency of property crime (about 1 per 259 residents in 2018) of any city on this list.
Population: 2,344,966
Rank Last Year: –
Violent Crimes Per 100k: 1,026 (6th most dangerous)
Property Crimes Per 100k: 4,009 (27th most dangerous)
More on Houston,:
Houston, is the 1st largest and 7th most dangerous city in Texas.
Residents have a 1 in 24.9 chance of being the victim of a property crime each year, and chances of a violent crime now stand at 1 in 97, making Houston, quite a dangerous place to be.
Located just a stone’s throw from Weslaco on Interstate 2 lies Alamo. Crime has steadily remained a real concern here since 2011. Currently, 1 out of 152 residents has the chance of being the victim of a violent crime here.
Additionally, Alamo is the 12th-highest city in terms of thefts in the state of Texas.
Amarillo ranks as the 9th most dangerous city in Texas according to 2018’s data.
While there’s still a 1 in 23.8 chance of being the victim of a property crime in Amarillo, their crime statistics in both categories have been falling steadily over recent years.
Beaumont is, essentially the second-most dangerous place in the state of Texas for violent crimes. Only tiny Raymondville, population 11,654, inland from South Padre Island, is statistically, more dangerous than Beaumont.
Residents in Beaumont have a staggering 1 in 90 chance of being assaulted, raped or killed every year. Yikes. And it seems to be climbing quickly in Beaumont over the last few years as well.
How Is Your Town In ?
How we determined the most dangerous cities in Texas for 2020?
Every year the FBI release two crime datasets, a preliminary dataset limited to the biggest cities in the country, followed by a more detailed release at the end of the year.
For our analysis, we focused on the JUST released 2017 data, specifically the 2017 Crime In The United States Report. We will update the results when data becomes available in September 2019.
So what criteria did we use? Have a look:
- Violent Crimes Per Capita
- Property Crimes Per Capita
In order to make the analysis as apples to apples as possible, we only considered cities over 5,000 in population. That left us with 331 cities in Texas.
We then ranked each city from 1 to 331 for the two criteria with a #1 ranking being the most dangerous for the particular criteria.
Next, we averaged the two rankings into one “Dangerous Index”.
Finally, we ranked every city on the “Dangerous Index” with the lowest index being the most dangerous in Texas — Bellmead.
Read on for a detailed look at the 10 most dangerous cities in Texas.
Locking It All Up In Texas
The latest FBI crime data shows that Bellmead ranks as the most dangerous city in Texas for 2020.
We want to point out again that there’s still safes places in Bellmead and that this isn’t a comment on the people that live there. So please don’t beat us up.
If you’re curious enough, here are the safest cities in Texas:
- Trophy Club (Pop. 13,090)
- Hutto (Pop. 26,924)
- Fulshear (Pop. 13,790)
For more Texas reading, check out:
- 10 Best Places To Raise A Family In Texas
- These Are The 10 Best Places To Retire In Texas
- These Are The 10 Richest Cities In Texas
- 10 Safest Places In Texas
- 10 Worst Places To Live In Texas
Where Are The Most Dangerous Cities In Texas?
| Rank | City | Population |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bellmead | 10,587 |
| 2 | Humble | 16,122 |
| 3 | Lubbock | 257,372 |
| 4 | Bastrop | 9,050 |
| 5 | Palmview | 5,842 |
| 6 | Livingston | 5,128 |
| 7 | Houston, | 2,344,966 |
| 8 | Alamo | 19,840 |
| 9 | Amarillo | 201,082 |
| 10 | Beaumont | 119,368 |
The post 10 Most Dangerous Cities In Texas For 2020 appeared first on RoadSnacks.