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Mass., New England towns dominate new list of safest communities in U.S.

26 of the nation's 100 safest places with more than 25,000 people are in Massachusetts, according to a study by Visual Capitalist.

4 Massachusetts towns ranked among the top 10 safest in the country. Matt Cosby/The New York Times

July 18, 2023

1 minute to read

Massachusetts residents and prospective home-buyers alike may be pleased to learn that many of the nation’s safest cities and towns are located in the Bay State.

That’s according to Visual Capitalist, which released a new map this month of U.S. communities with populations of 25,000 or more that boast the lowest per capita violent and property crime rates.

Four Massachusetts municipalities ranked among the top 10 safest in the country. Franklin placed second, followed by Marshfield in fourth, Arlington in fifth and Lexington in eighth place.

New England more generally made a strong showing on the list, with communities in Connecticut, Rhode Island and New Hampshire also ranking in the the top 100.

The rankings are based on 2023 FBI and U.S. Census data of cities and towns with populations of 25,000 or more. The median population of the top 100 was about 32,000.

Visual Capitalist also published a corresponding map of the 100 most dangerous American communities based on 2023 violent crime data. Only two Massachusetts cities appeared on that list: Holyoke at number 87 and Springfield at number 99.

Taken together, the two maps seem to challenge the conventional wisdom that bigger cities are always more dangerous than small towns. Although many small towns ranked among the nation’s safest, some also appeared on the opposite list of dangerous places to live. The data also shows that safe and unsafe communities can often be located just miles apart.