2 Sacramento-area cities are among safest in California, site says. Where did they rank?

Jacqueline Pinedo
·3 min read
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Two Sacramento-area cities are among the top 10 safest spots in California, according to SafeWise.

The home security review website recently released its 10th annual Safest Cities report.

“When it comes to safety, daily concern continues to be the California state of mind,” SafeWise writer Rebecca Edwards wrote. “With crime rates that are higher than nationwide averages, it’s not surprising that Californians are among the most concerned about property crime, package theft and violent crime.”

Rancho Santa Margarita in Southern California topped SafeWise’s list of the 10 Safest Cities in California for 2024 with an average of 0.4 violent crimes and 4.8 property crimes per 1,000 residents, according to SafeWise.

Lincoln ranked No. 7 on SafeWise’s list, and Rocklin was No. 9.

How did SafeWise come up with list?

SafeWise used FBI crime statistics data to rank cities in each state, as well as demographic information and the results of its State of Safety research study.

The site relies “on voluntary, self-reported information that cities and jurisdictions across the country report through the FBI Summary Reporting System and National Incident-Based Reporting System,” according to its website.

The Lincoln Heritage Theater in downtown Lincoln.
The Lincoln Heritage Theater in downtown Lincoln.

What are the top 10 safest cities in California?

Here are the 10 safest cities in California, according to SafeWise’s:

1. Rancho Santa Margarita

2. Aliso Viejo

3. Yorba Linda

4. Laguna Niguel

5. Mission Viejo

6. Lake Forest

7. Lincoln

8. Poway

9. Rocklin

10. Irvine

Where do Sacramento-area cities rank?

Located roughly 30 miles from downtown Sacramento, Lincoln was ranked one of the safest California cities by SafeWise with an average of 1.7 violent crimes and 9.0 property crimes per 1,000 people.

The town has a population of 51,456, according to SafeWise.

Lincoln was among five cities to report fewer than 10 violent crimes per 1,000 people, according to the report.

Rocklin, which has a population of 74,168 residents, reported fewer than three violent crimes per 1,000 people, according to SafeWise.

The city had an average of 13 property crimes per 1,000 people.

Another Northern California city, Elk Grove, ranked at No. 14 on SafeWise’s top 20 list with average rates of two violent crimes and 13.4 property crimes per 1,000 people.

What are property crime, violent crime rates in California?

About 50% of Californians surveyed by SafeWise said they felt “a high daily level of concern for their safety,” the site said, noting that was a 19% decline year over year.

About 30% of Californians surveyed said they feel safe in their home state, SafeWise said.

California had an average rate of 4.2 violent crimes per 1,000 people, SafeWise said, about 6% higher than the national average of four.

The Golden State also reported 25.3 property crimes per 1,000 people, more than 20% higher that the national average of 20.7, according to the site.

Per capita crime rates in California’s safest cities were significantly lower, with an average of 1.7 violent crime and 12.8 property crime per 1,000 people, SafeWise said.

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