Columbus, OH crime rate
In 2025 the Columbus Police Department reported 381.9 violent crimes and 2,539.2 property crimes per 100,000 residents it covers. The FBI's estimates for Ohio and the US for the same year are beside each number.
Data as of 2025 (FBI), checked October 30, 2026. How we got these numbers
Data notes.
- Arson, 2024: possibly incomplete. 19 reported; 3 of 12 months zero (Apr, May, Nov) while other offenses were reported in those months; 2023: 24 reported. The count is shown; its rate is not compared.
- Arson, 2022: possibly incomplete. 15 reported; 5 of 12 months zero (Jan, Feb, May, Aug, Dec) while other offenses were reported in those months; 2023: 24 reported. The count is shown; its rate is not compared.
- Arson, 2021: possibly incomplete. 13 reported; 5 of 12 months zero (Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, Sep) while other offenses were reported in those months; 2023: 24 reported. The count is shown; its rate is not compared.
How does Columbus compare with Ohio and the US?
Arson has no FBI state or US estimate, so its row shows Columbus only.
What offenses were reported in Columbus, 2025?
| Offense | Reported | Per 100k | Ohio | US | vs 2024 | vs 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crime | ||||||
| Violent crime | 3,590 | 381.9 | 275.6 | 327.6 | down 21.5% | down 44.3% |
| Murder | 85 | 9.0 | 4.5 | 4.1 | down 29.7% | down 61.0% |
| Rape | 1,040 | 110.6 | 44.0 | 36.1 | down 19.2% | down 20.4% |
| Robbery | 969 | 103.1 | 39.6 | 49.4 | down 15.2% | down 53.9% |
| Aggravated assault | 1,496 | 159.1 | 187.5 | 238.0 | down 26.0% | down 47.0% |
| Property crime | ||||||
| Property crime | 23,871 | 2,539.2 | 1,428.8 | 1,534.8 | down 18.1% | down 25.1% |
| Burglary | 3,646 | 387.8 | 187.3 | 193.6 | down 12.9% | down 28.9% |
| Larceny-theft | 15,650 | 1,664.7 | 1,060.5 | 1,144.1 | down 16.6% | down 27.3% |
| Motor vehicle theft | 4,554 | 484.4 | 181.0 | 197.0 | down 26.1% | down 12.3% |
| Arson | 21 | 2.2 | Not estimated | Not estimated | See data note | See data note |
Reported = offenses known to the Columbus Police Department and sent to the FBI. Ohio and US are FBI estimates for the same year. Changes compare rates of full years only.
Columbus's own count
| Offense | Year | FBI count | City count |
|---|---|---|---|
| Murder | 2025 | 85 | 84 |
| Murder | 2024 | 117 | 126 |
| Robbery | 2025 | 969 | 994 |
| Robbery | 2024 | 1,113 | 1,154 |
| Aggravated assault | 2025 | 1,496 | 1,551 |
| Aggravated assault | 2024 | 1,969 | 2,202 |
| Burglary | 2025 | 3,646 | 3,676 |
| Burglary | 2024 | 4,074 | 4,163 |
| Motor vehicle theft | 2025 | 4,554 | 4,735 |
| Motor vehicle theft | 2024 | 6,004 | 6,226 |
City count: Columbus Division of Police 2025 Annual Report, Crime Statistics table, columbus.gov, checked October 29, 2026. The city counts some crimes differently from the FBI (for example by victim instead of by incident), so the two numbers don't always match.
Violent crime rate, 2021 to 2025
Show as a table
| Year | Columbus | United States | Ohio |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 686.0 | 387.0 | 317.4 |
| 2022 | 537.4 | 388.7 | 298.0 |
| 2023 | 538.5 | 379.5 | 301.3 |
| 2024 | 486.2 | 362.9 | 301.0 |
| 2025 | 381.9 | 327.6 | 275.6 |
Property crime rate, 2021 to 2025
Show as a table
| Year | Columbus | United States | Ohio |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 3,388.0 | 1,832.3 | 1,720.1 |
| 2022 | 3,584.5 | 1,973.8 | 1,806.7 |
| 2023 | 3,348.8 | 1,934.1 | 1,746.6 |
| 2024 | 3,099.7 | 1,761.1 | 1,602.4 |
| 2025 | 2,539.2 | 1,534.8 | 1,428.8 |
Is Columbus safe?
We don't rate cities as safe or unsafe. What the FBI's numbers show: in 2025 the violent crime rate the Columbus Police Department reported, 381.9 per 100,000 residents, was higher than Ohio's 275.6, and higher than the US rate of 327.6 (FBI estimates). It fell 21.5% from 2024.
What these numbers can't tell you:
- How crime differs between neighborhoods (the FBI publishes agency totals only).
- Crimes nobody reported to the police.
- How many offenses involved visitors and commuters, who are not in the population count.
Columbus had 3,590 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025, 381.9 per 100,000 residents covered by the Columbus Police Department. That was 1.4 times the Ohio estimate of 275.6 and 1.2 times the US rate of 327.6. Property crime came to 2,539.2 per 100,000, 1.8 times the state rate of 1,428.8 and 1.7 times the US rate of 1,534.8.
Violent crime fell 44.3% from 2021, when the rate was 686.0, and 21.5% from 2024. Property crime is down 25.1% from 2021 and 18.1% from 2024. Of the violent offenses, murder fell the most in both periods: 61.0% from 2021 and 29.7% from 2024.
There were 85 homicides in 2025, 9.0 per 100,000. Rape, at 110.6 per 100,000, was 3.1 times the US rate, though it fell 19.2% from 2024. Aggravated assault was below both the state estimate of 187.5 and the US rate of 238.0, at 159.1 per 100,000, and made up 42% of violent crime.
Robbery fell 53.9% from 2021 to 2025. Motor vehicle theft fell 26.1% from 2024, to 484.4 per 100,000, 2.5 times the US rate. The arson counts for 2021, 2022 and 2024 are flagged as possibly incomplete, so arson is not compared.
All 12 months were reported in each of the 5 years shown; the department has used NIBRS since 2003. The Delaware, Fairfield and Franklin County sheriff's offices and Columbus State Community College report separately.
Written from the numbers on this page. Every figure and every comparison is checked against the stored FBI data before publishing.
Other Ohio cities
The nearest Ohio cities with a page, in alphabetical order. VC = violent crime per 100,000, 2025.
Sources
- FBI Crime Data Explorer, Columbus Police Department (ORI OHCOP0000), offenses known to law enforcement and police employees, 2021 to 2025, fetched Oct 29, 2026. Crime Data Explorer
- FBI Crime Data Explorer, Ohio and United States estimated crime (Summary Reporting System estimates), 2021 to 2025.
- FBI, "UCR Statistics: Their Proper Use" (why we don't rank cities).
Every stored file behind this page (11)
- Columbus Police Department (OHCOP0000): violent crime, offenses known to law enforcement, January 2021 to December 2025, fetched Oct 29, 2026 (var/raw/cde/summarized_agency_OHCOP0000_violent_crime__from-01-2021-to-12-2025.json)
- Columbus Police Department (OHCOP0000): murder, offenses known to law enforcement, January 2021 to December 2025, fetched Oct 29, 2026 (var/raw/cde/summarized_agency_OHCOP0000_homicide__from-01-2021-to-12-2025.json)
- Columbus Police Department (OHCOP0000): rape, offenses known to law enforcement, January 2021 to December 2025, fetched Oct 29, 2026 (var/raw/cde/summarized_agency_OHCOP0000_rape__from-01-2021-to-12-2025.json)
- Columbus Police Department (OHCOP0000): robbery, offenses known to law enforcement, January 2021 to December 2025, fetched Oct 29, 2026 (var/raw/cde/summarized_agency_OHCOP0000_robbery__from-01-2021-to-12-2025.json)
- Columbus Police Department (OHCOP0000): aggravated assault, offenses known to law enforcement, January 2021 to December 2025, fetched Oct 29, 2026 (var/raw/cde/summarized_agency_OHCOP0000_aggravated_assault__from-01-2021-to-12-2025.json)
- Columbus Police Department (OHCOP0000): property crime, offenses known to law enforcement, January 2021 to December 2025, fetched Oct 29, 2026 (var/raw/cde/summarized_agency_OHCOP0000_property_crime__from-01-2021-to-12-2025.json)
- Columbus Police Department (OHCOP0000): burglary, offenses known to law enforcement, January 2021 to December 2025, fetched Oct 29, 2026 (var/raw/cde/summarized_agency_OHCOP0000_burglary__from-01-2021-to-12-2025.json)
- Columbus Police Department (OHCOP0000): larceny-theft, offenses known to law enforcement, January 2021 to December 2025, fetched Oct 29, 2026 (var/raw/cde/summarized_agency_OHCOP0000_larceny__from-01-2021-to-12-2025.json)
- Columbus Police Department (OHCOP0000): motor vehicle theft, offenses known to law enforcement, January 2021 to December 2025, fetched Oct 29, 2026 (var/raw/cde/summarized_agency_OHCOP0000_motor_vehicle_theft__from-01-2021-to-12-2025.json)
- Columbus Police Department (OHCOP0000): arson, offenses known to law enforcement, January 2021 to December 2025, fetched Oct 29, 2026 (var/raw/cde/summarized_agency_OHCOP0000_arson__from-01-2021-to-12-2025.json)
- Columbus Police Department (OHCOP0000): police employees, 2021 to 2025, fetched Oct 29, 2026 (var/raw/cde/pe_agency_OHCOP0000__from-2021-to-2025.json)