The Safest and Most Dangerous Cities to Raise a Family

A lot changes when you have kids. Their well-being becomes the central focus of your life. With crime rising in big cities across the U.S., many families are looking for safer places to put down roots. 

Safewise just released its rankings of the “Top 50 Safest Cities to Raise a Family in 2022." These 11 California cities made the list:

1. Mission Viejo (#7 nationally)
2. San Ramon (#10 nationally)
3. Santa Clarita (#11 nationally)
4. Thousand Oaks (#12 nationally)
5. Lake Forest (#16 nationally)
6. Murrieta (#17 nationally)
7. Chino Hills (#23 nationally)
8. Irvine (#32 nationally)
9. San Marcos (#34 nationally)
10. Simi Valley (#36 nationally)
11. Pleasanton (#50 nationally)

Safewise also named the most dangerous cities for families. Despite intense focus on rising crime in cities like LA and San Francisco, not a single California city made the top 10 most dangerous. St. Louis, MO topped the list followed by Memphis, TN; Richmond, VA; Kalamazoo, MI; and Salt Lake City, UT.

A word about methodology:

Safewise analyzed the FBI’s 2020 violent and property crime report statistics for the study. Only cities with populations over 75,000 were included. Safety score calculations were based on crime data as well as the number of registered sex offenders per capita. 

The following cities have the highest number of registered sex offenders per capita:

1. Richmond, Virginia (28.03)
2. Flint, Michigan (12.88)
3. Kalamazoo, Michigan (11.16)
4. Grand Rapids, Michigan (9.71)
5. St. Louis, Missouri (8.57)
6. Orlando, Florida (8.26)
7. Lansing, Michigan (7.89)
8. Ogden, Utah (7.75)
9. Dayton, Ohio (6.51)
10. Beaumont, Texas (6.45)

California, you’re lookin’ good. 

Lists and data were compiled by Safewise and do not reflect statistics on all cities.