What is the crime rate in New Bedford, MA?

In 2025, the New Bedford Police Department reported 349 violent crimes and 1,576 property crimes to the FBI.

That is 345 violent and 1,558 property crimes per 100,000 of the 101,139 residents it serves.

Across Massachusetts the rates were 301 and 1,037.

Nationally they were 330 and 1,552.

Figures last updated on November 12, 2026.

Violent per 100,000: 345
Property per 100,000: 1,558
Violent crimes: 349
Property crimes: 1,576

Crime reported by the New Bedford Police Department, 2023 to 2025

Offenses known to law enforcement, reported to the FBI; rates per 100,000 residents of the area the department serves
Year	Violent crimes	Violent per 100,000	Property crimes	Property per 100,000	Residents served
2023	510	506	1,572	1,558	100,876
2024	365	356	1,403	1,369	102,491
2025	349	345	1,576	1,558	101,139

Violent crimes reported went from 510 in 2023 to 349 in 2025.

Property crimes reported went from 1,572 in 2023 to 1,576 in 2025.

In a small town a handful of incidents moves these numbers a long way, so one year’s change says little on its own.

New Bedford against Massachusetts and the nation

Crimes per 100,000 residents, 2025
	Violent crime	Property crime
New Bedford	345	1,558
Bristol County	333	1,031
Massachusetts	301	1,037
United States	330	1,552

These are rates per resident; they are not adjusted for visitors, commuters or the size of the area, which raise or lower a town’s figures without changing anybody’s risk.

Crime reported in places near New Bedford, 2025

Each place’s own police department; rates per 100,000 residents served
Place	Distance	Violent per 100,000	Property per 100,000
New Bedford	—	345	1,558
Fairhaven	3.9 mi	307	738
Acushnet	4.4 mi	224	308
Mattapoisett	6.5 mi	176	382
Dartmouth	6.6 mi	291	1,395
Rochester	8.6 mi	218	134
Freetown	9.2 mi	319	617
Fall River	9.2 mi	769	1,550
Westport	9.3 mi	143	364

Neighboring departments count the same offenses the same way, but their areas, populations and visitors differ, so a difference between two towns is a starting point for a question, not an answer.

How to read these numbers

These are offenses known to the police and reported to the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting Program: crimes nobody reported, or that a department did not record, are not in them.

Violent crime is murder and nonnegligent manslaughter, rape, robbery and aggravated assault; property crime is burglary, larceny-theft, motor vehicle theft and arson.

A department reports the crimes in the area it polices, which can differ from the town’s boundaries, and the FBI estimates the population it serves.

The FBI asks that these figures not be used to rank places or to judge how safe a neighborhood is: crime depends on many local factors, and the counts describe a whole town, not any street or home.

A year is shown only when the department reported all twelve months.

FBI: Uniform Crime Reporting statistics and their proper use

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