Chicago's Most
Dangerous Neighborhoods
Ranked & Graded
We ranked every Chicago neighborhood by danger level — homicide counts, carjacking rates, violent crime per 1,000 residents, and year-over-year trends. Is your neighborhood on this list?
The 3 Most Dangerous Neighborhoods in Chicago
Full Danger Rankings — All 18 Neighborhoods
Ranked most dangerous to least. Click any card to expand the full crime breakdown.
West Garfield Park
Extreme caution advised at all times. One of the most dangerous areas in Illinois.
Englewood
Highest violent crime rate in Chicago. Avoid unless you know the area well.
Austin
One of Chicago's highest crime areas. Exercise extreme caution at all times.
South Shore
High violent crime rate. Be very cautious. Avoid late-night travel.
Humboldt Park
Exercise caution, especially after dark. Avoid unfamiliar side streets.
Hyde Park
University of Chicago area. Stick to well-lit main corridors. UCPD patrols heavily.
Bridgeport
Historic neighborhood with strong community ties. Relatively safe for South Side.
Pilsen
Gentrifying rapidly. Daytime very safe. Be aware at night on side streets.
Wicker Park
Trendy but watch for car break-ins and late-night incidents near bars.
Rogers Park
Improving rapidly. Stick to well-lit streets near the lakefront.
Ravenswood
Quiet residential feel with good safety record. Strong neighborhood association.
Lakeview / Wrigleyville
Generally safe. Avoid late-night bar district on weekends. Lock your car.
Lincoln Park
Very safe for a dense urban neighborhood. Watch for car break-ins near the park.
Edgewater
Lakefront neighborhood with strong safety record. Well-lit streets.
Forest Glen
Quiet, wooded neighborhood with very low crime. Great for families.
Mount Greenwood
Home to many first responders. Extremely tight-knit community.
Norwood Park
Consistently ranks among Chicago's safest. Strong community watch programs.
Lincoln Square
One of Chicago's most family-friendly neighborhoods. Very low violent crime.
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Methodology: Danger scores are the inverse of safety scores (100 − safety score). Safety scores are composite indexes based on FBI UCR data, Chicago Data Portal incident reports, and CPD annual statistics, weighting violent crime rate (50%), property crime rate (30%), and year-over-year trend (20%). Letter grades follow standard academic scale. Data reflects 2025 full-year statistics with 2026 YTD updates. IllinoisCrime.com is an independent public safety media platform and is not affiliated with the City of Chicago or CPD.
Chicago Neighborhood Crime Tier Map 2026
Printable Visual Safety Map — All 77 Neighborhoods — 3 pages, PDF