Crime Grade · FBI UCR Data · 2024
Sanford, NC Crime Grade
How Sanford grades for violent crime against every other reporting U.S. city — and against the rest of North Carolina — based on the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting data.
National
6/10
vs. all U.S. cities ≥ 25,000 population
North Carolina
3/10
vs. North Carolina cities ≥ 10,000 population
In 2024, the violent crime rate in Sanford, NC was 180.5 per 100,000 residents (59 incidents over a population of 32,687). That puts Sanford Infinity% above the U.S. rate of 0.0 and 51% below the North Carolina statewide rate of 364.7.
That ranks Sanford #1,891 of 3,771 ranked U.S. cities, safer than 50% of them, and #25 of 86 in North Carolina. Violent crime is down 12% year over year and down 16% over the last five years.
Sanford, NC crime — key facts
- National Crime Grade
- C (6/10)
- North Carolina Grade
- A (3/10)
- Violent crime rate
- 180.5 / 100k
- National rank
- #1,891 of 3,771
- NC rank
- #25 of 86
- Safer than
- 50% of U.S. cities
- Year over year
- down 12%
- 5-year change
- down 16%
- Population
- 32,687
- Reporting agency
- Sanford Police Department
- Data year
- 2024 · FBI UCR
Reported by Sanford Police Department (FBI ORI NC0530100) to the FBI Uniform Crime Reporting Program. Download the full dataset (CSV) · methodology.
Violent crime rate, 5-year trend
Per 100,000 residents. Sanford (red), North Carolina (blue), U.S. average (gray dashed).
Sanford vs. U.S., 2024 — by offense
Rates per 100,000 residents for each offense category.
Full data, last 5 years
Rates per 100,000 residents. Raw counts in parentheses.
| Offense | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crime | 214.5(65) | 215.8(66) | 231.6(72) | 204.9(65) | 180.5(59) |
| Murder | 13.2(4) | 16.3(5) | 12.9(4) | 9.5(3) | 9.2(3) |
| Rape | 23.1(7) | 13.1(4) | 6.4(2) | 12.6(4) | 18.4(6) |
| Robbery | 49.5(15) | 39.2(12) | 51.5(16) | 59.9(19) | 24.5(8) |
| Aggravated assault | 128.7(39) | 147.1(45) | 160.9(50) | 123.0(39) | 128.5(42) |
| Property crime | 3052.9(925) | 2488.3(761) | 2464.4(766) | 2279.5(723) | 2471.9(808) |
| Burglary | 432.4(131) | 284.5(87) | 263.8(82) | 264.8(84) | 296.8(97) |
| Larceny | 2458.8(745) | 2076.3(635) | 2055.8(639) | 1910.6(606) | 2065.0(675) |
| Motor vehicle theft | 155.1(47) | 124.3(38) | 135.1(42) | 97.7(31) | 97.9(32) |
How the Crime Grade is calculated
- What is the source of the Sanford, NC Crime Grade?
- FBI Uniform Crime Reporting via the Crime Data Explorer. Agency-level data, pulled directly. No third-party aggregators, no proprietary score.
- What metric does the Sanford Crime Grade use?
- Violent crime rate per 100,000 residents (murder + rape + robbery + aggravated assault), most recent fully-reported year.
- How is the national decile for Sanford calculated?
- Sanford's rate placed against all FBI-reporting U.S. cities with population ≥ 25,000. 1 = safest.
- How is the North Carolina state decile calculated?
- Same calculation restricted to North Carolina cities with population ≥ 10,000.
- How do decile scores convert to a letter grade?
- 1–3 = A · 4–5 = B · 6–7 = C · 8 = D · 9–10 = F.
- How often is the Sanford Crime Grade refreshed?
- Twice a year. The FBI typically releases the prior year's full data each September.
- What are the limits of this Crime Grade?
- The FBI relies on local agency reporting. Rates reflect what was reported, not what occurred.
Nearby cities in North Carolina
Comparable North Carolina cities by population.
Compare Sanford to other places
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