Vermont’s Safest Cities of 2024

See crime rates for the safest cities.

According to our most recent State of Safety report, Vermont’s overall level of concern about crime and safety decreased from 33% to 31% this survey year—out of sync with rising crime rates across the state. Despite these increases, Vermont has some of the lowest crime rates in the country.

Vermont's violent crime rate went up for the second consecutive year, from 1.9 incidents per 1,000 people to 2.4. Likewise, Vermont's property crime rate increased from 13.4 incidents per 1,000 people to 17.1—a startling 28% jump year over year.

Among the 44 states that met reporting requirements this year, Vermont has the sixth lowest violent crime rate and the 15th lowest property crime rate.

Property crime went up in Vermont this year, and Vermonters worry more about property crime and package theft than any other crime issue—but still less than many other states. Nearly half (46%) of Vermont survey respondents said they're highly concerned about property crime, compared to 52% nationwide. The property crime rate in Vermont is 17% lower than the national average.

• Vermont’s property crime rate rose from 13.4 incidents per 1,000 people to 17.1.
• Concern about property crime rose 35% year over year, from 34% last year to 46%.
• More than 3 in 10 Vermont respondents (33%) told us they had a personal experience with property crime in the 12 months prior to the survey (US 27%). That's a 57% increase year over year. 
• 66% of survey respondents use some kind of security measure on their property, with guard dogs being the most common (32%), followed by security cameras (25%) and firearms (24%).
• Just 21% of Vermonters said they added or increased security measures in the 12 months prior to the survey (US 35%).

• 32% of survey respondents in Vermont reported experiencing package theft in the 12 months prior to the survey (US 35%). That's a 19% increase year over year.
• 39% of participants expressed a high level of concern about package theft—14 percentage points below the US average of 53% and the second-least concern of any state. 
• Over 4 in 10 respondents (44%) in Vermont said they don't do anything to protect packages from porch pirates.
• The preferred methods of package protection in Vermont are leaving it in a safe spot (22%) followed by verified delivery  and doorbell/security cameras with 16% each.

Vermont's violent crime rate this reporting year is 26% higher than last year (2.4 compared to 1.9). With the sixth-lowest violent crime rate in the nation, Vermonters’ concern about violent crime is 20% lower than most Americans. 

• Not surprisingly, 65% of Vermonters feel safe in their state, beating the national average by a whopping 46% (US 45%).
• Concern about violent crime rose 60% year over year and reported experiences with violent crime climbed 18%.
• Rape makes up a bigger proportion of violent crime in Vermont than in the rest of the country—15% versus 11% nationwide. 
• Vermont sees fewer robberies than most states. Robbery accounts for 16% of all violent crime in the US but just 11% in Vermont.
• 26% of survey participants use some kind of personal protection like a stun gun or pepper spray, compared to 36% nationally.
• The most popular type of personal protection used by Vermont respondents this survey year was pepper spray (50%). This is higher than the national average of 43%.

• Gun violence is one of the least-concerning crime issue in The Green Mountain State. Only 39% of survey respondents worry about falling victim to gun violence, versus 51% nationwide.
• 9% of participants said they experienced gun violence during the 12 months prior to the survey (US 12%)—this is a 350% increase year over year.
• Vermont has the thirteenth-lowest reports of gun violence experience in the US.
• There have been 0 mass shootings in Vermont in the past five years.

For the purposes of this report, the terms “dangerous” and “safest” refer explicitly to crime rates as calculated from FBI crime data—no other characterization of any community is implied or intended.

• 23 cities met criteria to be considered for ranking.
• Barre Town climbed five spots to land as the number one safest city in Vermont.
• Stowe (up 6spots) saw the biggest ranking jump this year, moving up to position 3.
• Swanton is the only city to report zero motor vehicle thefts. It also saw the fewest burglaries, with only 2 reported.
• The violent crime rate in the safest cities is 0.9 incidents per 1,000 people—62% lower than the state rate (2.4).
• There were 0 reported murders in the safest cities this year compared to 23 statewide.
• The safest cities had a collective property crime rate of 11.0 per 1,000—4 cities reported fewer than 100 total property crimes.

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• The Best Personal Safety Devices for Every Situation

Find all endnotes and sources in our full methodology.

FBI Crime Data Explorer, "Documents & Downloads." Accessed March 18, 2024.

• 2022 and 2021 Crime in the United States Annual Reports
  • Offenses Known to Law Enforcement
• 2022 NIBRS Estimation Tables

Bureau of Justice Statistics, "National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS)." Accessed March 18, 2024.

Gun Violence Archive, "Mass Shootings." Accessed March 18, 2023.