Is Nashville Safe?

2 min read

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  • 1 table
  • 3 sources cited

Nashville’s citywide violent crime rate is close to three times the national rate, but crime fell in 2025. In the FBI’s 2025 figures, as compiled by Security.org from the FBI’s Crime in the United States table of offenses by city, Metro Nashville’s violent crime rate was 943.8 per 100,000 residents, against a national rate of 327.6 (Security.org, updated August 19, 2026). A WSMV analysis of 2024 FBI data, compiled with the Metro Nashville Police Department, put Nashville’s violent crime rate at 1,124.1 per 100,000 residents, against a national rate of 359.1. That placed Nashville No. 13 in the station’s national ranking of cities (WSMV, September 4, 2025). In 2025, MNPD reported double-digit reductions in nearly every major crime category, including a 27.5 percent drop in homicides (WSMV, January 8, 2026). For a visitor or a new resident, a citywide rate says little about a given street at a given hour. The practical answer depends on where you are, when, and what you leave in your car.

What the Numbers Show

Measure Figure Source
Violent crime rate, 2025 943.8 per 100,000 residents (national rate 327.6) Security.org compilation of FBI 2025 data
Violent crime rate, 2024 1,124.1 per 100,000 residents (national rate 359.1) WSMV analysis of FBI data, with MNPD
Homicides, 2025 vs. 2024 down 27.5% MNPD, via WSMV
Robberies, 2025 vs. 2024 down 25.9% MNPD, via WSMV
Auto thefts, 2025 vs. 2024 down 18.9% MNPD, via WSMV
Non-fatal shooting injuries, 2025 vs. 2024 down 33.7% MNPD, via WSMV
Residents who feel very or somewhat safe 67% in 2025, down from 73% in 2024 Nashville Police and Public Safety Alliance survey, via WSMV

The two rates come from different compilations: Security.org divides by Census Bureau provisional population estimates for July 1, 2025, and WSMV built its 2024 figure with MNPD, so part of the gap between them may come from method rather than crime. The MNPD percentage changes are the department’s own counts, not FBI rates.

What This Means in Practice

  1. Check the specific area. Crime varies from block to block; how to look up incidents for an address is in which Nashville neighborhood is safest.
  2. Plan your night downtown. Crowded Broadway nights and walks back to hotels or garages are covered in whether downtown Nashville is safe at night.
  3. Leave nothing in your car. Car break-ins and auto thefts are a visitor risk; see whether it is safe to park overnight in Nashville.
  4. Use standard city precautions: keep your phone and wallet secured in crowds, take a rideshare for longer late-night walks, and call 911 in an emergency.

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