Pittsburgh among top 10 safest big cities in US, study finds

PITTSBURGH
Federal Emergency Management Agency

Pittsburgh among top 10 safest big cities in US, study finds

Finch WalkerUSA TODAY NETWORK
Aug. 21, 2026, 9:37 a.m. ET

• A recent SmartAsset report ranked Pittsburgh as the 10th safest big city in the United States.
• The study analyzed 83 cities with populations of 250,000 or more based on crime, traffic fatalities, and natural disaster risk.
• Virginia Beach, Virginia, was ranked as the safest large city in America.

Based on its crime rates, risk of natural disasters and the likelihood of traffic fatalities, Pittsburgh ranked among the top 10 safest big cities in America in a recent report

SmartAssett examined 83 cities across the United States with populations of 250,000 or greater and ranked them using composite scores based on their violent crime, property crime, traffic fatality rates and disaster risks. Each kind of risk was calculated based on federal data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, with researchers also factoring in state, county and or local agency data

Here’s how Pittsburgh ranked

Where does Pittsburgh rank among safest US cities?

Among American cities with populations of 250,000 people or greater, Pittsburgh ranked at No. 10 for its safety

Here’s a breakdown of Pittsburgh’s scoring:

• Violent crimes per 1,000 people: 4.3
• Property crimes per 1,000 people: 22.8
• Auto fatalities per 100,000 people: 6.3
• Disaster risk: Relatively high

Top 10 safest big cities in America

These 10 big cities with populations of 250,000 or greater scored as the safest in America

1. Virginia Beach, Virginia
2. Plano, Texas
3. Madison, Wisconsin
4. Honolulu, Hawaii
5. Chesapeake, Virginia
6. Laredo, Texas
7. Lexington, Kentucky
8. Boston, Massachusetts
9. Lincoln, Nebraska
10. Pittsburgh, Pennyslvania

10 least safe big cities in America

These big cities scored as the least safe in America based on their violent crime rates, property crime rates, motor vehicle fatality rates and disaster risks

1. Memphis, Tennessee
2. Houston, Texas
3. St. Louis, Missouri
4. San Francisco, California
5. Kansas City, Missouri
6. Albuquerque, New Mexico
7. Oakland, California
8. Nashville, Tennessee
9. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
10. Detroit, Michigan

Finch Walker is the Pittsburgh Connect Reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Contact Walker at FWalker@usatodayco.com. Instagram: @finchwalker_. X: @_finchwalker