Indiana is a Midwestern state with over 6.7 million residents, situated between Illinois and Ohio and bordering Michigan to the North. Lake Michigan enters Indiana just at the northwestern corner of the state. Not only is Indiana known for being the fifth-largest producer of corn in the United States, it’s also home to Notre Dame University in South Bend and the Indianapolis 500, which has run annually for over 100 years. The capital city of Indianapolis is also the home of the Indiana Pacers in the NBA and the NFL’s Indianapolis Colts.
How We Determined the Safest Cities in Indiana
We narrowed down the safest cities in each state based on two primary categories. First, we evaluated public safety factors including violent, property and hate crimes in each area to help determine the safest areas to live. We then evaluated financial and socioeconomic factors including household income, average rent and health insurance. In addition, we evaluated each state for natural disaster safety and public health safety. You can find a detailed breakdown of our methodology and links to sources here.
Here are the public safety factors we counted for each city:
*Public safety data is based on a population of 10,000 (for example, a “2” means two incidents for every 10,000 people).
- Property crime – Number of property crimes reported in the city (FBI Crime Report)
- Violent crime – Number of violent crimes reported in the city (FBI Crime Report)
- Aggravated assaults – Number of aggravated assaults reported in the city (FBI Crime Report)
- Hate crime – Number of hate crimes reported in the city (FBI Hate Crime Report)
- Officer-related incidents – Number of officer-involved shootings reported in the city (Gun Violence Archive)
- Mass shootings – Incidents in which four or more people are shot/killed in the city (Gun Violence Archive)
Here are the financial safety factors we counted for each city:
- Annual rent – Annualized median rent
- Unemployment rate – The average rate of unemployed residents in each city
- Cost of living – The average annual rent and household income per city
- Poverty rate – Percentage of families that reported experiencing poverty in the last 12 months
- Uninsured employed – Percentage of employed residents that reported not having health insurance
- Uninsured unemployed – Percentage of unemployed residents that reported not having health insurance
We narrowed down the safest cities in Kansas based on the factors that matter most.
10 Safest Cities in Indiana
No. 1 Brandon
With a population of over 24,000, Brandon is one of the safest cities in Mississippi. Some of the more popular attractions in Brandon include the Brandon Amphitheater for concerts and events or the Shiloh Splash Park. The town is notable for its low unemployment and poverty rates. However, it does have the highest rate of mass shootings on our list.
83out of 100
Public Safety
87out of 100
Financial Safety
Public Safety
Total Violent Crime Society Crimes Property Crime Hate Crime Officer Incident Mass Shootings 4.118107 (2nd) 8.236215 (2nd) 76.5968 (1st) 0.823621 (3rd) 0.823621 (3rd) 2.470864 (3rd) Financial Safety
Annual Rent Household Income Unemployment Rate Poverty Uninsured Employed Uninsured Unemployed 11616 (1st) 74172 (1st) 0.026 (3rd) 0.025 (3rd) 0.019 (2nd) 0.69 (1st) No. 1 Fort Wayne
Fort Wayne is situated in northeastern Indiana and has just over 270,000 residents. Violent crime in Fort Wayne is right on the median for Indiana and just below the median level for the country, and property crime is just above the national median. Fort Wayne boasts one of the nation’s best zoological parks, the Fort Wayne Children’s Zoo.
81out of 100
Public Safety
52out of 100
Financial Safety
Public Safety
Total Violent Crime Society Crimes Property Crime Hate Crime Officer Incident Mass Shootings 17.86021 (2nd) 20.401 (1st) 261.8128 (2nd) 0.037364 (2nd) 0.037364 (2nd) 0.186822 (8th) Financial Safety
Annual Rent Household Income Unemployment Rate Poverty Uninsured Employed Uninsured Unemployed 8820 (8th) 48023 (4th) 0.062 (8th) 0.151 (8th) 0.009 (9th) 0.315 (7th) No. 2 Clinton
Clinton is a city located in the Jackson metropolitan area. Visitors to Clinton can enjoy the Crossroads ATV Park, Brighton Park or even visit the Jackson Zoological Park, which is just a short drive away. Clinton is also located between the Hawkins Field Airport and the John Bell Williams Airport, making it great for transportation links.
73out of 100
Public Safety
83out of 100
Financial Safety
Public Safety
Total Violent Crime Society Crimes Property Crime Hate Crime Officer Incident Mass Shootings 4.376019 (3rd) 1.59128 (1st) 214.0271 (2nd) 0.39782 (2nd) 0.39782 (2nd) 1.9891 (2nd) Financial Safety
Annual Rent Household Income Unemployment Rate Poverty Uninsured Employed Uninsured Unemployed 11556 (2nd) 62492 (2nd) 0.028 (2nd) 0.084 (2nd) 0.033 (1st) 0.314 (3rd) No. 2 Lawrence
Lawrence is a mid-size community of nearly 50,000 residents, located just northeast of Indianapolis and part of the Indianapolis metro area. Lawrence is another Indiana community with very low rates of crimes such as aggravated assault and burglary, although its hate crime rate is higher than most of our top 10. Lawrence is home to the Museum of 20th Century Warfare and Fort Harrison State Park.
86out of 100
Public Safety
41out of 100
Financial Safety
Public Safety
Total Violent Crime Society Crimes Property Crime Hate Crime Officer Incident Mass Shootings 21.79537 (4th) 20.98059 (2nd) 220.6017 (1st) 1.018475 (8th) 1.018475 (8th) 0 (1st) Financial Safety
Annual Rent Household Income Unemployment Rate Poverty Uninsured Employed Uninsured Unemployed 10488 (3rd) 52048 (3rd) 0.077 (4th) 0.155 (7th) 0.023 (3rd) 0.337 (5th) No. 3 Bloomington
A college town of just over 85,000 residents, Bloomington is the home of Indiana University Bloomington. Bloomington is safe even by college town standards, with low rates of property crime and violent incidents. Bloomington is also home to the Little 500, the biggest college bike race in the country.
77out of 100
Public Safety
35out of 100
Financial Safety
Public Safety
Total Violent Crime Society Crimes Property Crime Hate Crime Officer Incident Mass Shootings 14.58066 (1st) 39.42611 (5th) 265.368 (3rd) 0.816517 (7th) 0.816517 (7th) 0.933162 (10th) Financial Safety
Annual Rent Household Income Unemployment Rate Poverty Uninsured Employed Uninsured Unemployed 10644 (1st) 34435 (10th) 0.079 (3rd) 0.175 (5th) 0.015 (6th) 0.238 (9th) No. 3 Jackson
Jackson is the state capital of Mississippi and there’s plenty to see and do for residents and visitors alike. Top attractions include the Mississippi State Capitol, the Old Capitol Museum and the Museum of Natural Science. As the largest city in Mississippi, Jackson has higher rates of crime than other cities on this list and a high unemployment rate.
82out of 100
Public Safety
47out of 100
Financial Safety
Public Safety
Total Violent Crime Society Crimes Property Crime Hate Crime Officer Incident Mass Shootings 0 (1st) 36.01889 (3rd) 473.1244 (3rd) 0 (1st) 0 (1st) 0 (1st) Financial Safety
Annual Rent Household Income Unemployment Rate Poverty Uninsured Employed Uninsured Unemployed 9888 (3rd) 37563 (3rd) 0.118 (1st) 0.253 (1st) 0.013 (3rd) 0.518 (2nd) No. 4 Hammond
Although located on the Indiana side of the border, Hammond is actually a part of the Chicago metropolitan area. Hammond boasts low crime rates across the board, with low rates of violent and property crime as well as officer-involved incidents. On the east side of town is Gibson Woods Nature Preserve, a 179-acre dedicated nature preserve.
77out of 100
Public Safety
29out of 100
Financial Safety
Public Safety
Total Violent Crime Society Crimes Property Crime Hate Crime Officer Incident Mass Shootings 23.66864 (5th) 24.3261 (3rd) 348.7179 (4th) 0.52597 (5th) 0.52597 (5th) 0 (1st) Financial Safety
Annual Rent Household Income Unemployment Rate Poverty Uninsured Employed Uninsured Unemployed 10500 (2nd) 44926 (6th) 0.087 (2nd) 0.234 (1st) 0.018 (4th) 0.397 (4th) No. 5 Evansville
Evansville is not one of the safest cities in the nation, although it makes Indiana’s top 10 with moderate rates of violent crime and enough property crime to take notice. Situated in the southwest corner of Indiana, Evansville has quite a bit to offer, including the Children’s Museum of Evansville and the Wesselman Woods Nature Preserve.
71out of 100
Public Safety
36out of 100
Financial Safety
Public Safety
Total Violent Crime Society Crimes Property Crime Hate Crime Officer Incident Mass Shootings 21.63937 (3rd) 35.19555 (4th) 446.3436 (7th) 0 (1st) 0 (1st) 0.841999 (9th) Financial Safety
Annual Rent Household Income Unemployment Rate Poverty Uninsured Employed Uninsured Unemployed 9060 (7th) 38646 (8th) 0.064 (7th) 0.198 (4th) 0.011 (8th) 0.413 (3rd) No. 6 Indianapolis
Indianapolis is the capital of Indiana and the most populous city in the state, with around 870,000 residents. Indianapolis’ crime rate is surprisingly low for a city of its size, with negligible violent crime and property crime incidents and only a smattering of hate crimes. Indianapolis is perhaps best known for playing host to the Indianapolis 500 auto race.
62out of 100
Public Safety
39out of 100
Financial Safety
Public Safety
Total Violent Crime Society Crimes Property Crime Hate Crime Officer Incident Mass Shootings 44.66809 (7th) 82.61317 (7th) 412.9177 (5th) 0.387427 (3rd) 0.387427 (3rd) 0 (1st) Financial Safety
Annual Rent Household Income Unemployment Rate Poverty Uninsured Employed Uninsured Unemployed 10380 (4th) 46442 (5th) 0.07 (6th) 0.168 (6th) 0.005 (10th) 0.324 (6th) No. 7 South Bend
South Bend is the home of the University of Notre Dame and the former base of Studebaker, the now-defunct car maker. South Bend rounds out Indiana’s 10 safest cities, but the crime rate in this historic city is quite high compared to other cities of its size.
61out of 100
Public Safety
30out of 100
Financial Safety
Public Safety
Total Violent Crime Society Crimes Property Crime Hate Crime Officer Incident Mass Shootings 34.47367 (6th) 69.43563 (6th) 430.286 (6th) 2.343819 (10th) 2.343819 (10th) 0 (1st) Financial Safety
Annual Rent Household Income Unemployment Rate Poverty Uninsured Employed Uninsured Unemployed 9204 (6th) 38943 (7th) 0.074 (5th) 0.214 (2nd) 0.012 (7th) 0.436 (2nd)
Indiana State Safety
Natural Disaster Safety
Indiana is ranked 26th in the country for risk of natural disasters — right in the middle of the pack. Cold winters in Indiana can bring ice storms, heat waves are common in the summer months, and tornados, flooding and earthquakes are possible year-round. Indiana does tend to be prone to severe weather, so the Indiana Department of Homeland Security emphasizes preparedness.
26out of 50
Natural Disaster
Health Safety
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the leading causes of death in Indiana are heart disease and cancer. In 2017, Indiana had the 14th-highest rate of drug related deaths in the country, but that rate has declined slightly since.
Indiana is 38th in access to primary care doctors, with 127.2 active primary care physicians per 100,000 residents. The state ranks even lower when it comes to mental health resources, with only 160 providers per 100,000 people, which is 42nd in the country.
When it comes to air quality, Indiana ranks 43rd in the nation. However, air quality in Indiana has improved quite a bit over the last 20 years.
41out of 50
Health Safety
Top 10 Safest Cities in Indiana
| Fort Wayne | 267,634 | 2 | 3 | 1 |
| Brandon | 24,283 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Lawrence | 49,093 | 1 | 4 | 2 |
| Clinton | 25,137 | 3 | 2 | 2 |
| Jackson | 166,024 | 2 | 3 | 3 |
| Bloomington | 85,730 | 4 | 7 | 3 |
| Hammond | 76,050 | 3 | 10 | 4 |
| Evansville | 118,765 | 5 | 6 | 5 |
| Indianapolis | 877,584 | 6 | 5 | 6 |
| South Bend | 102,397 | 7 | 9 | 7 |