Portsmouth has a crime rate of 109.05 per 1,000 residents — around the national average for England and Wales, ranked #266 of 331 local authorities nationally. Crime levels vary significantly across Portsmouth's wards; some neighbourhoods are considerably safer than the city average. See the ward breakdown and hotspot map on this page for a detailed local picture.

What is the crime rate in Portsmouth?

As of April 2026, Portsmouth has an annual crime rate of 109.05 per 1,000 residents, based on 2,163 recorded offences in the latest reporting period. This figure is sourced from Police.uk open data and normalised using ONS Census 2021 population estimates to allow accurate comparisons between areas.

How does Portsmouth rank nationally for crime?

Portsmouth ranks #266 out of 331 local authorities in England and Wales by annual crime rate per 1,000 residents. A rank of #1 indicates the highest crime rate nationally. Rankings are recalculated each month as new Police.uk data becomes available, covering all recorded crimes across the area.

What is the most common crime in Portsmouth?

The most common crime type in Portsmouth is Violence & Sexual Offences, accounting for 792 incidents in April 2026 — 36.6% of all recorded crime in the area. Data is sourced from Police.uk and covers all crimes recorded by the responsible police force across the Portsmouth local authority area.

April 2026 Source: Hampshire Constabulary Police

Crime in Portsmouth: Crime Rate & Statistics 2026

Portsmouth recorded 2,163 crimes in April 2026 — a crime rate of 9.92 per 1,000 residents. This places Portsmouth at #266 of 331 local authorities in England and Wales. Violence & Sexual Offences accounts for the largest share of crime at 36.6% of all offences recorded. Crime is up 1.6% compared to the same period last year.

warning Crime is significantly above the UK average for this area.

compare_arrows Compare

Key Statistics

monitoring109.05 crimes per 1,000 residents annually
assignment2,163 crimes recorded in April 2026
leaderboardRanked #266 of 331 UK local authorities by crime rate
trending_upCrime up 1.6% year-on-year

Data Sources:Police.ukONS Census 2021HM Land Registry Period: April 2026 • Updated monthly

Total Crimes

2,163

trending_down -4.4% vs last month

Annual Crime Rate

109.05per 1k

High Risk

National Safety

#266of 331

Top 14% Riskiest UK

National Population

208,001

Estimated population

12-Month Crime Trend

Monthly Totals

Interactive Crime Map

District View

Live Points

Crime Incident

Area Boundary

Incident Distribution

Top Locations

Location Reference	Crime Breakdown	Primary Count
On or near Supermarket Map	Shoplifting: 53	53
On or near Parking Area Map	Violence and sexual offences: 31	31
On or near Supermarket Map	Violence and sexual offences: 30	30
On or near Spur Road Map	Shoplifting: 22	22
On or near Parking Area Map	Anti-social behaviour: 21	21
On or near Guildhall Walk Map	Violence and sexual offences: 14 Drugs: 4 Bicycle theft: 1	14
On or near Fourth Avenue Map	Violence and sexual offences: 14 Public order: 5	14
On or near Shopping Area Map	Shoplifting: 15 Robbery: 3	15
On or near Parking Area Map	Public order: 16	16
On or near Parking Area Map	Shoplifting: 16	16

Crime Breakdown

April 2026

2,163 Total

Violence & Sexual Offences

792

36.6%

Anti-social Behaviour

266

12.3%

Shoplifting

254

11.7%

Public Order

176

8.1%

Criminal Damage & Arson

156

7.2%

Other Theft

129

6.0%

Vehicle Crime

118

5.5%

Drug Offences

4.3%

Burglary

2.4%

Other Crime

1.6%

Weapons Possession

1.4%

Robbery

1.1%

Bicycle Theft

1.1%

Theft from Person

0.8%

Crime Analysis: Portsmouth

Portsmouth recorded 2,163 crimes in April 2026, equivalent to a rate of 109.05 per 1,000 residents — one of the higher-crime areas in England and Wales, placing it in the top quarter nationally (#266 of 331 local authorities).

Violence & Sexual Offences accounts for more than a third of all recorded crime in Portsmouth (36.6%). Anti-social Behaviour (12.3%) and Shoplifting (11.7%) are the next most common categories.

Compared to the same period last year, crime in Portsmouth has risen slightly — by 1.6%. The 12-month trend chart above shows where this change is concentrated across individual offence categories.

All figures are published monthly by Hampshire Constabulary through the Police.uk open data platform and cross-referenced with ONS 2021 Census population estimates to produce the per-resident rates above. Data typically appears 1–2 months after the end of the recording period.

Stop & Search

April 2026

1,565

Total Stops

17.4%

Arrest Rate

Neighbourhoods

Reason for Stop

Firearms

Psychoactive substances

Outcome

A no further action disposal939

Community resolution289

Arrest273

Summons / charged by post35

Not recorded29

Gender

Male1,298

Female243

Other24

Officer-Defined Ethnicity

Self-defined where available

81.4%

White

9.1%

Black

5.7%

Asian

3.8%

Other

Stop & search data published by Hampshire Constabulary under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: police.uk.

Expert Safety Insights

Ward Safety Rankings

14 wards

Highest Crime

#	Ward	Crimes	Rate
1	St Jude	159	145.7
2	Nelson	191	137.2
3	Charles Dickens	466	131.7
4	St Thomas	166	119.9
5	Fratton	116	89.8

Safest Wards

	Ward	Crimes	Rate
shield	Drayton and Farlington	54	3.7
shield	Cosham	215	8.5
shield	Copnor	101	5.7
shield	Eastney and Craneswater	98	7.8
shield	Baffins	93	6.2

Growth Analysis

Month-on-Monthtrending_down -4.4%

Year-on-Yeartrending_up +1.6%

12m Rolling Trendtrending_down -0.9%

Data Transparency

Crime rates are calculated per 1,000 residents using ONS Census 2021 population data. Rankings cover all 331 local authorities in England & Wales.

View full methodology arrow_forward

Analyse a Postcode

Get street-level safety data for any postcode in Portsmouth.

Compare Portsmouth with other cities

Open Comparator

Police Force

local_police

Hampshire Constabulary

95 policing neighbourhoods

call101

languageHampshire Constabulary website

notifications

Follow This Area

Get a free monthly email when new crime data is published for Portsmouth.

add_alert Follow Portsmouth

Free · Monthly · No spam

Free Download

PDF Crime Report

picture_as_pdf

check_circle12-month crime trend analysis
check_circleCrime type breakdown
check_circleLocal & national rankings
check_circleRisk assessment score

Free account required · Instant download

Data Integrity & Scale

verifiedPolice.uk Verified

updateMonthly Sync

Our algorithmic insights use standardized models. Read Methodology