Southampton has a crime rate of 122.43 per 1,000 residents — below the national average for England and Wales, placing it among the lower-crime areas in the UK at #286 of 331 local authorities. Crime levels vary significantly across Southampton'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 Southampton?

As of April 2026, Southampton has an annual crime rate of 122.43 per 1,000 residents, based on 2,905 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 Southampton rank nationally for crime?

Southampton ranks #286 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 Southampton?

The most common crime type in Southampton is Violence & Sexual Offences, accounting for 992 incidents in April 2026 — 34.1% 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 Southampton local authority area.

April 2026 Source: Hampshire Constabulary Police

Crime in Southampton: Crime Rate & Statistics 2026

Southampton is among the safer areas in England and Wales, recording 2,905 crimes in April 2026 — a crime rate of 11.67 per 1,000 residents. This places Southampton at #286 of 331 local authorities in England and Wales. Violence & Sexual Offences accounts for the largest share of crime at 34.1% of all offences recorded. Crime is up 3.4% compared to the same period last year.

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

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Key Statistics

monitoring122.43 crimes per 1,000 residents annually
assignment2,905 crimes recorded in April 2026
leaderboardRanked #286 of 331 UK local authorities by crime rate
trending_upCrime up 3.4% year-on-year

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

Total Crimes

2,905

trending_down -2.6% vs last month

Annual Crime Rate

122.43per 1k

High Risk

National Safety

#286of 331

Top 8% Riskiest UK

National Population

248,920

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: 63	63
On or near Shopping Area Map	Shoplifting: 59	59
On or near Parking Area Map	Violence and sexual offences: 50	50
On or near Parking Area Map	Drugs: 31 Other theft: 14 Possession of weapons: 3	31
On or near Supermarket Map	Anti-social behaviour: 31 Burglary: 5	31
On or near Parking Area Map	Anti-social behaviour: 34	34
On or near Parking Area Map	Public order: 31 Bicycle theft: 2	31
On or near Nightclub Map	Violence and sexual offences: 24 Drugs: 5 Bicycle theft: 2	24
On or near Supermarket Map	Violence and sexual offences: 22 Criminal damage and arson: 7	22
On or near Petrol Station Map	Shoplifting: 26	26

Crime Breakdown

April 2026

2,905 Total

Violence & Sexual Offences

992

34.1%

Anti-social Behaviour

385

13.3%

Shoplifting

373

12.8%

Public Order

239

8.2%

Criminal Damage & Arson

206

7.1%

Other Theft

185

6.4%

Drug Offences

132

4.5%

Vehicle Crime

107

3.7%

Burglary

3.1%

Robbery

1.8%

Other Crime

1.8%

Weapons Possession

1.7%

Bicycle Theft

1.0%

Theft from Person

0.5%

Crime Analysis: Southampton

Southampton recorded 2,905 crimes in April 2026, equivalent to a rate of 122.43 per 1,000 residents — one of the higher-crime areas in England and Wales, placing it in the top quarter nationally (#286 of 331 local authorities).

Violence & Sexual Offences makes up the largest share of crime in Southampton at 34.1%. Anti-social Behaviour (13.3%) and Shoplifting (12.8%) are the next most common categories.

Compared to the same period last year, crime in Southampton has risen slightly — by 3.4%. 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

16 wards

Highest Crime

#	Ward	Crimes	Rate
1	Freemantle	256	154.3
2	Bargate	613	150.8
3	Bevois	290	144.0
4	Bitterne	169	120.9
5	Millbrook	211	116.5

Safest Wards

	Ward	Crimes	Rate
shield	Shirley	159	6.0
shield	Bassett	87	6.0
shield	Bitterne Park	73	5.2
shield	Sholing	110	7.9
shield	Coxford	116	8.3

Growth Analysis

Month-on-Monthtrending_down -2.6%

Year-on-Yeartrending_up +3.4%

12m Rolling Trendtrending_down -0.2%

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.

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