How Safe Is Calgary?

Calgary, Alberta is the fourth largest city in Canada. People perceive Calgary as quite safe. How safe is Calgary really? To answer that we need to look at 2018 crime statistics for the city and compare them to last year.

When looking at Calgary crime for 2018 and 2017, there is positives and negatives. Homicides and thefts are both down so far in 2018. Year to date there have been 5 homicides in Calgary. Last year for the same period there were 8 homicides. In regards to theft, there have year to date been 10,311. Last year for the same period there were 10943. So we're seeing a 5.8% reduction for 2018 in Calgary.

However, unfortunately there have been increases in Calgary crime for 2018 in other areas. Break and enters are up 8.4% for 2018 in Calgary. Year to date there have been 3673 break and enters. Last year there were 3387 break-ins for the same period. Vehicle thefts for Calgary are also up this year. There's a 6% increase thus far, 2950 for 2018 versus 2783 for 2017.

Total assaults in Calgary are up 18.3% thus far in 2018. There have been 3587 reported assaults this year in Calgary. Last year in Calgary there were 3031 assaults over the same period. Robberies are also up in 2018. In Calgary for 2018 there have been 408 robberies so far, compared to 390 last year. This is a 4.6% increase.

Sex offences have also risen in 2018. Thus far there have been 534 sex offences in Calgary this year. Over the same time period in 2017 there were 480. That's an 11.3% increase for 2018.

While the 2018 numbers are higher than last year, Calgary is still a very safe city. Comparable to other Canadian cities, Calgary has significantly low crime rates. When comparing with similar sized American cities, Calgary is incredibly safe. So while these statistics may seem alarming, in truth they are relatively low.

There are certain things you can do though to raise your level of safety. Avoid walking alone at night when possible. Be aware of certain risk factors when home and away. Keep your doors locked at home. Plus get a monitored home alarm system. Home alarm systems work. They are a fantastic deterrent for would-be burglars. Homes with alarm systems are three times less likely to have a break-in than those without.

Let's go back to the initial question of how safe is Calgary. The answer is Calgary is very safe. It's important to note that crime has risen so far in 2018, yet the numbers continue to be low. So as stated above, be vigilant and aware of your surroundings. If that's done then you'll most likely be quite safe.

Calgary Police post crime overviews online regularly. To read Calgary Police's May report on crime, click here - https://bit.ly/2LaZ0cM