The 10 Safest Cities In North Dakota For 2024

The safest cities in North Dakota are Hazen and Stanley for 2024 using Saturday Night Science.

Do we think there's a correlation between North Dakota's ranking as one of the wealthiest states in the country and the fact that it has some of the safest places to live? Absolutely.

All that oil money helps the state fund the programs that are needed to keep its residents happy, healthy, and safe. And people are noticing just how safe the Peace Garden State is. More and more people are flocking to its cities, making it one of the fastest-growing states in the country. We don't blame people for wanting to live the North Dakota dream; it's super safe.

But just how safe are the safest cities in Roughrider State? We consulted the FBI crime data for 22 cities in North Dakota with over 2,000 residents. We looked at important factors like property and violent crimes per capita.

We discovered that both their violent and property crimes stayed well below the national average.

Want to know where the top ten safest places in North Dakota are for 2024? You're going to have to keep reading.


Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Table

Here are the 10 safest cities to live in North Dakota for 2024:

  1. Hazen (Homes For Sale)
  2. Stanley (Homes For Sale)
  3. Carrington (Homes For Sale)
  4. Lisbon (Homes For Sale)
  5. Lincoln (Homes For Sale)
  6. New Town (Homes For Sale)
  7. Beulah (Homes For Sale)
  8. West Fargo (Homes For Sale)
  9. Valley City (Homes For Sale)
  10. Rugby (Homes For Sale)
Safest Cities In North Dakota Map

North Dakota is definitely not for the weak. But, if you're looking to move to the country's northern region, we recommend you start with North Dakota's safest place for 2024.

So, what city is the safest place to live in North Dakota? According to the most recent FBI data, Hazen is the safest place to live in North Dakota.

To see how your favorite city ranked, take a look below, and if you don't find your favorite there, head to the bottom.

For more reading on safe places to live in and around North Dakota, check out:

The 10 Safest Cities In North Dakota For 2024

Hazen, ND
Source: Wikipedia User Andrew Filer from Seattle (ex-Minneapolis) | CC BY-SA 2.0

Population: 2,271
Violent Crimes Per 100k: 0 (safest)
Property Crimes Per 100k: 132 (safest)
Murders: 0
Murders Per 100k: 0
More on Hazen: Data | Crime | Real Estate

Overall SnackAbility
8.5
/10

This wasn't even a contest; Hazen is the safest city in North Dakota by a wide margin. To give you an idea, the second safest city had three times as much crime as Hazen did. Hazen residents evidently get their violent impulses out by whacking balls at Hazen Golf Club, because the city didn't have a single violent crime in all of 2022. And with only three property crimes committed, Hazen's definitely a safe place to leave your packages out on the porch for the weekend.

Hazen is no stranger to the HomeSnacks spotlight either. The city ranked as the second richest and fourth best place to live in the state. With a good jobs market, affordable goods, and, now the title of safest city, Hazen has a heckuva lot going for it.

Hazen is located an hour northwest of Bismarck.

Stanley, ND
Source: Wikipedia User Mitchazenia | CC BY-SA 4.0

Population: 2,327
Violent Crimes Per 100k: 42 (third safest)
Property Crimes Per 100k: 257 (fourth safest)
Murders: 0
Murders Per 100k: 0
More on Stanley: Data | Crime | Real Estate

Overall SnackAbility
6
/10

Located in the northwestern part of the state in Mountrail County, Stanley is the second safest city in North Dakota. Residents can enjoy a day out at Wilson Park without worrying about having their valuables taken, because Stanley has the fourth safest rate of property crime in the state. In fact, Stanley averaged just one property crime a season in 2022. Stanley also had the third safest rate of violent crime in the state. These low crime numbers contributed to Stanley being named the fourth best city to raise a family in North Dakota.

Carrington, ND
Source: Flickr User Matt-Zimmerman | CC BY 2.0

Population: 2,029
Violent Crimes Per 100k: 98 (fourth safest)
Property Crimes Per 100k: 197 (third safest)
Murders: 1
Murders Per 100k: 49
More on Carrington: Data | Real Estate

Overall SnackAbility
8.5
/10

Carrington, the county seat of Foster County, North Dakota, maintains a reputation for safety with its third statewide ranking. Boasting a violent crime rate of 98/100k people and a property crime rate of 197/100k people, Carrington reported just 2 violent crimes and 4 property crimes.

Established in 1883, the city's small population faces minimal violent crime, including 1 murder cases. It ranks as the fourth safest city for violent crime and 22nd safest for murder.

Lisbon, ND
Source: Wikipedia User Andrew Filer | CC BY-SA 2.0

Population: 2,177
Violent Crimes Per 100k: 0 (safest)
Property Crimes Per 100k: 597 (sixth safest)
Murders: 0
Murders Per 100k: 0
More on Lisbon: Data | Crime | Real Estate

Overall SnackAbility
4
/10

Located an hour and some change southeast of Fargo, Lisbon ranks as our fourth safest city in North Dakota. Lisbon had the safest rate of violent crime in the state, with about eight times less violence than the average American city.

And with the infrequency of property crime, you'll have a better chance of spotting an eagle at Sheyenne National Grasslands than of getting mugged.

Lincoln, ND
Source: Wikipedia User afiler | CC BY-SA 2.0

Population: 4,387
Violent Crimes Per 100k: 136 (fifth safest)
Property Crimes Per 100k: 524 (fifth safest)
Murders: 0
Murders Per 100k: 0
More on Lincoln: Data | Crime | Real Estate

Overall SnackAbility
7.5
/10

Last year we ranked Lincoln as the safest city in North Dakota, so this year's #5 ranking represents a small drop. But Lincoln is still nowhere near dangerous. In fact, the

Lincoln Police Department has worked hard to give Lincoln the fifth safest rate of property and fifth safest rate of violent crime in North Dakota. The violent crime rate in Lincoln is eight times lower than the national average, and the property crime rate is seven times lower. It's easy to see how low crime rates helped Lincoln get named the best place to live in North Dakota.

Lincoln is a southeastern suburb of Bismarck.

New Town, ND
Source: Wikipedia User Andrew Filer from Seattle (ex-Minneapolis) | CC BY-SA 2.0

Population: 2,713
Violent Crimes Per 100k: 184 (eighth safest)
Property Crimes Per 100k: 184 (second safest)
Murders: 0
Murders Per 100k: 0
More on New Town: Data | Crime | Real Estate

Overall SnackAbility
7
/10

Located in southwestern Mountrail County, New Town is the sixth safest city in North Dakota. New Town had a property crime rate about 70% lower than the national average in 2022, the second safest rate in the state. So it's more likely that a crow will take off with your valuables than a person if you go to check out the awesome vistas at Crow Flies High Butte. New Town doesn't have much of an issue with violent crime either, with only 5 cases reported in 2022.

Beulah, ND
Source: Wikipedia User Andrew Filer from Seattle (ex-Minneapolis) | CC BY-SA 2.0

Population: 3,032
Violent Crimes Per 100k: 197 (tenth safest)
Property Crimes Per 100k: 791 (seventh safest)
Murders: 0
Murders Per 100k: 0
More on Beulah: Data | Crime | Real Estate

Overall SnackAbility
8.5
/10

Located just 15 minutes west of Hazen, Beulah is the seventh safest city in North Dakota. Beulah had the tenth safest rate of violence in the state, with only 6 violent crimes committed in 2022. Beulah also had the seventh safest rate of property crime in North Dakota, with less than one property crime committed each month. So you'll be totally safe for your picnic or game of frisbee golf at Riverside Park.

Beulah also got top marks on our snackability scale in jobs, affordability, and commute time, so it's an all-around sweet place to call home.

West Fargo, ND
Source: Wikipedia User | GFDL

Population: 39,987
Violent Crimes Per 100k: 182 (seventh safest)
Property Crimes Per 100k: 1,287 (11th safest)
Murders: 0
Murders Per 100k: 0
More on West Fargo: Data | Crime | Real Estate

Overall SnackAbility
9
/10

West Fargo's population has been growing at a rate of nearly 5% a year, and it's not hard to see why. We already named it the second bestplace to live in North Dakota, so its track record on safety is just icing on the cake. With all the amenities available at Rendezvous Park, who's got time to commit a crime?

But seriously, for the biggest city on this list, West Fargo posts some seriously impressive crime stats. With about half as much violence as the average American city, West Fargo has the seventh safest rate of violence in North Dakota. Property crime in West Fargo is also the 11th safest statewide.

Valley City, ND
Source: Public domain

Population: 6,547
Violent Crimes Per 100k: 152 (sixth safest)
Property Crimes Per 100k: 1,756 (13th safest)
Murders: 0
Murders Per 100k: 0
More on Valley City: Data | Crime | Real Estate

Overall SnackAbility
8
/10

Valley City, known as the "City of Bridges," is celebrated as the ninth safest place in North Dakota. The county seat of Barnes County boasts an impressively low count of 10 violent crimes, including 0 murders, ranking it sixth safest in violent crime safety. The city also enjoys a low number of 115 property crime cases, placing it at 13th safest for property crime safety.

The crime per capita rates of 152/100k people for violence and 1,756/100k people for property crimes reflect a strong law enforcement presence in the Valley.

Rugby, ND
Source: Wikipedia User I, the copyright holder of this work, hereby publish it under the following license: | CC BY-SA 3.0

Population: 2,505
Violent Crimes Per 100k: 199 (11th safest)
Property Crimes Per 100k: 838 (eighth safest)
Murders: 0
Murders Per 100k: 0
More on Rugby: Data | Crime | Real Estate

Overall SnackAbility
8.5
/10

Rugby may get a bad rap for being a rough sport, but Rugby, North Dakota is about as peaceful a place as you can find.

Rugby had only two violent crimes in 2022, giving it the 11th safest rate of violence in the state. Rugby was only slightly worse in terms of property crime, with the eighth safest rate in North Dakota. And if you want to look back at an even more idyllic past, be sure to visit the Prairie Village Museum, a quaint village of more than 20 buildings. Not a bad place for a data in the fifth best city for singles in North Dakota.

Methodology: How we calculated the safest cities in North Dakota for 2024

Safest Cities in North Dakota Graph

While there are surveys and public polls on what cities in North Dakota are the safest, we wanted to rely on something other than speculation and opinion. Instead, we looked at the hard numbers from the FBI's most recent crime report in North Dakota.

Specifically, we used Saturday Night Science to analyze the FBI's Uniform Crime Report, which summarizes the number of property and violent crimes in each city annually. We used two criteria:

  • Violent crimes per capita (murders, assaults, rapes, armed robberies)
  • Property crimes per capita (thefts, burglaries, motor vehicle thefts)

For example, there were 3 crimes committed in Hazen, with a reported population of 2,271. That means the number of crimes per capita is 0.0013, which translates into a 1 in 757 chance of being the victim of a crime.

We only looked at North Dakota cities that have populations of more than 2,000. This filter left us with 22 of the biggest cities in North Dakota to rank.

We ranked each city for each criterion from 1 to 22 where 1 in any particular category is the safest.

Next, we averaged each place's two criteria to create a Safety Index. We crowned the place with the lowest overall Safety Score, "The Safest Place In North Dakota," with any ties going to the bigger city.

The safest city in North Dakota, based on our criteria, is Hazen. The most dangerous city in North Dakota? Fargo, where residents had a 1 in 20 chance of being the victim of a crime.

This article has been update for 2024. This report marks our tenth time ranking the safest places to live in North Dakota. All the data comes from the FBI's Crime In The USA 2022 report.

Best Places To Live In North Dakota

Summary: The Safest Cities In The Peace Garden State

Looking at the data, you can tell that Hazen is as safe as they come in North Dakota, according to science and data.

But as most North Dakota residents would agree, almost every place here has its safe and not safe parts. So just make sure you're informed ahead of time.

The safest places in North Dakota are .

Here's a look at the most dangerous cities in North Dakota according to the data:

  1. Fargo
  2. Devils Lake
  3. Watford City
For more reading, check out:

Where Are The 10 Safest Cities In North Dakota For 2024?

Rank City Population Violent Crimes Per 100k Property Crimes Per 100k Murders Per 100k Murders
1 Hazen, ND 2,271 0 132 0 0
2 Stanley, ND 2,327 42 257 0 0
3 Carrington, ND 2,029 98 197 49 1
4 Lisbon, ND 2,177 0 597 0 0
5 Lincoln, ND 4,387 136 524 0 0
6 New Town, ND 2,713 184 184 0 0
7 Beulah, ND 3,032 197 791 0 0
8 West Fargo, ND 39,987 182 1,287 0 0
9 Valley City, ND 6,547 152 1,756 0 0
10 Rugby, ND 2,505 199 838 0 0
11 Grafton, ND 4,117 242 1,287 0 0
12 Minot, ND 47,278 298 1,046 6 3
13 Jamestown, ND 15,772 228 2,079 0 0
14 Wahpeton, ND 7,956 188 2,287 0 0
15 Dickinson, ND 24,577 248 1,733 0 0
16 Mandan, ND 24,666 235 3,478 4 1
17 Grand Forks, ND 58,620 293 2,987 3 2
18 Williston, ND 25,513 497 2,151 3 1
19 Bismarck, ND 74,604 309 3,363 8 6
20 Watford City, ND 5,513 507 2,231 0 0
21 Devils Lake, ND 7,212 485 4,062 0 0
22 Fargo, ND 127,649 616 4,147 3 5

Breaking Down Crime In The Safest And Most Dangerous Cities In North Dakota

Safest Cities in North Dakota Breakdown

Chris Kolmar has been in the real estate business for almost ten years now. He originally worked for Movoto Real Estate as the director of marketing before founding HomeSnacks.

He believes the key to finding the right place to live comes down to looking at the data, reading about things to do, and, most importantly, checking it out yourself before you move.

If you've been looking for a place to live in the past several years, you've probably stumbled upon his writing already.

You can find out more about him on LinkedIn.

Safest Cities By State

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