Crime & Safety in Columbus, OH
Violent and property crime rates, clearance data, and trends — 2024 Data
Crime Overview
Source: FBI Crime Data Explorer (2024)Violent Crime Rate
4.35
per 1,000 residents
-3% vs national
Property Crime Rate
26.53
per 1,000 residents
+22% vs national
Total Crimes
28,272
2024
Violent Clearance
22%
cases solved
-48% vs national
Property Clearance
4%
cases solved
vs Similar Cities
-50%
vs 500K-1M avg
-50% vs 500K-1M
YoY Change
+12.9%
violent crime rate
worsening vs 2023
How Columbus Compares
Source: FBI (2024)Columbus vs Similar Cities
Source: FBI (2024)Compared to cities with 500,000 - 1,000,000 residents. Columbus is highlighted in green.
Violent Crime Rate (per 1,000)
Property Crime Rate (per 1,000)
Murder Rate (per 1,000)
Violent Crime Clearance Rate
Crime Rate Trends
Source: FBICrime Composition
Source: FBI (2024)Violent Crime Breakdown
Property Crime Breakdown
Crime Clearance (Solve) Rates
Source: FBI (2024)Columbus police solve 51% of murder cases but only 2% of larceny/theft cases. The national violent crime clearance rate is 42%.
Weapon Used in Violent Crime
Source: FBI (2024)Crime Breakdown
Source: FBI Crime Data Explorer (2024)| Crime Type | Category | Count | Rate per 1K | Clearance % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Murder | Violent | 112 | 0.12 | 50.9% |
| Rape | Violent | 1,137 | 1.24 | 5.8% |
| Robbery | Violent | 803 | 0.88 | 20.5% |
| Aggravated Assault | Violent | 1,929 | 2.11 | 30.2% |
| Burglary | Property | 3,703 | 4.05 | 8.4% |
| Larceny/Theft | Property | 15,618 | 17.06 | 2.1% |
| Motor Vehicle Theft | Property | 4,969 | 5.43 | 4.7% |
Columbus, OH reported 3,982 violent crimes and 24,290 property crimes in 2024. The violent crime rate of 4.35 per 1,000 residents is 2.9% below the national average of 4.48 per 1,000. Law enforcement cleared 22% of violent crimes. Larceny/theft accounts for 15,618 of the property crime reports. Firearms were involved in 61.6% of aggravated assaults. Compared to similarly sized cities (500,000 - 1,000,000 population), Columbus's violent crime rate is 50% lower. Violent crime has been trending upward.
Crime History
Source: FBI| Year | Violent | Property | Violent Rate | Property Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 3,982 | 24,290 | 4.35 | 26.53 |
| 2023 | 3,501 | 24,575 | 3.85 | 27.04 |
| 2022 | 4,171 | 31,876 | 4.60 | 35.14 |
| 2021 | 5,580 | 29,879 | 6.09 | 32.62 |
| 2020 | 5,241 | 28,867 | 5.75 | 31.67 |
| 2019 | 4,561 | 29,974 | 5.03 | 33.08 |
| 2018 | 4,583 | 32,131 | 5.13 | 36.00 |
| 2017 | 4,595 | 34,844 | 5.27 | 39.95 |
| 2016 | 4,695 | 35,273 | 5.44 | 40.90 |
| 2015 | 4,758 | 33,627 | 5.61 | 39.67 |
School Shootings
Source: The Washington PostTotal Incidents
4
Total Killed
0
Total Injured
2
| Date | School | Killed | Injured | Type | Weapon |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 6, 2023 | Beechcroft High School | 0 | 0 | unclear | nan |
| Mar 9, 2021 | Bishop Hartley High School | 0 | 0 | unclear | nan |
| Sep 8, 2017 | Columbus Scioto 6-12 | 0 | 0 | indiscriminate | .38-caliber handgun |
| Oct 13, 2016 | Linden-McKinley STEM Academy | 0 | 2 | targeted | nan |
Data from The Washington Post, licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0.