Safety index · Boston · data through October 2026
Is Back Bay safe?
Back Bay records more reported crime than most Boston neighborhoods. Its SafeRoute safety index is 42 out of 100 — 12 points below the citywide median of 54, ranking 18th of 25 Boston neighborhoods — based on 1,899 incidents reported to the Boston Police within 1 km of the neighborhood center over the 9 months to October 2026.
DATA THROUGH OCTOBER 2026 · 9 MONTHS OF DATA
The 0–100 scale is calibrated to Boston — a typical Boston neighborhood sits near 54. It ranks Back Bay against other neighborhoods here, and cannot be read against a score in another city.
Most of what's reported here is property-related — shoplifting alone is 55% of reports — rather than violence against strangers, though the full mix below is worth a look.
Reported incidents here skew to daytime and evening hours — only about 11% of severity-weighted reports fall overnight (midnight–6 a.m.).
Where incidents cluster
What's reported here
| Shoplifting | 1,046 · 55% | |
| Violent crime | 233 · 12% | |
| Other theft | 214 · 11% | |
| Public order | 122 · 6% | |
| Vehicle crime | 65 · 3% | |
| Criminal damage & arson | 63 · 3% |
When it happens
Severity-weighted share of reported incidents by time of day, from police incident timestamps.
Is Boston safe at night? See which neighborhoods see the most reported crime after dark →
Walking in Back Bay at night?
SafeRoute scores every walking route against the same official crime data on this page — and shows how much of each route runs on lit streets. Compare the routes and share your walk. Free, no account.
Get SafeRoute on the App StoreNearby areas
- Bay Village33/100 · Elevated
- South End31/100 · Elevated
- Beacon Hill31/100 · Elevated
- Fenway61/100 · Moderate
- Chinatown36/100 · Elevated
Common questions
Is Back Bay safe at night?
Elevated overall (safety index 42/100). About 39% of severity-weighted incidents in Back Bay are reported between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. At night, prefer lit, busier streets — a block or two of detour often avoids the clusters on the map above.
What is the most common crime in Back Bay?
Shoplifting — 1,046 of 1,899 incidents (55%) reported within 1 km of the neighborhood center over the 9 months to October 2026.
How is the Back Bay safety index calculated?
SafeRoute weights each incident reported to the Boston Police Department by severity (violence weighs more than shoplifting), sums the last available period within 1 km of the neighborhood center, and normalizes against citywide crime rates onto a 0–100 scale — higher is safer. It describes reported crime only; it is not a guarantee of safety. The scale is calibrated within Boston, so scores compare neighborhoods to each other and cannot be read against another city's.