Safety index · Boston · data through October 2026
Is Dorchester safe?
Dorchester records more reported crime than most Boston neighborhoods. Its SafeRoute safety index is 36 out of 100 — 18 points below the citywide median of 54, ranking 20th of 25 Boston neighborhoods — based on 1,891 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 Dorchester against other neighborhoods here, and cannot be read against a score in another city.
Most of what's reported here is property-related — other theft alone is 20% of reports — rather than violence against strangers, though the full mix below is worth a look.
Incidents spread across the day here — roughly 26% of severity-weighted reports come in the evening (6 p.m.–midnight) and 17% overnight.
Where incidents cluster
What's reported here
| Other theft | 383 · 20% | |
| Shoplifting | 267 · 14% | |
| Vehicle crime | 232 · 12% | |
| Public order | 229 · 12% | |
| Violent crime | 213 · 11% | |
| Drugs | 182 · 10% |
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 Dorchester 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
- Roxbury47/100 · Elevated
- Mattapan47/100 · Elevated
- Jamaica Plain54/100 · Moderate
- South Boston67/100 · Moderate
- South End31/100 · Elevated
Common questions
Is Dorchester safe at night?
Elevated overall (safety index 36/100). About 42% of severity-weighted incidents in Dorchester 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 Dorchester?
Other theft — 383 of 1,891 incidents (20%) reported within 1 km of the neighborhood center over the 9 months to October 2026.
How is the Dorchester 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.