Safety index · Northwest, Seattle · data through August 2026
Is Bitter Lake safe?
Bitter Lake shows a typical level of reported crime for Seattle. Its SafeRoute safety index is 49 out of 100 — 5 points below the citywide median of 54, ranking 50th of 94 Seattle neighborhoods — based on 471 incidents reported to the SPD within 1 km of the neighborhood center over the 8 months to August 2026.
DATA THROUGH AUGUST 2026 · 8 MONTHS OF DATA
The 0–100 scale is calibrated to Seattle — a typical Seattle neighborhood sits near 54. It ranks Bitter Lake against other neighborhoods here, and cannot be read against a score in another city.
The largest reported category here is violent crime (8% of reports) — worth taking seriously when walking at night; the full mix is broken down below.
Incidents spread across the day here — roughly 30% of severity-weighted reports come in the evening (6 p.m.–midnight) and 26% overnight.
Where incidents cluster
What's reported here
| Violent crime | 39 · 8% | |
| Other theft | 96 · 20% | |
| Vehicle crime | 87 · 18% | |
| Burglary | 38 · 8% | |
| Criminal damage & arson | 31 · 7% | |
| Shoplifting | 106 · 23% |
When it happens
Severity-weighted share of reported incidents by time of day, from police incident timestamps.
Walking in Bitter Lake at night?
SafeRoute scores every walking route against the same live crime data on this page — and shows how much of each route runs on lit streets. Pick the safer way, share your walk, and check in when you arrive. Free, no account.
Get SafeRoute on the App StoreNearby areas
- Haller Lake60/100 · Moderate
- Broadview81/100 · Low risk
- Pinehurst70/100 · Moderate
- Licton Springs38/100 · Elevated
- Greenwood36/100 · Elevated
Common questions
Is Bitter Lake safe at night?
Elevated overall (safety index 49/100). About 56% of severity-weighted incidents in Bitter Lake 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 Bitter Lake?
Violent crime — 39 of 471 incidents (8%) reported within 1 km of the neighborhood center over the 8 months to August 2026.
How is the Bitter Lake safety index calculated?
SafeRoute weights each incident reported to the Seattle 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 Seattle, so scores compare neighborhoods to each other and cannot be read against another city's.