Safety index · San Francisco · data through November 2026
Is Chinatown, San Francisco safe?
Chinatown records more reported crime than most San Francisco neighborhoods. Its SafeRoute safety index is 26 out of 100 — 25 points below the citywide median of 51, ranking 34th of 41 SF neighborhoods — based on 2,417 incidents reported to the SFPD within 1 km of the neighborhood center over the 9 months to November 2026.
DATA THROUGH NOVEMBER 2026 · 9 MONTHS OF DATA
The 0–100 scale is calibrated to San Francisco — a typical San Francisco neighborhood sits near 51. It ranks Chinatown 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 29% of reports — rather than violence against strangers, though the full mix below is worth a look.
Incidents spread across the day here — roughly 25% of severity-weighted reports come in the evening (6 p.m.–midnight) and 21% overnight.
Where incidents cluster
What's reported here
| Other theft | 695 · 29% | |
| Violent crime | 324 · 13% | |
| Other | 294 · 12% | |
| Criminal damage & arson | 225 · 9% | |
| Shoplifting | 190 · 8% | |
| Burglary | 174 · 7% |
When it happens
Severity-weighted share of reported incidents by time of day, from police incident timestamps.
Is San Francisco safe at night? See which neighborhoods see the most reported crime after dark →
Walking in Chinatown 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
- Nob Hill11/100 · High risk
- North Beach43/100 · Elevated
- Financial District/
South Beach 22/100 · High risk - Russian Hill38/100 · Elevated
- Tenderloin7/100 · High risk
Common questions
Is Chinatown safe at night?
Elevated overall (safety index 26/100). About 46% of severity-weighted incidents in Chinatown 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 Chinatown?
Other theft — 695 of 2,417 incidents (29%) reported within 1 km of the neighborhood center over the 9 months to November 2026.
How is the Chinatown safety index calculated?
SafeRoute weights each incident reported to the SFPD 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 San Francisco, so scores compare neighborhoods to each other and cannot be read against another city's.