Wales has some of the lowest recorded crime rates in the UK, particularly in the rural and coastal authorities. Powys, Ceredigion, and the Isle of Anglesey lead the list with rates below 600 per 10,000 people. The South Wales urban authorities and former industrial valleys tend to sit higher. Welsh crime data uses the Home Office classification (the same as England), so cross-border comparisons are precise.
We've ranked 20 Welsh local authorities by recorded crime rate per 10,000 residents. The safest area is Isle of Anglesey at 559 per 10,000.
The ranking: 20 Welsh areas by crime rate
Sorted lowest crime first. Recorded crime rate is the number of crimes per 10,000 people from official police-recorded data.
| # | Area | Crime / 10k | Monthly cost | Avg salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Isle of Anglesey | 559 | £1,179/mo | £29,944 |
| 2 | Powys | 560 | £1,099/mo | £30,275 |
| 3 | Ceredigion | 566 | £1,193/mo | £29,326 |
| 4 | Vale of Glamorgan | 628 | £1,357/mo | £31,410 |
| 5 | Flintshire | 638 | £1,210/mo | £32,675 |
| 6 | Monmouthshire | 642 | £1,366/mo | £35,020 |
| 7 | Carmarthenshire | 662 | £1,123/mo | £30,774 |
| 8 | Neath Port Talbot | 692 | £1,133/mo | £30,709 |
| 9 | Gwynedd | 696 | £1,173/mo | £25,179 |
| 10 | Bridgend | 707 | £1,187/mo | £31,475 |
| 11 | Pembrokeshire | 724 | £1,134/mo | £27,243 |
| 12 | Swansea | 764 | £1,303/mo | £32,091 |
| 13 | Conwy | 836 | £1,218/mo | £28,113 |
| 14 | Caerphilly | 849 | £1,163/mo | £30,854 |
| 15 | Wrexham | 849 | £1,224/mo | £29,752 |
| 16 | Denbighshire | 958 | £1,173/mo | £26,812 |
| 17 | Cardiff | 968 | £1,509/mo | £32,756 |
| 18 | Torfaen | 1,018 | £1,236/mo | £33,201 |
| 19 | Newport | 1,093 | £1,315/mo | £31,495 |
| 20 | Blaenau Gwent | 1,146 | £1,141/mo | £30,734 |
20 areas with published crime data covered. Areas without reliable crime data are excluded.
Top 10 safest Welsh areas, in detail
Island authority off the north-west Welsh coast. Rural, low-crime, popular with retirees.
See the full crime breakdown on the Isle of Anglesey area profile.
The largest Welsh authority by area, covering most of mid-Wales. Rural, sparsely populated, and the cheapest place to live in Wales.
See the full crime breakdown on the Powys area profile.
Mid-Wales coast, home to Aberystwyth University and Cardigan.
See the full crime breakdown on the Ceredigion area profile.
Cardiff's western commuter belt with the Glamorgan coast.
See the full crime breakdown on the Vale of Glamorgan area profile.
North-east Wales bordering Cheshire, with commuter links to Liverpool and Manchester.
See the full crime breakdown on the Flintshire area profile.
A Welsh authority with a low recorded crime rate. Typically a smaller-population area or a suburban/rural district.
See the full crime breakdown on the Monmouthshire area profile.
West Wales rural authority anchored by Carmarthen and Llanelli.
See the full crime breakdown on the Carmarthenshire area profile.
Post-industrial South Wales; the Port Talbot steelworks remains the dominant employer.
See the full crime breakdown on the Neath Port Talbot area profile.
A Welsh authority with a low recorded crime rate. Typically a smaller-population area or a suburban/rural district.
See the full crime breakdown on the Gwynedd area profile.
A Welsh authority with a low recorded crime rate. Typically a smaller-population area or a suburban/rural district.
See the full crime breakdown on the Bridgend area profile.
Regional context
Welsh local authorities use the same Home Office crime classification as England, so comparisons across the England-Wales border are precise. Wales has fewer authorities than England (22 vs over 300), which makes the rankings less granular but the data fully comparable.
A note on the data
Crime rates are based on recorded crimes per 10,000 residents from the Home Office (England and Wales, year ending December 2025) or the Scottish Government (Scotland, 2024-25). Recording practices vary between police forces and recorded crime doesn't capture unreported crime. These figures are a directional indicator of police activity and reported incidents rather than a complete picture of crime in an area. Explore our UK crime map for a visual view.