Do you live in one of the murder capitals of Massachusetts?
We all watch the news with horror when we hear about a homicide that happens not that far away from us. While a murder just blocks or even a couple of towns away from your house would make anyone uneasy, in the long run, most likely, where you live is relatively safe.
So we wanted to get the facts straight and dug into the FBI crime data in order to identify the places with the most murders and the highest murder rates per capita in Massachusetts.
The result is the Murder Capitals of the Bay State for 2023:
- Springfield
- Brockton
- Boston,
- Lawrence
- Boston
- Winthrop
- Lowell
- Chicopee
- New Bedford
- Malden
What city has the highest murder rate in Massachusetts? The city with the highest murder rate in Massachusetts is Shirley with 13.1 murders per 100,000 people.
What is the city in Massachusetts with highest number of murders? The city in Massachusetts with the highest number of murders is Boston, with 44 murders.
Read on below to see how we crunched the numbers and how your town in Massachusetts ranked. There were ‘only’ 43 cities in Massachusetts where a city reported a murder to the FBI, meaning 206 places had no murder.
For more reading on the Bay State check out:
- Best Places To Live In Massachusetts
- Cheapest Places To Live In Massachusetts
- Most Dangerous Cities In Massachusetts
Article Table Of Contents
The 10 Murder Capitals Of Massachusetts For 2023
/10
Population: 154,098
Rank Last Year: 2
Murders: 18 (3rd Most)
Murders Per 100k: 11.7 (3rd Most)
More on Springfield: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
Population: 100,516
Rank Last Year: 12
Murders: 8 (4th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 8.0 (6th Most)
More on Brockton: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
3. Boston,
Population: 698,941
Rank Last Year: –
Murders: 44 (Most)
Murders Per 100k: 6.3 (10th Most)
More on Boston,:
/10
Population: 81,021
Rank Last Year: 7
Murders: 6 (6th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 7.4 (7th Most)
More on Lawrence: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
Population: 704,758
Rank Last Year: 3
Murders: 36 (2nd Most)
Murders Per 100k: 5.1 (15th Most)
More on Boston: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
6. Winthrop
Population: 18,692
Rank Last Year: 110
Murders: 2 (14th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 10.7 (4th Most)
More on Winthrop:
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Population: 112,230
Rank Last Year: 8
Murders: 6 (6th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 5.3 (14th Most)
More on Lowell: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
Population: 55,332
Rank Last Year: 35
Murders: 3 (10th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 5.4 (13th Most)
More on Chicopee: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
Population: 96,346
Rank Last Year: 11
Murders: 4 (8th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 4.2 (19th Most)
More on New Bedford: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
Population: 60,433
Rank Last Year: 17
Murders: 3 (10th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 5.0 (17th Most)
More on Malden: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
Methodology: How we calculated the murder capitals of Massachusetts
While there are surveys and public polls on what cities in a state are the most dangerous, we didn’t want to rely on speculation and opinion. Instead, we looked at the hard numbers from the FBI’s last year of reporting. Specifically, we analyzed the FBI’s Uniform Crime Report which summarizes the number of murders that may happen in each city per year.
We only looked every single city in Massachusetts for which FBI data was available for the most recent FBI Crime In The United States. That left us with 43 cities to rank.
Finally, we averaged the two scores into an index:
- The raw number of murders in each city
- The murders per person
We felt as if a small place with 2,500 people and two murders makes it a lot more dangerous than a city of 25,000 people with three murders. Any ties went to the larger city.
This article is an opinion based on facts. It is our tenth time ranking the most places with the most murders per capita in Massachusetts and is updated for 2023.
Summary: The Places With The Most Murders In Massachusetts For 2023
If you’re looking at the places in Massachusetts with the most murders, and where residents have the highest chances of being killed themselves, this is an accurate list. Again, these statistics are an indication of where crimes occur, not a statement about the effectiveness of the law enforcement in the areas they serve.
For more Massachusetts reading, check out:
- Best Places To Raise A Family In Massachusetts
- Fastest Growing Cities In Massachusetts
- Safest Places In Massachusetts
- Best Cities For Singles In Massachusetts
- Worst Places To Live In Massachusetts
Detailed List Of The Places With The Most Murder In Massachusetts For 2023
| Rank | City | Murders |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Springfield, MA | 18 |
| 2 | Brockton, MA | 8 |
| 3 | Boston,, MA | 44 |
| 4 | Lawrence, MA | 6 |
| 5 | Boston, MA | 36 |
| 6 | Winthrop, MA | 2 |
| 7 | Lowell, MA | 6 |
| 8 | Chicopee, MA | 3 |
| 9 | New Bedford, MA | 4 |
| 10 | Malden, MA | 3 |
| 11 | Chelsea, MA | 2 |
| 12 | Shirley, MA | 1 |
| 13 | Adams, MA | 1 |
| 14 | Holyoke, MA | 2 |
| 15 | Somerville, MA | 3 |
| 16 | Palmer, MA | 1 |
| 17 | Worcester, MA | 6 |
| 18 | Charlton, MA | 1 |
| 19 | East Bridgewater, MA | 1 |
| 20 | Seekonk, MA | 1 |
| 21 | Fall River, MA | 3 |
| 22 | Bellingham, MA | 1 |
| 23 | Taunton, MA | 2 |
| 24 | Belmont, MA | 1 |
| 25 | Middleboro, MA | 1 |
| 26 | Marshfield, MA | 1 |
| 27 | Wakefield, MA | 1 |
| 28 | Milton, MA | 1 |
| 29 | Northampton, MA | 1 |
| 30 | Saugus, MA | 1 |
| 31 | North Attleboro, MA | 1 |
| 32 | Norwood, MA | 1 |
| 33 | Falmouth, MA | 1 |
| 34 | Franklin, MA | 1 |
| 35 | Shrewsbury, MA | 1 |
| 36 | Pittsfield, MA | 1 |
| 37 | Barnstable, MA | 1 |
| 38 | Everett, MA | 1 |
| 39 | Weymouth, MA | 1 |
| 40 | Haverhill, MA | 1 |
| 41 | Framingham, MA | 1 |
| 42 | Lynn, MA | 1 |
| 43 | Cambridge, MA | 1 |
I know I’m a few months late here but seriously, Groton, MA? This is obviously a statistical anomaly for that year. Your biggest threat out there are cows and stoned GD kids whipping around the country roads in their $50k King ranch.