Do you live in one of the murder capitals of New York?
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.
To find the cities in New York with the most murders and the highest murder rates per capita, we used Saturday Night Science to compare the FBI crime data on murders for the 43 cities in the Empire State with over 7,000 residents.
Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table
What city has the highest murder rate in New York? The city with the highest murder rate in New York is Jamestown with 18.0 murders per 100,000 people.
What is the city in New York with highest number of murders? The city in New York with the highest number of murders is New York with 325 murders.
Read on below to see how we crunched the numbers and how your town in New York ranked. There were ‘only’ 43 cities in New York where a city reported a murder to the FBI, meaning 152 places had no murder.
For more reading on the Empire State check out:
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The 10 Murder Capitals Of New York For 2026
/10
Population: 27,735
Murders: 5 (8th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 18.0 (Most)
More on Jamestown: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
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Population: 145,175
Murders: 22 (4th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 15.2 (2nd Most)
More on Syracuse: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
3. Herkimer Village
Population: 7,218
Murders: 1 (3Most)
Murders Per 100k: 13.9 (3rd Most)
More on Herkimer Village: Movers
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Population: 14,825
Murders: 2 (17th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 13.5 (4th Most)
More on Tonawanda: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
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Population: 206,093
Murders: 27 (3rd Most)
Murders Per 100k: 13.1 (5th Most)
More on Rochester: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
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Population: 273,728
Murders: 34 (2nd Most)
Murders Per 100k: 12.4 (6th Most)
More on Buffalo: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
7. Newark Village
Population: 8,931
Murders: 1 (3Most)
Murders Per 100k: 11.2 (7th Most)
More on Newark Village: Movers
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Population: 28,061
Murders: 3 (12th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 10.7 (8th Most)
More on Newburgh: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
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Population: 68,610
Murders: 7 (6th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 10.2 (9th Most)
More on Schenectady: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
10. Irondequoit Town
Population: 49,336
Murders: 5 (8th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 10.1 (10th Most)
More on Irondequoit Town: Movers
Methodology: How we calculated the murder capitals of New York
While there are surveys and public polls on what cities in a state are the most dangerous, we wanted to rely on something other than speculation and opinion. Instead, we used Saturday Night Science to compare 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 in each city annually.
We only looked at every single city in New York for which FBI data was available for the most recent FBI Crime In The United States. That left us with 43 cities to rank.
We took the number of murders per capita as the ranking factor. The place with the most murders per capita based on the most recent data is Jamestown. It is our eleventh time ranking the places with the most murders per capita in New York. We updated the list for 2026.
Summary: The Places With The Most Murders In New York For 2026
If you’re looking at the places in New York 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.
The cities with the highest murder per capita in New York are Jamestown, Syracuse, Herkimer Village, Tonawanda, Rochester, Buffalo, Newark Village, Newburgh, Schenectady, and Irondequoit Town.
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Murder Rates By City In New York
| Rank | City | Population | Murders | Murders/100K |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jamestown, NY | 27735 | 5 | 18.03 |
| 2 | Syracuse, NY | 145175 | 22 | 15.15 |
| 3 | Herkimer Village, NY | 7218 | 1 | 13.85 |
| 4 | Tonawanda, NY | 14825 | 2 | 13.49 |
| 5 | Rochester, NY | 206093 | 27 | 13.1 |
| 6 | Buffalo, NY | 273728 | 34 | 12.42 |
| 7 | Newark Village, NY | 8931 | 1 | 11.2 |
| 8 | Newburgh, NY | 28061 | 3 | 10.69 |
| 9 | Schenectady, NY | 68610 | 7 | 10.2 |
| 10 | Irondequoit Town, NY | 49336 | 5 | 10.13 |
| 11 | Massena Village, NY | 10028 | 1 | 9.97 |
| 12 | Watervliet, NY | 10108 | 1 | 9.89 |
| 13 | Albany, NY | 102095 | 9 | 8.82 |
| 14 | Utica, NY | 63098 | 5 | 7.92 |
| 15 | Stony Point Town, NY | 14706 | 1 | 6.8 |
| 16 | Middletown, NY | 30110 | 2 | 6.64 |
| 17 | Beacon, NY | 15267 | 1 | 6.55 |
| 18 | Binghamton, NY | 46378 | 3 | 6.47 |
| 19 | Niagara Falls, NY | 47296 | 3 | 6.34 |
| 20 | Poughkeepsie, NY | 31843 | 2 | 6.28 |
| 21 | Oswego City, NY | 17058 | 1 | 5.86 |
| 22 | Hempstead Village, NY | 58013 | 3 | 5.17 |
| 23 | Lackawanna, NY | 19484 | 1 | 5.13 |
| 24 | Glenville Town, NY | 22040 | 1 | 4.54 |
| 25 | Kingston, NY | 23704 | 1 | 4.22 |
| 26 | Peekskill, NY | 25484 | 1 | 3.92 |
| 27 | New York, NY | 8299271 | 325 | 3.92 |
| 28 | Elmira, NY | 26130 | 1 | 3.83 |
| 29 | Saratoga Springs, NY | 28546 | 1 | 3.5 |
| 30 | Spring Valley Village, NY | 32973 | 1 | 3.03 |
| 31 | Ithaca, NY | 33646 | 1 | 2.97 |
| 32 | Long Beach, NY | 34527 | 1 | 2.9 |
| 33 | Bethlehem Town, NY | 34933 | 1 | 2.86 |
| 34 | Mount Vernon, NY | 70390 | 2 | 2.84 |
| 35 | Riverhead Town, NY | 35693 | 1 | 2.8 |
| 36 | Cheektowaga Town, NY | 78864 | 2 | 2.54 |
| 37 | Freeport Village, NY | 43583 | 1 | 2.29 |
| 38 | West Seneca Town, NY | 44982 | 1 | 2.22 |
| 39 | Hamburg Town, NY | 47687 | 1 | 2.1 |
| 40 | Troy, NY | 50372 | 1 | 1.99 |
| 41 | Yonkers, NY | 206557 | 4 | 1.94 |
| 42 | White Plains, NY | 61923 | 1 | 1.61 |
| 43 | Ramapo Town, NY | 110136 | 1 | 0.91 |