Do you live in one of the murder capitals of Washington?
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 Washington.
The result is the Murder Capitals of the Evergreen State for 2023:
What city has the highest murder rate in Washington? The city with the highest murder rate in Washington is Union Gap with 64.9 murders per 100,000 people.
What is the city in Washington with highest number of murders? The city in Washington with the highest number of murders is Seattle with 41 murders.
Read on below to see how we crunched the numbers and how your town in Washington ranked. There were ‘only’ 45 cities in Washington where a city reported a murder to the FBI, meaning 75 places had no murder.
For more reading on the Evergreen State check out:
- Best Places To Live In Washington
- Cheapest Places To Live In Washington
- Most Dangerous Cities In Washington
Article Table Of Contents
The 10 Murder Capitals Of Washington For 2023
/10
Population: 222,235
Rank Last Year: 1
Murders: 30 (2nd Most)
Murders Per 100k: 13.5 (4th Most)
More on Tacoma: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
Population: 94,594
Rank Last Year: 4
Murders: 12 (5th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 12.7 (5th Most)
More on Yakima: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
Population: 21,933
Rank Last Year: 17
Murders: 6 (10th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 27.4 (2nd Most)
More on Ellensburg: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
Population: 188,160
Rank Last Year: 23
Murders: 18 (3rd Most)
Murders Per 100k: 9.6 (12th Most)
More on Vancouver: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
Population: 6,163
Rank Last Year: 112
Murders: 4 (14th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 64.9 (Most)
More on Union Gap: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
Population: 97,017
Rank Last Year: 10
Murders: 11 (7th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 11.3 (9th Most)
More on Federal Way: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
Population: 131,899
Rank Last Year: 13
Murders: 12 (5th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 9.1 (14th Most)
More on Kent: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
Population: 61,325
Rank Last Year: 16
Murders: 6 (10th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 9.8 (11th Most)
More on Lakewood: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
Population: 104,276
Rank Last Year: 29
Murders: 9 (8th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 8.6 (16th Most)
More on Spokane Valley: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
Population: 223,344
Rank Last Year: 5
Murders: 14 (4th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 6.3 (22nd Most)
More on Spokane: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
Methodology: How we calculated the murder capitals of Washington
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 Washington for which FBI data was available for the most recent FBI Crime In The United States. That left us with 45 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 Washington and is updated for 2023.
Summary: The Places With The Most Murders In Washington For 2023
If you’re looking at the places in Washington 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 Washington reading, check out:
- Best Places To Raise A Family In Washington
- Fastest Growing Cities In Washington
- Safest Places In Washington
- Best Cities For Singles In Washington
- Worst Places To Live In Washington
Detailed List Of The Places With The Most Murder In Washington For 2023
| Rank | City | Murders |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tacoma, WA | 30 |
| 2 | Yakima, WA | 12 |
| 3 | Ellensburg, WA | 6 |
| 4 | Vancouver, WA | 18 |
| 5 | Union Gap, WA | 4 |
| 6 | Federal Way, WA | 11 |
| 7 | Kent, WA | 12 |
| 8 | Lakewood, WA | 6 |
| 9 | Spokane Valley, WA | 9 |
| 10 | Spokane, WA | 14 |
| 11 | Auburn, WA | 7 |
| 12 | SeaTac, WA | 3 |
| 13 | Seattle, WA | 41 |
| 14 | Burien, WA | 4 |
| 15 | Kennewick, WA | 5 |
| 16 | Longview, WA | 3 |
| 17 | Blaine, WA | 1 |
| 18 | Puyallup, WA | 3 |
| 19 | Chehalis, WA | 1 |
| 20 | Othello, WA | 1 |
| 21 | Toppenish, WA | 1 |
| 22 | Des Moines, WA | 2 |
| 23 | Fife, WA | 1 |
| 24 | Everett, WA | 4 |
| 25 | Shelton, WA | 1 |
| 26 | Pasco, WA | 3 |
| 27 | Bremerton, WA | 2 |
| 28 | Kelso, WA | 1 |
| 29 | Renton, WA | 3 |
| 30 | Bothell, WA | 2 |
| 31 | Washougal, WA | 1 |
| 32 | Aberdeen, WA | 1 |
| 33 | Centralia, WA | 1 |
| 34 | Bellingham, WA | 2 |
| 35 | Tukwila, WA | 1 |
| 36 | Kenmore, WA | 1 |
| 37 | Bellevue, WA | 2 |
| 38 | Moses Lake, WA | 1 |
| 39 | Walla Walla, WA | 1 |
| 40 | Wenatchee, WA | 1 |
| 41 | University Place, WA | 1 |
| 42 | Lake Stevens, WA | 1 |
| 43 | Olympia, WA | 1 |
| 44 | Richland, WA | 1 |
| 45 | Marysville, WA | 1 |
Ummm…where’s Auburn at? I know there was at least one murder there this past year.