Is Rockville, MD, a Safe Place to Live? A Look at Crime Rates and Stats

Overview of Rockville

Ask anybody who’s spent a few seasons here and they’ll tell you the same thing: Rockville blends small-suburb calm with big-city access.

The city in Maryland sits about fifteen miles from the National Mall, so you can hop a Red Line train downtown yet still come home to leafy streets and a slower pace.

Folks eyeing homes for sale in Rockville usually notice right away that the Rockville area feels more neighbor-next-door than tourist magnet, which is part of the draw for anyone weighing whether Rockville is a great place to live.

Geographical Location

Rockville hugs the Interstate-270 corridor inside Montgomery County’s tech-heavy metro, putting residents close to the city life of D.C. without the gridlock of I-95.

The suburb is ringed by parks, creeks, and a downtown core that’s walkable once you park the car, helpful when traffic on the Beltway acts up.

Cost of Living in Rockville

Here’s the straight-up math: the cost of living in Rockville runs about 36 percent above the national average, with housing the priciest line item. 

BestPlaces pegs monthly costs for a typical household at roughly $9,030, far higher than many peer suburbs nationwide. Rent for a two-bedroom hovers near $2,300, while groceries and utilities lean only slightly pricier than the U.S. norm.

Local wages are sturdy, think biotech, federal contracting, and startup gigs, but newcomers should pencil out budgets first.

Rockville Crime Reports and Data

Trend-wise, Areavibes reports that the amount of violent crime fell 36 percent over the past five years, while property offenses jumped 42 percent, a rebound that tracks with many post-pandemic suburbs.

The takeaway: the overall picture remains steady, but porch pirates and car break-ins demand everyday caution.

Property Crime

NeighborhoodScout’s latest crime statistics show a property crime rate of about 13 incidents per 1,000 residents, giving each resident a one-in-78 chance of being hit by burglary, larceny, or car theft in a typical year.

Another analysis from CrimeGrade places the property crime figure closer to 19.3 per 1,000, with risk clustering in central neighborhoods and easing in the southwest.

That spread illustrates how property crime rates swing block to block.

Violent Crime

Violent offenses stay comparatively rare.

The current violent crime rate sits near 1 per 1,000 people, roughly one-third of the Maryland average, and your odds of facing robbery, assault, or worse hover around one in 716.

Those numbers put Rockville’s overall crime rate for serious violence in the “about average” tier nationally, but lower than many other D.C. suburbs.

Other Crime

Fraud, drug offenses, and traffic incidents fill out the daily police blotter.

The Montgomery County Police Department’s weekly crime data map lets you zoom down to individual blocks for recent calls, giving would-be buyers a real-time feel for patterns.

Comparing Crime Rates

Statewide, Maryland crime rates average 4.26 violent and 20.7 property incidents per 1,000 residents.

Rockville’s violent tally is noticeably lower, and its property level sits either just under or just over the state figure, depending on the source, still a respectable showing in a state where urban pockets skew the averages.

Crime Rate Comparison with Nearby Cities

Gaithersburg posts 2.29 violent and 14.7 property crimes per 1,000, edging Rockville on violence but slipping on thefts.

Silver Spring records a heftier 3 violent and 27 property crimes per 1,000, more than double Rockville’s property pace.

When you stack those numbers across the suburban belt, Rockville lands among the safest mid-size communities, part of why SafeWise ranked the city sixth on its 2025 list of safest suburbs in Maryland.

Safety Measures and Resources

Crunching the latest analysis, a resident’s risk of any violent or property crime sits around one in 74, which is lower than many East Coast metros but not zero. Locking cars and keeping porch cameras rolling still matter.

Role of the Rockville Police Department

The Rockville Police Department partners with Montgomery County officers to staff neighborhood patrols, run a Safe Speed program to calm corridors, and publish a quarterly safety report that breaks down each update by map segment.

Officers host Coffee with a Cop sessions where neighbors quiz leadership on everything from catalytic-converter thefts to late-night traffic enforcement.

Community Safety Initiatives

Neighborhood watches blanket King Farm, Twinbrook, and the Woodley Gardens sector.

The city funds free home-security surveys, and civic groups sponsor porch-light campaigns every fall. Those efforts, locals say, help keep Rockville safer than raw numbers alone might suggest.

Living in Rockville: Is it a Safe Place to Live?

Put simply, living in Rockville means juggling big-city conveniences with a moderate crime footprint.

You’ll spot the occasional squad car on Rockville Pike, yet weekend strolls through Town Square still feel easy.

Add in top-scoring schools in Rockville, a robust parks budget, and a buzzing restaurant scene that feeds into the long list of things to do in Rockville, and many buyers decide the equation leans positive.

Conclusion and Recommendations

Current crime data points to low violent figures, mid-range theft numbers, and clear neighborhood pockets that need extra porch lights.

The overall crime picture rests below the national average for violence and either on par or a tick high for property, depending on which database you quote.

Future Outlook for Crime in Rockville

Montgomery County’s 2024 annual safety plan pledges more bike patrols and upgraded license-plate readers, measures that should push the trend line downward over the next few years.

With continued community engagement, many analysts expect Rockville to remain one of the best bets for buyers seeking a balanced quality of life close to D.C.

Rockville Safety FAQs

Is Rockville considered one of the safest suburbs in Maryland?

Yes. SafeWise’s 2025 survey named Rockville the sixth safest city in Maryland, crediting low violent numbers and proactive policing.

Despite some property thefts, the suburb consistently scores well in state ranking tables and is often counted among the safest mid-sized locales.

How does Rockville’s violent crime rate compare with statewide figures?

The latest FBI-fed databases peg Rockville’s violent crime rate near 1 per 1,000 residents, roughly a quarter of the Maryland average of 4.26.

That gap means you’re statistically less likely to face assault or robbery here than in many other parts of the state.

What are common property crime issues in the Rockville area?

Porch package theft, unlocked-car rummages, and bike snatches top the list.

The overall crime rate for property incidents sits between 13 and 19 per 1,000, depending on the database, so residents often install doorbell cameras and register serial numbers with police to deter repeat grabs. 

Has crime in Rockville been trending up or down recently?

Five-year crime statistics show a sizeable drop in violent offenses, about thirty-plus percent, and a post-pandemic uptick in property crime of forty-plus percent. Officials attribute the mixed pattern to regional economic shifts and more aggressive reporting of thefts. 

Where can newcomers find real-time crime information before buying a home?

Start with the Montgomery County Police crime map for block-level incidents, then check NeighborhoodScout or CrimeGrade for neighborhood-by-neighborhood heat grids. Pair that data with on-the-ground chats at civic-association meetings to round out the picture before touring homes in Rockville.