10 Safest Maryland Cities 2019 Ranked Using Crime, Survey Data

The home security website Safewise has released its rankings of the 10 safest cities in Maryland, topped by Manchester in Carroll County. Maryland has a violent crime rate that’s almost three times the national average, but much of that is attributed to the city of Baltimore. Maryland saw 12.25 violent crime incidents per 1,000 people in 2017, compared to 4.49 nationwide.

Baltimore is a big contributor to the state’s violent crime rate, reporting 309 homicides last year. With a homicide rate of 56 per 100,000 people, Baltimore surpassed largest cities like Chicago and Detroit. But among the cities on the SafeWise list, only one reported any counts of murder, and the top city (Manchester) didn’t have any violent crimes.

Sixty-five percent of Marylanders are most worried about property crime, the security website said, followed by violent crime and digital security, both at 61 percent.

Maryland also has a higher property crime rate (38.29) than the national average of 27.11. But 80 percent of the cities listed kept property crime to fewer than 20 incidents per 1,000 people. And only 7 percent of respondents to the study reported a personal experience with property crime in the past year.

According to the rankings, the top 10 safest cities in Maryland are:

1. Manchester
2. Taneytown
3. Berlin
4. Frostburg
5. Thurmont
6. Bowie
7. Ocean Pines
8. Centreville
9. Glenarden
10. Easton

On Monday, members of Maryland's Congressional delegation representing Baltimore announced the city will take part in the National Public Safety Partnership program. Federal officials will provide the city with support to address violent crime. Baltimore’s congressional delegation had urged the Department of Justice to select Baltimore and questioned the agency’s motives behind excluding the City in the past, according to a news release.

The Public Safety Partnership program lets the DOJ help state and local law enforcement officers and prosecutors in the investigation, prosecution, and deterrence of violent crime, especially crime related to gun violence, gangs, and drug trafficking. It enables cities to consult with and receive coordinated training and technical assistance and an array of resources from DOJ to enhance local violence reduction strategies.

“I commend the Department of Justice’s selection of Baltimore as a 2019 Public Safety Partnership site,” said Congressman Cummings. “The partnership will help Baltimore fight crime, and rebuild and strengthen police-community relations, said Congressman Elijah Cummings in the release.

“Crime in Baltimore has reached an unsustainable level and requires an all-hands-on-deck approach – we need every resource we can get at the federal, state and local levels. I applaud Baltimore City’s selection for this valuable federal program that will help reduce the violence and stop the bloodshed,” said Congressman Dutch Ruppersberger.

Learn how SafeWise identified the safest cities on its methodology page.