Basking Ridge Named 2nd Safest City In New Jersey For 3rd Straight Year: Report

BASKING RIDGE, NJ — For the third year in a row, Bernards Township has been ranked as the second safest city in New Jersey, according to a new study done by Safewise for 2026.

For 2026, Bernards Township, which boasts a population of 28,921 earned top marks with a 0.1 violent crime rate and a 1.8 property crime rate per 1,000 people.

The violent crime increased slightly from 0.0 in 2025 and 2024 to 0.1 in 2026. And the property crime is down from 2.4 in 2024 and 2.3 in 2025 to 1.8 in 2026.

Vernon Township in Sussex County was the top-ranked city on the list for the third year in a row.

Safewise uses the most recent FBI-reported violent and property crime data, and adjusts for population "so we can compare cities of different sizes fairly. This approach helps us identify patterns and differences in reported crime rates," according to Safewise.

Here are the top 10 safest communities in New Jersey:

1. Vernon Township
2. Bernards Township
3. South River
4. Barnegat Township
5. Dumont
6. New Providence
7. Hopatcong
8. Oakland
9. Madison
10. Denville Township

Check out the full analysis by clicking here.

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