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

BASKING RIDGE, NJ — For the second 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 2025.

For 2025, Bernards Township, which boasts a population of 28,151 earned top marks with a 0.0 violent crime rate and a 2.3 property crime rate per 1,000 people.

The violent crime remains the same with 0.0 in 2024 and the property crime is down from 2.4 in 2024.

Vernon Township in Sussex County was the top-ranked city on the list.

Here is how other towns ranked in New Jersey under the top 20:

1. Vernon Township
2. Bernards Township
3. Sparta Township
4. Jefferson Township
5. Hopatcong
6. Denville Township
7. Mount Olive Township
8. West Milford Township
9. New Milford
10. Madison
11. Jackson Township
12. Dumont
13. Harrison Township
14. Barnegat Township
15. Montville Township
16. Manchester Township
17. Florham Park
18. South River
19. Ridgewood
20. Hillsborough Township

SafeWise, a security product review platform, looked at FBI crime statistics for cities in the state to compile its annual Safest Cities report. A total of 128 cities met the criteria to be considered for ranking, including municipalities like Bernards Township and Denville Township that reported zero violent crimes.

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