Edison Among Nation's Safest Small Cities: Report

EDISON, NJ — The Township of Edison was ranked 219 among the "Safest Small Cities & Towns in America," according to a recent study conducted by MoneyGeek, a personal finance technology company.

A total of 952 towns and small cities, with a population between 30,000 and 100,000 residents, were reviewed for the study.

For the ranking, Moneygeek used standardized crime statistics reported to the FBI. To determine crime rates per 100,000, the company added the FBI's population data.

Here are the findings in Edison:

• The cost of crime in Edison is $288 per capita
• Violent Crime Rate: 103.4 per 100,000
• Property Crime Rate: 1,138.7 per 100,000
• Cost of crimes: $28,703
• Population: 99,584

Six New Jersey small towns and cities made it to the top 25 list. They are Monroe Township (6), Middletown Township (13), Princeton (16), Marlboro Township (19), Fair Lawn (20), and Old Bridge Township (21).

Overall, the cost of crime for small cities increased by 12 percent from 2019 to 2020, which is the latest data available, according to MoneyGeek. The average U.S. city saw a 15 percent increase in the cost of crime during the same period.

Small cities and towns were found to be twice as safe as big cities. The median cost of crime in cities and towns with populations between 30,000 and 100,000 was $640, compared to cities with populations over 100,000, where the median cost of crime was $1,320, found Moneygeek.

However, the report shows that a small city or town can be just as dangerous as a large city. The cost of crime per capita in Petersburg, Virginia, is $9,022, nearly as high as St. Louis, Missouri, where the per capita cost of crime is $11,574.

But here's something to consider — the FBI has a longstanding policy against using its crime data to rank locales.

"Data users should not rank locales because there are many factors that cause the nature and type of crime to vary from place to place," the FBI says. "UCR (uniform crime reporting) statistics include only jurisdictional population figures along with reported crime, clearance, or arrest data. Rankings ignore the uniqueness of each locale."

To check out the entire ranking and read about the methodology, click here.

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