VA Has 2nd Safest Community In America; 6 Others In Top 25: U.S. News

VIRGINIA — Seven localities in Virginia are among the 25 safest communities in the country, U.S. News & World Report said in a recent report measuring the overall health of more than 3,000 U.S. counties.

Safety rankings in the sixth annual 2024 Healthiest Communities ranking take into consideration metrics across three key areas — crime, injuries and public safety capacity — and include individual metrics such as gun violence, violent and property crime rates, access emergency rooms, spending on health and emergency services, and vehicle crash fatality rates.

The safety rankings are based on a 100-point scale. Counties and cities in Virginia that made the top 25 nationally are:

2. Alexandria, Virginia

Population: 157,594
Community type: Urban, high-performing economy
Public safety score: 97.95
Overall score: 76.11
Overall rank: 105

5. Arlington County, Virginia

Population: 235,845
Community type: Urban, high-performing economy
Public safety score: 91.28
Overall score: 86.07
Overall rank: 19

7. Manassas Park, Virginia

Population: 17,123
Community type: Urban, high-performing economy
Public safety score: 89.57
Overall score: 67.94
Overall rank: 311

12. Fairfax City, Virginia

Population: 24,242
Community type: Urban, high-performing economy
Public safety score: 86.83
Overall score: 86.75
Overall rank: 15

13. Poquoson City, Virginia

Population: 12,479
Community type: Urban, high-performing economy
Public safety score: 86.56
Overall score: 76
Overall rank: 107

19. Prince William County, Virginia

Population: 481,114
Community type: Urban, high-performing economy
Public safety score: 84.15
Overall score: 68.03
Overall rank: 309

24. Loudoun County, Virginia

Population: 420,773
Community type: Urban, high-performing economy
Public safety score: 82.73
Overall score: 84.28
Overall rank: 26

This year, 20 of the 25 jurisdictions that scored the highest for public safety also landed among the country’s top 500 Healthiest Communities, with nine in the top 50 overall rankings.

States in the northeastern U.S. had 10 communities among the top 25 safest communities – the most of any region – with eight of those counties located in New York.

The 25 safest communities are:

1. Nassau County, New York
2. Alexandria, Virginia
3. Rockland County, New York
4. Rio Blanco County, Colorado
5. Arlington County, Virginia
6. Westchester County, New York
7. Manassas Park, Virginia
8. Putnam County, New York
9. Bergen County, New Jersey
10. Brown County, Minnesota
11. San Mateo County, California
12. Fairfax, Virginia
13. Poquoson, Virginia
14. Shelby County, Iowa
15. Eagle County, Colorado
16. Jim Hogg County, Texas
17. Richmond County, New York
18. Los Alamos County, New Mexico
19. Prince William County, Virginia
20. Queens County, New York
21. Colfax County, Nebraska
22. Suffolk County, New York
23. Morris County, New Jersey
24. Loudoun County, Virginia
25. Kings County, New York

SEE ALSO: Virginia City Ranked Healthiest Community In America, 30 Others Make Ranking: U.S. News