The 10 Safest Cities In Tennessee For 2026

Christopher Nolen would be happy to hear that the town with his namesake ranks as the safest in Tennessee.

Oh? The city isn't named after Christopher Nolen?

Back to reality, Nolensville has markedly improved in crime rates this year, jumping into the top ten. And people have noticed that the median home costs a cool 496500. You also have to be incredibly smart to live here as a staggering 63% of the population has completed at least a bachelor's -- compared to a 33% national average.

Smart, safe, and rich. People in Nolensville have it made.

Take me to church.. err.. Take me to Church Hill -- the safest place to live in Tennessee for 2026 according to the most recent FBI data.

Taking the top spot is a big deal for this little town as it jumped up five places over the years to claim the altar of safety. It had the second safest violent crime rate. Property crime rates are 7x better than the state average.

Located in the northeast portion of the state, Church Hill offers a low cost of living, low tax rate and booming real estate market which probably all lead to a lower crime rate. That's the kind of place I'd move to in a heartbeat.

Signal Mountain is another constant year after year on our lists of great Tennessee cities and this year it ranks in the top three for safety.

The city still boasts extremely low violent and property crime rates.

The Chattanooga suburb also scored a coveted 10 / 10 on our SnackAbility score which is reserved for the top 5% of places to live around the country. So you will be safe and sound living in Signal Mountain.

Kingston, Tennessee, sits along I-40, on the road between Nashville and Knoxville. It's more than just a road-trip stopover, however. The community also represents an amazing place to live, the 5 safest hometown in the state.

Kingston is built along the shores of Watts Bar Lake, a reservoir formed by the confluence of several rivers. This gives residents access to lots of outdoor activities. Economically, the town sports a median income of $65508 and an unemployment rate of 6.04.

Safety, though, remains the biggest selling point for the town. Kingston experienced just 19 property crimes and 8 violent crimes during a year. Put together in a town of 6,306 inhabitants, that leads to an overall crime rate of 428/100k people.

O-Town, as I'm sure no one calls it, ranks as the sixth safest city in Tennessee for 2026.

Located in the southwest corner of the state, the city has one of the lowest property crime rates around The Volunteer state. There's so little petty crime that we bet most people don't have anything to confess to on Sunday mornings.

The city probably has such little crime because it has become wise in its old age -- it's over 100 years old. When you're that old, you realize that there's more to life than coveting your neighbor's possessions.

Fairview, located in Williamson County and part of the Nashville metro area, upholds a reputation for safety with the title of the seventh safest city in Tennessee.

It ranks 11th safest in violent crime and 31st safest in murder rates. It also holds the tenth safest spot in property crime. These figures highlight Fairview's dedication to being a secure location within Tennessee, with a population of 10,496.

Collegedale clocks in as the eighth safest place in Tennessee. But it takes the cake as the city with the lowest violent crime rate in the state by a good clip. The suburb of Chattanooga had no murders and basically no other violent crimes in the last reporting year. It's so safe that I venture I could drop my son off for day care at a random citizen's door tomorrow morning and would come back to find him a man of letters at age three.

Collegedale is located in the south eastern portion of the state.

Brentwood is no stranger to our lists as I remember the name of the town from some of the earliest rankings I wrote over five years ago. This year it maintained a solid sixth place ranking for safety in Tennessee.

Like last year, violent crimes are basically a none issue in the town and property crime is so rare that no one steals candy from babies here. A suburb of Nashville, Brentwood also ranks as the second best and second richest city in Tennessee for 2026. So it sounds like a great place to live if you can afford to call it home.