Sterling, IL Crime Statistics For 2025

Demographics | Crime | Cost Of Living
Updated: 2025-10-24

Crime Rate In Sterling, IL Summary

Crime in Sterling research summary. HomeSnacks has been using Saturday Night Science to report crime data in Sterling over the past eight years using the FBI Crime Explorer. Based on the most recently available data released on October 17, 2023, we found the following about crime in Sterling:

  • There were 238 total crimes committed in Sterling in the last reporting year.
  • On a rate basis, there were 1,652.8 total crimes per 100K people in Sterling.
  • The overall crime rate in Sterling is -22.01% below the national average.
  • Sterling ranks #388 safest out of 524 cities in Illinois.
  • Sterling ranks #6,452 safest out of 9,896 cities in the United States.

Because the crime rate is so low in America, we use "per 100,000 people" to make the number a bit easier to compare across locations visually. It's mathematically the same as per capita comparisons and isn't meant to convey that 100,000+ people live in a location.

Additional research about crime in Illinois

Sterling Vs Illinois And National Crime Rates

According to the most recent data from the FBI, the total crime rate in Sterling is 1,652.8 per 100,000 people. That's -22.01% lower than the national rate of 2,119.2 per 100,000 people and -17.54% lower than the Illinois total crime rate of 2,004.4 per 100,000 people.

Statistic Count
Raw
Sterling
/ 100k People
Illinois
/ 100k People
National
/ 100k People
Total Crimes Per 100K 238 1,652.8 2,004.4 2,119.2
Murder 3 20.8 5.8 5.0
Robbery 3 20.8 90.2 61.0
Aggravated Assault 26 180.6 146.3 256.0
Violent Crime 46 319.4 289.2 359.0
Burglary 48 333.3 290.5 229.0
Larceny 121 840.3 1,134.4 1,272.0
Car Theft 23 159.7 290.4 259.0
Property Crime 192 1,333.3 1,715.2 1,760.0

Sterling Crime Compared To Illinois Averages

Each category of crime indexed to the worst per capita in Illinois.
Data Source -- FBI UCR 2024.

Violent Crime Rates In Sterling

46
Violent Crimes
319.4
Violent Crimes / 100k People
-11.02%
Below The National Average
  • There were 46 violent crimes in Sterling in the last reporting year.
  • The violent crime rate in Sterling is 319.4 per 100,000 people.
  • You have a 1 in 313.0 chance of being the victim of a violent crime in Sterling each year. That compares to a 1 in 345.8 chance statewide.
  • That's -11.02% lower than the national rate of 359.0 per 100,000 people.
  • And 10.46% higher than the Illinois violent crime rate of 289.2 per 100,000 people.

Property Crime Rates In Sterling

192
Property Crimes
1,333.3
Property Crimes / 100k People
-24.24%
Below The National Average
  • There were 192 property crimes in Sterling in the last reporting year.
  • The property crime rate in Sterling is 1,333.3 per 100,000 people.
  • You have a 1 in 75.0 chance of being the victim of a property crime in Sterling each year. That compares to a 1 in 0.0 chance nationally.
  • That's -24.24% lower than the national rate of 1,760.0 per 100,000 people.
  • And -22.26% lower than the Illinois property crime rate of 1,715.2 per 100,000 people.

Crime In Cities Around Sterling

City Population Count
Raw
Total Crime
/ 100k People
Property Crime
/ 100k People
Violent Crime
/ 100k People
Moline, IL 41,659 1,549 3,718.3 3,334.2 384.1
DeKalb, IL 40,208 1,169 2,907.4 2,514.4 393.0
East Moline, IL 20,637 551 2,670.0 2,355.0 315.0
Dixon, IL 15,043 98 651.5 458.7 192.8
Peru, IL 9,734 184 1,890.3 1,664.3 226.0
Rock Falls, IL 8,545 305 3,569.3 2,972.5 596.8
Silvis, IL 7,865 304 3,865.2 3,623.6 241.6
Mendota, IL 6,893 35 507.8 377.2 130.6
Geneseo, IL 6,520 62 950.9 858.9 92.0
Spring Valley, IL 5,403 33 610.8 592.3 18.5

Sterling SnackAbility

6
/10
Overall SnackAbility
Jobs
7/10
Housing
4
Affordability
8.5
Diversity
8.5
Safety
8
Amenities
9
Education
6
Commute
9.5
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