The 10 Most Dangerous Cities In Florida

The 10 Most Dangerous Places To Live In Florida For 2026

You know those “Florida Man” memes? Chances are at least one of those is straight out of Florida City, Florida’s most dangerous city.

With 8 murders happening over a year in a city of just 12,441, Florida City is officially the murder capital of the state. Violent crime as a whole is shockingly common, with residents facing a 1 in 43 chance of being the victim of a violent crime throughout the year. Overall, running into an alligator at Everglades National Park is a whole lot less likely than being attacked in Florida City.

The property crime rate in Florida City is also the highest statewide, and the overall crime rate is nearly 300% higher than the nationwide average.

Florida City is 45 minutes southwest of Miami.

Situated on Florida’s east coast between Orlando and Cape Canaveral, the city of Cocoa has seen a moderate rise in crime in the past year.

Cocoa’s biggest problem is property crime, which ranks as the seventh highest in Florida. In fact, with so many property crimes, Cocoa’s overall crime rate is actually the third highest in the state and more than double the national average.

Cocoa is the least violent place on this list, but the city still had 219 cases of violence reported in 2024.

Next up on our list of Florida’s most dangerous places to call home is Riviera Beach, a city of 39,021 located just north of West Palm Beach.

Make sure you keep an eye on your valuables when you’re at the municipal beach, because there were 999 larceny cases recorded in 2024.

On top of that, Riviera Beach had the seventh highest murder rate in Florida and the fifth highest violent crime rate overall.

Located 15 minutes north of West Palm Beach, Lake Park comes in as the fourth most dangerous place in Florida for 2026. With an overall crime rate 300% over the national average, there’s no place in Florida with more total crimes per capita than Lake Park.

Most of these crimes involve property theft or damage, seeing as Lake Park has the second highest rate of property crime statewide. That’s a good reason to double-check that you still have all your valuables as you leave John D. Macarthur Beach State Park.

Lake Park’s not exactly violence-free, either, considering that the town also had Florida’s sixth highest murder rate in 2024 as well.

Having the nickname “Muck City” doesn’t exactly imply great things are going on in Belle Glade, and neither does a 2/10 SnackAbility score. On the one hand, Belle Glade has made some improvements on the crime front, considering that in 2003 the city had the second-highest violent crime rate in the whole country. Still, we don’t think residents are content with having the second highest violent crime rate statewide.

Belle Glade does have the lowest property crime rate of places listed here, which keeps it from a higher position on the list. Still, we think it’s a good idea to buddy up and get home before sunset if you’re hanging out at Glades Pioneer Park.

Most Dangerous Places To Live In Florida FAQs

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No, Florida is not a dangerous state as it ranks as the #22 safest state in the United States based on our analysis of the latest FBI Crime Data. The violent crime rate in Florida ranks 25th most dangerous in the United States — 3.73% worse than US average violent crime rate. The property crime rate in the Sunshine State ranks 32nd most dangerous in the United States — 9.46% better than US average property crime rate. The latest reporting year from the FBI was 2022.

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Yes, Jacksonville is a dangerous city. Jacksonville ranks as the #121 most dangerous out of 328 major cities over 100,000 people in the United States based on our analysis of the latest FBI Crime Data. Keep in mind that are always safe and dangerous parts of any city, so even though Jacksonville might be considered dangerous you still need to be aware of where you are. For example, Eagle Bend is the safest in Jacksonville, while 29th And Chase is considered dangerous by many based on recent crime stats.

Compared to other big cities, the violent crime rate in Jacksonville ranks 9highest in America — 26.08% worse than US average violent crime rate. The property crime rate in the ranks 127th highest in the United States — 5.23% worse than US average property crime rate. Note the latest reporting year from the FBI was 2022 and that no city in America is ‘dangerous’. Despite the uptick in murders, it’s nothing like you’d see in Tijuana or Caracas where the murder rate is 2x any American city.

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