The 10 Safest Des Moines, IA Neighborhoods To Live In For 2022


We used science and data to determine which neighborhoods in Des Moines are the safest places to live.

We analyzed every possible crime metric to determine which neighborhoods in Des Moines are the safest.

Every year, more than 30 million Americans move. Sometimes, its for a job, other times its to escape the big city. But no matter where you move, you want a neighborhood thats family friendly, clean, and most importantly, safe.

Weve analyzed the FBI crime reports data on violent and property crimes for every single neighborhood in Des Moines. Then, we calculated your chances of being the victim of a crime in each one.

In which Des Moines neighborhoods can you leave your doors unlocked at night? Heres the list. For a more detailed breakdown for each neighborhood, keep reading.

So, which neighborhood is the safest in Des Moines in 2022? That would be Greenwood. Thats according to the most recent FBI crime data, which takes into account everything from thefts and robberies to assaults and murders.

If you want to dig down deeper into each neighborhood's statistics, as well as our methodology, take a look below. Some of these neighborhoods are the best places to live in Des Moines.

If you dont see a neighborhood youre looking for in our top ten, scroll down to the bottom, where we have all Des Moines neighborhoods listed in order from safest to most dangerous. Read on to see how we determined the places around Des Moines that deserve a little bragging rights or maybe you're interested in the worst neighborhoods in Des Moines.

For more Iowa reading, check out:

Safest Neighborhoods In Des Moines
Source: Public domain

The 10 Safest Neighborhoods To Live In Des Moines For 2022

Overall SnackAbility

8.5
/10

Population: 1,009
Violent Crimes Per 100k: 199
Property Crime Per 100k: 1,269
More on Greenwood: Homes For Sale | Data

Overall SnackAbility

8.5
/10

Population: 400
Violent Crimes Per 100k: 272
Property Crime Per 100k: 1,541
More on Linden Heights: Homes For Sale | Data

Overall SnackAbility

9
/10

Population: 1,088
Violent Crimes Per 100k: 262
Property Crime Per 100k: 1,571
More on Salisbury Oaks: Homes For Sale | Data

Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 2,576
Violent Crimes Per 100k: 292
Property Crime Per 100k: 1,541
More on Downtown Des Moines: Homes For Sale | Data

Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 6,844
Violent Crimes Per 100k: 392
Property Crime Per 100k: 1,495
More on Bloomfield-Allen: Homes For Sale | Data

Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 5,761
Violent Crimes Per 100k: 279
Property Crime Per 100k: 1,985
More on Lower Beaver: Homes For Sale | Data

Overall SnackAbility

9.5
/10

Population: 2,740
Violent Crimes Per 100k: 200
Property Crime Per 100k: 2,299
More on Waterbury: Homes For Sale | Data

Overall SnackAbility

9
/10

Population: 798
Violent Crimes Per 100k: 331
Property Crime Per 100k: 1,901
More on Ingersoll Park: Homes For Sale | Data

Overall SnackAbility

7
/10

Population: 1,710
Violent Crimes Per 100k: 245
Property Crime Per 100k: 2,983
More on Woodland Heights: Homes For Sale | Data

Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 741
Violent Crimes Per 100k: 425
Property Crime Per 100k: 2,297
More on Waveland Woods: Homes For Sale | Data

Methodology: How We Determined The Safest Des Moines Hoods In 2022

You can ask people which neighborhoods are the safest, or you can just look at the unbiased raw data. So, instead of relying on speculation and opinion, we analyzed the hard numbers from the FBIs most recent crime report (published in September of 2019) for every neighborhood in Des Moines.

To be more specific, we analyzed the FBIs Uniform Crime Report. We then ran an analysis to calculate each neighborhoods property and violent crimes based on the demographics of the area and reported crime. We used two key criteria:

  • Total Crimes Per Capita
  • Violent Crimes Per Capita
  • Property Crimes Per Capita

We then ranked each neighborhood with scores from 1 to 51 in each category, where 1 was the safest.

Next, we averaged the rankings for each neighborhood to create a safe neighborhood index.

And finally, we crowned the neighborhood with the lowest safest neighborhood index the "Safest City Neighborhood In Des Moines." We're lookin' at you, Greenwood.

Read on below to learn more about what it's like to live in the safest places Des Moines. Or skip to the end to see the list of all the neighborhoods in the city from safest to most expensive.

Summary: The Safest Places In Des Moines

Looking at the data, you can tell that Greenwood is as safe as they come, according to science and data.

But as most Iowa residents would agree, almost every place here has its safe and not safe parts. So just make sure you're informed ahead of time.

For more Iowa reading, check out:

Detailed List Of The Safest Neighborhoods To Live In Des Moines For 2022

Rank Neighborhood Crime Per 100K
1 Greenwood 1,448
2 Linden Heights 1,833
3 Salisbury Oaks 1,853
4 Downtown Des Moines 1,843
5 Bloomfield-Allen 1,897
6 Lower Beaver 2,254
7 Waterbury 2,559
8 Ingersoll Park 2,252
9 Woodland Heights 3,208
10 Waveland Woods 2,722
11 Southwestern Hills 2,816
12 Meredith 2,931
13 Chautauqua Park 3,318
14 Sherman Hill 3,184
15 Waveland Park 4,257
16 Drake 4,067
17 Gray's Woods 4,107
18 Beaverdale 4,846
19 Union Park 4,830
20 Valley High Manor 4,617
21 Merle Hay 4,973
22 Garton West 5,143
23 Kirkwood Glen 5,286
24 King-Irving Park 5,234
25 North Of Grand 5,414
26 Westwood 8,225
27 Martin Luther King Jr Park 5,032
28 Oak Park 6,370
29 Douglas Acres 6,345
30 New Vision 6,510
31 Capitol View South 6,580
32 Greater South Side 6,584
33 Magnolia Park 6,234
34 Fairmont Park 6,430
35 Fairground 7,121
36 Arbor Peaks 10,412
37 Somerset 7,038
38 Mondamin Presidentia 7,205
39 Highland Park 8,048
40 Indianola Hills 8,529
41 Capitol Park 8,919
42 South Park 8,238
43 Carpenter 8,811
44 Cheatom Park 10,099
45 River Bend 9,124
46 Accent 9,919
47 Drake Park 10,248
48 Mckinley School 10,685
49 Capitol East 12,663
50 Jordan Park 12,542
51 Laurel Hill 14,513

Editor's Note: We updated this article for 2022. This is our second time ranking the safest neighborhoods to live in Des Moines.
About Chris Kolmar

Chris Kolmar has been in the real estate business for almost ten years now. He originally worked for Movoto Real Estate as the director of marketing before founding HomeSnacks.

He believes the key to finding the right place to live comes down to looking at the data, reading about things to do, and, most importantly, checking it out yourself before you move.

If you've been looking for a place to live in the past several years, you've probably stumbled upon his writing already.

You can find out more about him on LinkedIn or his website.