Fresno’s neighborhoods conjure up too many stereotypes to count. You’ve got hipster areas, preppy places, neighborhoods where college kids thrive, and of course, ghettos.
It seems as if there’s a neighborhood for everyone in Fresno.
And while the city consistently ranks as one of the best places to live in California thanks in part to tons of entertainment and jobs, it’s not all rainbows and sunshine in Fresno. Some neighborhoods aren’t as safe as others.
So the question arises, which Fresno neighborhoods are the most dangerous and which are the safest?
Today, we’ll use Saturday Night Science to determine which Fresno hoods need a little tender loving care. We examined 12 of Fresno’s neighborhoods to find out the most dangerous places to live.
$32,395 median income
$35,850 median income
$28,279 median income
$62,943 median income
$49,244 median income
$66,411 median income
$48,271 median income
$56,701 median income
$69,536 median income
$73,455 median income
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is California’s statewide median.
California statewide median: $774,582
California statewide median: $99,122
Saturday Night Science
Methodology: How we determined the most dangerous Fresno neighborhoods in 2026
To figure out how bad a place is to live in, we only needed to know what kinds of things people like and then decide what places have the least amount of those things. We plugged the following criteria into Saturday Night Science to get the worst neighborhoods in Fresno:
- High crime (Estimated)
- High unemployment (Less jobs)
- Low median income (Less pay)
- Low population density (No things to do)
- Low home values (No one’s willing to pay to live here)
Then, we ranked each neighborhood in Fresno, California for each of these criteria from worst to best.
Next, we averaged the individual rankings for each criterion into a “Worst Score.”
The neighborhood with the lowest “Worst Score” ranks as the most dangerous neighborhood of Fresno.
The article is an opinion based on facts and is meant as infotainment. We updated this article for 2026. Skip to the end to see the list of all 12 neighborhoods ranked from worst to best.
The full plate
Most dangerous neighborhoods to live in Fresno for 2026
Click any column to sort. Search by neighborhood name.
| Rank | Neighborhood | Population | Home Value | Median Income |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Edison | 23,773 | $165,716 | $32,395 |
| 2 | Fresno-High | 56,759 | $127,194 | $35,850 |
| 3 | Central | 14,713 | $168,436 | $28,279 |
| 4 | West | 39,506 | $220,748 | $62,943 |
| 5 | Mclane | 57,728 | $197,767 | $49,244 |
| 5 | South Growth Area | 3,848 | $201,550 | $66,411 |
| 7 | Roosevelt | 123,984 | $179,668 | $48,271 |
| 8 | Hoover | 56,561 | $228,950 | $56,701 |
| 9 | Southeast Growth Area | 6,677 | $292,050 | $69,536 |
| 10 | Bullard | 105,413 | $290,424 | $73,455 |
| 11 | North Growth Area | 2,295 | $392,800 | $89,000 |
| 12 | Woodward Park | 58,391 | $368,063 | $101,961 |
Source: U.S. Census ACS 2020-2024. All 12 Fresno neighborhoods.
Summary
Summary: The worst neighborhoods around Fresno
Well, there you have it — the worst of the neighborhoods in Fresno with Edison landing at the bottom of the pack.
The worst neighborhoods in Fresno are Edison, Fresno-High, Central, West, Mclane, South Growth Area, Roosevelt, Hoover, Southeast Growth Area, and Bullard.
As mentioned earlier, the neighborhoods in Fresno aren’t all bad. Woodward Park takes the cake as the best place to live in Fresno.
We ranked the neighborhoods from worst to best in the chart below. Not sold on California? Take the two-minute Find Your Place quiz and see which state actually fits you.
Questions and answers
Worst Neighborhoods In Fresno FAQs
What is the most dangerous neighborhood in Fresno?
Edison ranks as the worst neighborhood in Fresno for 2026, according to Saturday Night Science. Fresno-High and Central are next on the list.
What are the worst neighborhoods in Fresno?
The worst-ranked neighborhoods in Fresno are Edison, Fresno-High, Central, West, Mclane, South Growth Area, Roosevelt, Hoover, Southeast Growth Area, and Bullard. We scored all 12 neighborhoods in the city.
Why does Edison rank as the worst?
Edison posts the roughest combined numbers in Fresno: a median household income of $32,395 and a median home value of $165,716, with crime, unemployment, and density folded into the score.
Are these neighborhoods dangerous everywhere?
No. The scores are neighborhood-wide averages, and conditions change block by block and hour by hour. Plenty of people live in these neighborhoods without incident; the numbers just say the odds run tougher.
How do you rank the worst neighborhoods?
Each neighborhood is scored on crime, unemployment, income, density, and home values, using Census tract and FBI data. The worst combined score tops the list.
