Charleston, WV Crime Statistics For 2025

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

Crime Rate In Charleston, WV Summary

Crime in Charleston research summary. HomeSnacks has been using Saturday Night Science to report crime data in Charleston 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 Charleston:

  • There were 1,694 total crimes committed in Charleston in the last reporting year.
  • On a rate basis, there were 3,662.5 total crimes per 100K people in Charleston.
  • The overall crime rate in Charleston is 72.82% above the national average.
  • Charleston ranks #50 safest out of 56 cities in West Virginia.
  • Charleston ranks #9,101 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 West Virginia

Charleston Vs West Virginia And National Crime Rates

According to the most recent data from the FBI, the total crime rate in Charleston is 3,662.5 per 100,000 people. That's 72.82% higher than the national rate of 2,119.2 per 100,000 people and 159.62% higher than the West Virginia total crime rate of 1,410.8 per 100,000 people.

Statistic Count
Raw
Charleston
/ 100k People
West Virginia
/ 100k People
National
/ 100k People
Total Crimes Per 100K 1,694 3,662.5 1,410.8 2,119.2
Murder 6 13.0 5.3 5.0
Robbery 25 54.1 9.7 61.0
Aggravated Assault 193 417.3 185.8 256.0
Violent Crime 251 542.7 248.8 359.0
Burglary 303 655.1 178.3 229.0
Larceny 1,055 2,281.0 905.1 1,272.0
Car Theft 85 183.8 78.5 259.0
Property Crime 1,443 3,119.9 1,161.9 1,760.0

Charleston Crime Compared To West Virginia Averages

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

Violent Crime Rates In Charleston

251
Violent Crimes
542.7
Violent Crimes / 100k People
51.16%
Above The National Average
  • There were 251 violent crimes in Charleston in the last reporting year.
  • The violent crime rate in Charleston is 542.7 per 100,000 people.
  • You have a 1 in 184.3 chance of being the victim of a violent crime in Charleston each year. That compares to a 1 in 401.9 chance statewide.
  • That's 51.16% higher than the national rate of 359.0 per 100,000 people.
  • And 118.10% higher than the West Virginia violent crime rate of 248.8 per 100,000 people.

Property Crime Rates In Charleston

1,443
Property Crimes
3,119.9
Property Crimes / 100k People
77.27%
Above The National Average
  • There were 1,443 property crimes in Charleston in the last reporting year.
  • The property crime rate in Charleston is 3,119.9 per 100,000 people.
  • You have a 1 in 32.1 chance of being the victim of a property crime in Charleston each year. That compares to a 1 in 0.0 chance nationally.
  • That's 77.27% higher than the national rate of 1,760.0 per 100,000 people.
  • And 168.51% higher than the West Virginia property crime rate of 1,161.9 per 100,000 people.

Crime In Cities Around Charleston

City Population Count
Raw
Total Crime
/ 100k People
Property Crime
/ 100k People
Violent Crime
/ 100k People
South Charleston, WV 13,098 787 6,008.6 5,519.9 488.6
St. Albans, WV 10,245 237 2,313.3 2,088.8 224.5
Dunbar, WV 7,070 150 2,121.6 1,810.5 311.2
Nitro, WV 6,360 250 3,930.8 3,773.6 157.2

Charleston SnackAbility

6
/10
Overall SnackAbility
Jobs
6/10
Housing
6
Affordability
8
Diversity
8
Safety
3
Amenities
8.5
Education
8.5
Commute
9
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