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From Mississippi’s laid-back coastal region to its bustling capital district, the birthplace of the blues is a diverse state full of history and natural beauty. But soul music and beautiful landscapes aren’t the only things this state has to offer: Mississippi also has a low violent crime rate.
Compared to the national average for violent crime rates, in fact, Mississippi as a whole is about 25 percent safer — and its 10 safest cities are about 80 percent safer than the national average. The most recent FBI Crime Report indicates that, on average, the state’s safest cities cited less than one violent crime per 1,000 residents in 2014. This is certainly impressive, but so is the fact that seven of the 10 safest cities are appearing on our list for the second year in a row. This accomplishment indicates that the leaders, citizens, and law enforcement officers in these cities are committed to keeping crime at bay.
Whether you already live in the Magnolia State or you’re relocating there, our comprehensive Mississippi Safety Directory is an outstanding resource for increasing your personal and home security. In addition to helpful information about topics like crime prevention and emergency preparedness, it includes a color-coded map showing which Mississippi counties experience the least, and most, burglaries.
How We Chose the Safest Cities in Mississippi
To identify the 10 safest cities in Mississippi, we reviewed the most recent FBI Crime Report statistics from 2014, along with population data. We eliminated all cities with fewer than 3,000 residents as well as any cities that failed to submit a complete crime report to the FBI.
If your city made the list, share the news by embedding the “Mississippi Safest Cities” badge on your site. Click here to get the code, then just copy and paste.
From there, we evaluated the remaining cities. We narrowed it down based on the number of reported violent crimes (aggravated assault, murder, rape, and robbery) and property crimes (burglary, arson, larceny-theft, and motor vehicle theft) in each city. To further level the playing field, we calculated the likelihood of these crimes occurring out of 1,000 people in each city.
Learn more about how we rank our Safest Cities reports.
You can also see how the cities ranked in the past with the 2014 Safest Cities in Mississippi report here.
1. Florence
Previous rank: Not ranked
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 0.23
Property Crimes per 1,000: 6.03
2. Louisville ↑
Previous rank: 3
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 2.18
Property Crimes per 1,000: 4.83
3. Petal ↓
Previous rank: 2
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 0.18
Property Crimes per 1,000: 7.62
4. Brandon
Previous rank: Not ranked
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 0.75
Property Crimes per 1,000: 8.98
5. Madison ↓
Previous rank: 1
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 0.59
Property Crimes per 1,000: 10.28
6. Magee
Previous rank: Not ranked
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 0.45
Property Crimes per 1,000: 15.04
7. Fulton ↓
Previous rank: 4
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 0.50
Property Crimes per 1,000: 16.70
8. Byram ↓
Previous rank: 7
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 1.03
Property Crimes per 1,000: 19.52
9. Horn Lake ↓
Previous rank: 6
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 1.12
Property Crimes per 1,000: 20.21
10. Long Beach ↓
Previous rank: 5
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 0.83
Property Crimes per 1,000: 20.62
Information from: