Is Bellevue, WA Safe? What the Crime Data Actually Says

Bellevue is generally safe when the question is personal safety. Its larger crime issue is property crime, especially theft. That split matters because a single citywide crime grade can make Bellevue look more dangerous than the daily experience of many residents. Search this question, and you will find a real contradiction. CrimeGrade.org gives Bellevue a D-minus overall grade. Other local guides and residents describe Bellevue as very safe. Both can point to real information, but they measure and weigh crime differently. For a buyer, the useful answer separates personal safety from property security. The citywide number matters less than the setting around a specific home, including parking, package delivery, nearby commercial activity, and reported incidents.

What the Crime Numbers Actually Show

Bellevue’s violent-crime and property-crime figures point in different directions. That is why a single overall grade does not explain much on its own. Bellevue Police reported a 27% drop in overall reported crime during 2025. Property crime fell 33% from the prior year, while violent crime changed little. Theft remained the city’s most reported crime category. The standardized 2024 city-level crime data also shows the divide. Using city-level figures from the FBI Crime Data Explorer, Bellevue recorded 210 violent crimes and 5,060 property crimes that year. The figures below show the reported rate per 1,000 residents.

Crime type	Bellevue reported offenses	Rate per 1,000 residents
Violent crime, total	210	1.39
Property crime, total	5,060	33.40
Burglary	549	3.62
Larceny-theft	3,995	26.37
Motor-vehicle theft	516	3.41

Source year: 2024. Rates use reported city-level offenses and the population estimate associated with that data. The table makes the main point clear. Larceny-theft accounted for about 79% of the reported property offenses in this dataset. Theft, not violent crime, drives much of Bellevue’s overall crime count.

You may see a different 2024 property-crime total in Bellevue Police reporting. That is because local police reporting and standardized national crime submissions can use different categories, reporting rules, and data cutoffs. For the rate comparison in this article, the same standardized method is used for Bellevue and Seattle. Violent crime helps answer whether it is generally safe to live here and walk here. Property crime tells you to value secured parking, remove belongings from your vehicle, and use secure package delivery. Treating both as one broad score can blur the real picture.

Why Bellevue Gets a Poor Crime Grade and Still Feels Safe

Crime rates are usually calculated per resident. That is useful for broad comparisons, but it can be misleading in a busy commercial city such as Bellevue. Bellevue has a major downtown, regional shopping, office buildings, restaurants, parking facilities, and transit connections. People come into the city every day to work, shop, attend appointments, eat out, and park. A theft reported in one of those places counts in Bellevue’s total, but the rate is still divided by the resident population.

That does not make property crime unreal. If a vehicle is broken into or property is taken, it is a real loss. The point is narrower. A citywide grade can reflect retail, office, parking, and visitor-heavy activity as much as it reflects everyday life near a residential home. The limits of broad safety grades show up even among nearby Eastside cities. On the same CrimeGrade.org grading system, Bellevue receives a D-minus overall grade. Medina receives a D, Clyde Hill receives a D-plus, and Sammamish receives an A-minus.

Nobody would look at those grades alone and conclude that Medina or Clyde Hill are dangerous places. Smaller cities can move sharply on a per-resident scale because fewer residents and fewer reported incidents can change the rate quickly. Sammamish also has a more residential land-use pattern and less concentrated commercial activity. A letter grade can be useful as a starting point. It is not a verdict on the street, building, or home you are considering.

Is Bellevue Safer Than Seattle?

In published 2024 citywide crime rates, Bellevue recorded lower violent and property crime than Seattle. The difference is meaningful, although both cities need address-level context.

Source year: 2024 city-level reported crime data. The same reporting year and rate method are used for both cities. Seattle is much larger and has more regional employment, retail, entertainment, visitors, and transit activity. Bellevue has major commercial areas too, although on a smaller scale. Those differences affect reported incidents without telling you much about every residential block. Most people are not making a purely statistical comparison. They are thinking about parking, street lighting, building access, evening walks, transit, and the general feel of the route home. Those are address-level questions in both cities. If you are choosing between Bellevue and Seattle, compare the specific home and daily routine you are considering. For a broader lifestyle and housing comparison, see this Seattle vs. Bellevue guide. Citywide numbers are useful context, but they should not replace visiting the area. Seattle Police also publishes incident-level crime data for readers who want to explore Seattle reports directly.

Is It Safe to Walk Around Bellevue at Night?

Generally, yes. The normal precautions that make sense in any city also apply in Bellevue. Downtown Bellevue is active and well lit through much of the evening. Restaurants, shops, hotels, offices, and apartment buildings create regular pedestrian activity. Later at night, foot traffic drops. A walk at 9 p.m. can feel very different from a walk after midnight. Residential Bellevue is quieter. Main routes often have more lighting and activity than interior streets. If walking is part of your daily routine, visit the area at the time you expect to use it. Look at sidewalks, crossings, lighting, parking access, and the walk from transit or your vehicle to the front door. The more common practical concern in Bellevue is property security. Keep valuables out of sight in your vehicle, lock doors and windows, and consider secured parking when comparing homes. Use well-lit routes when practical and stay aware of your surroundings. Safe does not mean risk-free. The useful answer is that personal-safety incidents are less common than property-related incidents, and a buyer should plan accordingly.

How Safety Varies Across Bellevue

The citywide number hides real differences, and those differences often track land use. Reported incidents tend to be more common where there are stores, offices, visitors, parked cars, transit riders, and people moving through during the day. A property near busy retail, structured parking, a transit stop, or a commercial corridor can have a different incident pattern from a home several miles away. Both properties may be in Bellevue. Both may be included in the same citywide crime rate. The useful step is to look at public information around an address you have already selected. Bellevue Police provides public crime and transparency data, and the city also directs residents to the Bellevue CrimeMapping tool for location-based incident review. The information is refreshed regularly. When comparing homes, use the same process for each address:

That approach tells you more than a broad citywide grade. If you want to understand how Bellevue neighborhoods differ, begin with the kind of daily setting you want and then look closely at the specific addresses that fit. Buyers may also want to review what to know about Bellevue neighborhoods before buying.

What This Means If You Are Buying in Bellevue

The practical takeaway is that Bellevue is a city where you plan around theft prevention, not around a broad concern about personal safety. For a condo, compare garage access, guest parking, lobby security, package rooms, building entry, and lighting. A secure parking setup can matter more than a small difference in square footage or a broad citywide safety score. These checks fit naturally into a broader Bellevue and Seattle home-search checklist. For a single-family home, look at garage access, exterior lighting, package delivery, and the property’s relationship to busy roads or commercial activity. Buyers sometimes put too much weight on a citywide grade when comparing Bellevue with smaller Eastside cities. If you are getting ready to purchase, the Bellevue home-buying process guide covers the broader steps from preparation through closing. I have worked on the Eastside since 2001 and have completed more than $230 million in career sales. That experience helps when comparing Bellevue homes with very different daily settings, from downtown condos to residential properties farther from commercial activity. If you are weighing the move more broadly, read the Bellevue relocation guide. You can also see whether Bellevue is the right fit overall, review homes currently on the market in Bellevue, or learn more about Matthew Chapman.

The Short Answer

Bellevue has relatively low violent crime and higher property crime, much of it tied to theft. A poor overall crime grade reflects that property-crime burden, but it does not describe every home or street in the city. For a purchase decision, focus on the specific address, nearby incident reports, parking, lighting, building access, and package delivery. If you would like to talk through a Bellevue home you are considering, call Matthew Chapman at (206) 501-8484.

Frequently Asked Questions

These answers separate personal safety from property security and focus on public information a buyer can use.

Is Bellevue, WA safe?

Bellevue is generally safe for personal safety, while property crime is the larger practical concern. The 2024 city-level data recorded 210 violent crimes and 5,060 property crimes. That split is why a citywide crime grade can look harsher than many residents’ day-to-day experience.

Is it safe to walk around Bellevue?

Walking around Bellevue is generally safe, especially on active and well-lit routes. Visit the location at the time you expect to walk there, stay aware of your surroundings, secure valuables, and pay attention to parking areas and the route between transit or parking and your home.

Which is safer, Bellevue or Seattle?

Published 2024 city-level rates show Bellevue with lower violent and property crime than Seattle. Bellevue recorded 1.39 violent crimes per 1,000 residents, compared with Seattle’s 7.75. The better comparison for a move is still the specific home, route, parking, and daily setting.

What is the crime rate in Bellevue, WA?

Bellevue’s 2024 city-level data showed about 1.39 violent crimes and 33.40 property crimes per 1,000 residents. Bellevue Police also reported that overall crime fell 27% in 2025, led by a 33% drop in property crime.

Is Bellevue a good place to raise a family?

Whether Bellevue works for your household depends on your budget, commute, housing needs, home type, and daily routine. Crime data is only one part of the decision. For a broader view, read whether Bellevue is the right fit overall.

Which parts of Bellevue have the most reported crime?

Reported incidents are more common in commercial, retail, parking, office, and transit settings where more people and vehicles move through each day. Use Bellevue Police’s public crime data to review incidents near an address you have selected rather than relying on a neighborhood ranking.

Is Bellevue safe for someone moving from out of state?

Bellevue can be a practical place to relocate if you plan for property security. Visit prospective homes at different times, compare parking and package-delivery options, and review public reported-incident information near each address. For the rest of the move-planning process, use the Moving to Bellevue relocation guide.

Matthew Chapman

I come from a family with over 30 years of experience in real estate and previously worked in the non-profit sector. Seeing how limited funding prevented impactful ideas from becoming reality inspired my purpose-driven approach to real estate, helping clients achieve their goals while creating meaningful community impact.