Safest Cities to Live in Florida

The Sunshine State is on your horizon! But before you move to Florida, you want to make sure you find the safest city possible—especially if you’re moving there to start a family. So, what are the safest cities in Florida?

Let’s check the data!

Top 10 Safest Cities to Live in Florida

Here’s a look at the top 10 safest cities in Florida (drumroll, please):

1. Marco Island
2. Parkland
3. Weston
4. Winter Springs
5. Oviedo
6. Satellite Beach
7. Port St. Lucie
8. North Palm Beach
9. Cooper City
10. Sebastian

How’d we decide which cities made the cut? We looked at the most recent FBI crime data for each city in Florida with more than 10,000 residents.¹ Then, we compared those numbers with the FBI’s data for how many full-time law enforcement employees each city has.²

The cities on the list above had the lowest crime rate per 1,000 residents and the fewest law enforcement officers per 1,000 residents (fewer law enforcement officers is a good thing, since it means the city doesn’t need as many). If you want more info on how we crunched the numbers, check out the Methodology section at the bottom.

Okay, without further ado, here’s a breakdown of the 10 safest cities to live in Florida, including what each one has to offer its residents.

Let’s start on the western coast of Florida along the Gulf of Mexico where Marco Island sits. The largest of Florida’s Ten Thousand Islands, Marco Island is the safest area in Florida, according to the FBI’s data. It does have a high cost of living—with a median home price of $1.3 million.³ But some might say the white sandy beaches there make it priceless.

Here’s a look at the crime rate and law enforcement data for Marco Island. Remember: For each of the graphs in this list, all the crime and law enforcement numbers refer to the number of crimes in a year or law enforcement employees per 1,000 residents.

	Marco Island	Florida	U.S.
Population	18,124	20.79 million	328 million
Violent Crimes	0.39	3.78	3.67
Property Crimes	4.58	21.6	21.1
Total Crimes	4.97	25.384	24.775
Law Enforcement	1.88	3.886	2.897

_{^{*For each city, the Population number includes only city limits (not the greater metro area).**For each city, the Violent Crimes, Property Crimes and Law Enforcement numbers are ­­per 1,000 residents in a year.}}

Parkland is—you guessed it—full of parks. That makes it easy to find a place to play baseball, basketball, soccer, football and tennis. There are also plenty of playgrounds for the kiddos and dog parks for Fido. There’s even an equestrian center for horseback riding. This wealthy area offers a residential, suburban vibe. Removed from big shopping centers and downtown congestion, it’s a quiet and peaceful place to settle down.

	Parkland	Florida	U.S.
Population	35,244	20.79 million	328 million
Violent Crimes	0.26	3.78	3.67
Property Crimes	5.36	21.6	21.1
Total Crimes	5.62	25.38	24.77
Law Enforcement	1.31	3.88	2.82

Coming in at number three is Weston, a suburban city in south Florida about 40 miles from Miami. Weston is an affluent area full of big houses, nice neighborhoods and great schools. It’s also close to several beaches. The cost of living in Weston isn’t cheap, but it’s a lovely—and safe—place to live for those who can afford it.

	Weston	Florida	U.S.
Population	71,946	20.79 million	328 million
Violent Crimes	0.46	3.78	3.67
Property Crimes	5.03	21.6	21.1
Total Crimes	5.49	25.38	24.77
Law Enforcement	1.46	3.88	2.82

Winter Springs is a great choice for anyone looking to be part of the action in Orlando while going home to a community with a lower crime rate in the evening. Folks living in Winter Springs are just a 15–20-minute drive from the heart of Orlando, and they also enjoy a lower cost of living than the big city has to offer. Since Orlando is one of the least safe places in Florida and has a cost of living that’s 4% higher than the national average, that’s a good deal.⁸

	Winter Springs	Florida	U.S.
Population	37,854	20.79 million	328 million
Violent Crimes	1.22	3.78	3.67
Property Crimes	6.58	21.6	21.1
Total Crimes	7.79	25.38	24.77
Law Enforcement	1.43	3.88	2.82

Oviedo (pronounced oh-vee-doh) is a suburb of Orlando. Known for its historic architecture, Oviedo offers a safe and tight-knit community feel through events like movie nights and food truck gatherings. Interestingly, chickens have become a sort of mascot for Oviedo—a huge group (gaggle? flock?) of chickens even roams freely all over town.

	Oviedo	Florida	U.S.
Population	42,684	20.79 million	328 million
Violent Crimes	1.31	3.78	3.67
Property Crimes	6.84	21.6	21.1
Total Crimes	8.15	25.38	24.77
Law Enforcement	1.78	3.88	2.82

Coming in at number six is Satellite Beach. Along the east coast of central Florida, Satellite Beach gets its space nerd name from being located along the Space Coast—where NASA launches satellites into orbit. The area is known for its long sandy beaches and whale sightings.

	Satellite Beach	Florida	U.S.
Population	11,219	20.79 million	328 million
Violent Crimes	0.98	3.78	3.67
Property Crimes	6.15	21.6	21.1
Total Crimes	7.13	25.38	24.77
Law Enforcement	3.21	3.88	2.82

Next up, Port St. Lucie. Located in eastern Florida along the Treasure Coast, Port St. Lucie offers a lower cost of living than some surrounding cities (aside from taxes) along with fantastic weather. It also offers easy access to Interstate 95, which means traveling to just about anywhere in Florida from Port St. Lucie is a breeze.

	Port St. Lucie	Florida	U.S.
Population	199,433	20.79 million	328 million
Violent Crimes	1.47	3.78	3.67
Property Crimes	8.5	21.6	21.1
Total Crimes	9.97	25.38	24.77
Law Enforcement	1.5	3.88	2.82

Not only is North Palm Beach safe, it’s practically always sunny and beautiful—with a breathtaking view of the Atlantic Ocean. Every day is a beach day! There’s fishing and boating and a big marina with large yachts. You can try and spot manatees swimming or even sea turtles hatching on the beach. Or just sit back and watch the palm trees swaying by the ocean breeze.

	North Palm Beach	Florida	U.S.
Population	13,273	20.79 million	328 million
Violent Crimes	0.75	3.78	3.67
Property Crimes	8.36	21.6	21.1
Total Crimes	9.12	25.38	24.77
Law Enforcement	2.64	3.88	2.82

Cooper City is essentially a safer and more affordable alternative to Fort Lauderdale. While Fort Lauderdale ranks near the bottom of the safest cities in Florida, Cooper City is near the top—and it’s only 15 miles away from Fort Lauderdale. That means folks living in Cooper City have easy access to Fort Lauderdale’s airport, beaches and entertainment options without compromising on safety.

	Cooper City	Florida	U.S.
Population	36,890	20.79 million	328 million
Violent Crimes	0.7	3.78	3.67
Property Crimes	9.76	21.6	21.1
Total Crimes	10.46	25.38	24.77
Law Enforcement	1.9	3.88	2.82

Back on the Atlantic Coast, Sebastian rounds out the list for safest cities to live in Florida. This is a great place for bass fishing and deep-sea fishing. Sebastian is also home of Pelican Island—America's first national wildlife refuge. Established in the early 1900s, the refuge is a nature conservation that protects the home of wildlife and fish.

	Sebastian	Florida	U.S.
Population	26,232	20.79 million	328 million
Violent Crimes	0.72	3.78	3.67
Property Crimes	11.32	21.6	21.1
Total Crimes	12.05	25.38	24.77
Law Enforcement	2.29	3.88	2.82

Find a Florida Real Estate Agent

Once you’ve found a city you’re comfortable with and you’re ready to move to Florida, it’s time to hire a real estate agent. Now, your agent won’t be able to help you decide on the safest place to live in Florida (that’s called real estate steering, and it’s against the law), but that does not mean you shouldn’t work with an agent if you’re thinking about moving.

Find expert agents to help you buy your home in Florida.

In fact, buying or selling a home without a top-notch agent on your side could mean missing out on a great home, or a great deal! And that’s where our RamseyTrusted agents come into play.

They’re rock stars with loads of experience in your area, and they’ll serve you with excellence. They may not be able to give you advice on the safest cities in Florida, but they’ll provide incredible value in so many other ways and help you buy with confidence.

Connect with a RamseyTrusted agent today!

Methodology Breakdown: How’d We Get Our Data?

Methodology, which is a term used by people who look at graphs all day, just means the method we used to find and rank the safest cities in Florida.

Here’s what we did: We took official crime stats reported by the FBI for cities in Florida with at least 10,000 residents (excluding any cities with incomplete data). The FBI splits crimes into two categories: 

• Violent crimes: These are defined as murder, manslaughter, rape, robbery and aggravated assault.⁹

• Property crimes: These include burglary, larceny (theft of personal property), motor vehicle theft and arson (setting fire to property).¹⁰

After that, we did some math to see how many of these crimes happened in each city per 1,000 residents. Then, we calculated how many full-time law enforcement employees work in each city per 1,000 residents.

Finally, we combined the total crime rate and number of law enforcement employees per 1,000 residents to get each city’s safety score. The safest cities had the lowest scores, and the cities with the 10 lowest scores made up our list. Voila!