The most dangerous cities in California depend on how “dangerous” is measured, but recent crime analyses consistently place several cities at the top of the list for high violent‑crime rates per capita.
Cities most often ranked highest
Across 2024–2025 rankings that use FBI-reported or similar crime data per 100,000 residents, the cities most frequently listed as the most dangerous in California include:
- Emeryville
- Commerce
- Oakland
- San Bernardino
- Stockton
- Compton
- Richmond
- Fresno
- Bakersfield
- Vallejo
These cities typically show violent‑crime rates several times higher than the California and U.S. averages, and often also have very high rates of property crimes like burglary and motor‑vehicle theft.
Example recent rankings
Some 2024–2025 lists name Emeryville as the most dangerous city overall, mainly because of an extremely high violent‑crime rate relative to its small population, followed by Commerce and Oakland. Other 2025 analyses that focus on larger “major” cities rank Oakland and San Bernardino at or near the top due to high rates of violent offenses and persistent problems with gun and gang violence.
Crime rate comparison table
Below is a simplified snapshot from recent rankings; figures are rounded and will vary slightly by source and year:
City| Type of ranking basis| Violent crime level (recent data)
---|---|---
Emeryville| Small city, very high per‑capita rate| About 2,300+ per 100,000
residents 2
Commerce| Small city, industrial area| About 1,500+ per 100,000 residents 27
Oakland| Major city, violent & property crime| About 1,500–1,700 per 100,000
residents 23
San Bernardino| Major city, violent crime & poverty| Around 1,300–1,500 per
100,000 residents 27
Stockton| Mid‑size city, gang violence| Roughly 1,400 per 100,000 residents 7
How to interpret “most dangerous”
“Most dangerous” here usually means highest reported violent‑crime rate per capita (homicide, robbery, aggravated assault, etc.), not total crime counts. Population size, reporting practices, and neighborhood‑level differences mean that even in these cities, some areas are much safer than others.
