Canada's Top Dangerous Cities In 2023

Winnipeg, Manitoba (8)

As the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba, Winnipeg has a high overall crime rate of 58.90 crimes per 100,000 people and the second-highest murder rate in the country.

Crime rates in Winnipeg

1. Crime Index: 58.90
2. Safety Index: 41.16

Winnipeg is pretty bad., but in large parts of the the city it's more of a cars-getting-broken into crime than getting jumped crime (although there are definitely parts of the city where it's easy to get jumped if that's what you're looking for) The petty property crime is probably worse than reported, since nobody really bothers reporting it anymore , the police don't respond anyway.
Posted by Brittany S.

Two things can be true at once. One, there is more crime, whether that be violent crime or property crime, than there should be in Winnipeg and two, for the vast majority of residents, your risk of being the victim of a serious crime remains very low.
Posted by Tony L.

Random violent crime seems less common. There are definitely people caught in the wrong place at the wrong time that end up victims, but generally the serious assaults/stabbings are between people known to each other.
Posted by Enedina S.

I have lived in south Winnipeg my whole life always close to U of M and a bit more south and have not had any problems south, just depends on which part of the city you live in south Winnipeg is very safe and nice.
Posted by Harrell S.

About Winnipeg

Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario (7)

Sault Ste. Marie is a cross-border region of Canada and the United States. Aggravated assault and theft are issues that have been reported in the city keeping the city among ccountry's top eight cities based on crime index.

Crime rates in Sault Ste. Marie

1. Crime Index: 59.20
2. Safety Index: 40.35

If you're not involved in bad stuff, the chances that you'll be involved in any kind of crime are very low. Not zero, but I don't think it's zero anywhere. My parents live in a very nice suburb in one of the cities that was recently rated as one of the safest in the country, and their neighbour's pickup truck was stolen right out of his driveway.
Posted by Pasquale D.

For what it's worth, crime stats are incredibly easy to manipulate and shouldn't be trusted in Canada. I would say that wherever claims to have the worst crime, is probably just the place with the police reporting it the most honestly. Crime stats are also subject to interpretation to some degree as they're being entered.
Posted by Artavia B.

I find that the people who say things like "This place sucks" don't have much perspective and often haven't spent any real time out of Sault Ste Marie. Maybe they lived somewhere else and moved here, and have rose coloured glasses when it comes to their former city, not realizing that the same issues the Sault faces have also sprung up in their former city since they left.
Posted by Bergen M.

About Sault Ste. Marie

Oshawa, Ontario (6)

Oshawa is a city in Ontario. Also known as the automotive capital of Canada due to the presence of several automotive companies. Oshawa has has a level of crime with a crime index of 60.08.

Crime rates in Oshawa

1. Crime Index: 60.08
2. Safety Index: 40.26

Oshawa also made the list in 2022. God help us!!! This city is running into problems with Toronto gangs moving in, but don't believe the hype. It's a nice place, has bike paths, parks... It's just like any town in Ontario with its issues and its benefits..
Posted by Justin M.

Oshawa isn't really all that dangerous, it's just sketchy. All the creepy dudes, mentally unstable people roaming around give it that appearance but there's not much actual danger unless you associate with the wrong people.
Posted by Roderick C.

Depending from what country you are coming from, the crime rate could be a joke compared to where you live but it's safe here. As someone who went to school in Regent Park in Toronto, Oshawa is still tame even with the rising crime rate.
Posted by Aislynn H.

I live by Phillip Murray for 19 years now. Like other cities some parts of Oshawa are quite sketchy. Parts of downtown, Cedar/Wentworth, Nonquon you probably wanna avoid living in. But other then that, it's just like any other suburb, except it has really high property tax.
Posted by Gregorio P.

About Oshawa

Sudbury, Ontario (5)

Sudbury is the City of Greater Sudbury and the largest city in Northern Ontario by population. Sudbury has crime index of 60.70. In 2021, Sudbury recorded the fourth-highest homicide rate in Canada.

Crime rates in Sudbury

1. Crime Index: 60.70
2. Safety Index: 39.55

There is always going to be some crime. The people from Sudbury need to take a harder look at this city. It's all safe. 39 years and the worst crime that has happened to me is theft. Stupid teens in the middle of the night rifling through my car and that happened once.
Posted by Shannon A.

In my experience, Sudbury is a very safe place, with lots of great suburbs and amenities. Just like big cities, Sudbury does have its rougher neighborhoods. If you keep your nose clean, and fingers not sticky, you generally won't have any more issues than any other city.
Posted Lindy P.

About Sudbury

Red Deer, Alberta (4)

Red Deer is a city in Alberta, Canada, located midway on the Calgary. Red Deer has an above-average crime index at 61.20 with crime rate of 176.40, violent crime rate of 175.70, and nonviolent crime rate of 176.20.

Crime rates in Red Deer

1. Crime Index: 61.20
2. Safety Index: 37.91
3. More

With Red Deer, there is sizeable amount of crazy stuff that happens here still, but as with Calgary, most of it is still localized to a radius around downtown and the hospital area. Despite Red Deer's higher crime rate, I would still say I feel safer here.
Posted by Glennis M.

I feel really safe here over all. The general rules apply. Make sure to let people know where you go and when you will be back, go out in groups, don't leave a drink unattended, don't get blackout drunk, lock your door, etc. It's very rare that something big happens, but it's the smaller things that happen everywhere that I would focus on.
Posted by Thurmon D.

It's a Canada wide issue, Red Deer feels very safe. But if you want to live in the area and avoid that stuff just move to the smaller communities on the outskirts of town like Penhold, Ponoka, Blackfalds, Lacombe, Sylvan Lake, etc.
Posted by Bertrand K.

I moved there from Sudbury, ON, I now have also lived in Vancouver, BC for 10 years. The talks of bad things in Red Deer is a joke. Vancouver/Lower Mainland obvs has a lot of crime with larger population & favorable weather. Compare Red Deer to Sudbury for a more accurate comparison, and I'll tell you Sudbury is by far worse. Like, by far.
Posted by Eliana L.

About Red Deer

Kelowna, British Columbia (3)

Kelowna is a city on Okanagan Lake in the Okanagan Valley in the southern interior of BC. Kelowna has a high crime index of 61.60 with crime rate of 141.90, violent crime rate of 124.30, and a nonviolent crime rate of 148.00. The most commonly reported crimes in and outside Kelowna's metro area are theft and vandalism.

Crime rates in Kelowna

1. Crime Index: 61.60
2. Safety Index: 37.73

I have spent my entire life in Kelowna. Yes the city has its problems. So does everywhere else in BC. There are opportunities here to be had. Come to Kelowna, and prepare to be amazed at all the opportunities here.
Posted by Dana B.

We have a lot of street junkies here. A lot. More so than other cities of comparable size and development. How they got here and/or how they came into their situation is another matter. As far as daily life goes, If you live on the outskirts of town it's not a big deal. In town though? There's a sticky fingered crackhead on practically every corner who will break into your car for a cigarette. So. Don't leave anything outside.
Posted by Lynn D.

My tip is if you go to clubs or bars, leave them before last call. While overall actual physical violence incidents in Kelowna tend to be more personal, bar fights have been known to happen. They're the most rare, but I've seen enough firsthand and heard about plenty through second hand to want to offer this warning none the less.
Posted by Dudley B.

I usually feel very safe walking around the city or taking the buses. Now trusting the drivers is a different story, because I'm almost certain some people got theirs out of a Crackerjack box. Not sure if that's a US only thing or not; I'm not a fan of it - so I never looked for it since I moved here.
Posted by Phuong H.

Kelowna is a pretty nice place to live, until the sun goes down. It's literally the sketchiest place at night. So many vehicles broken into, random shit stolen. Not to mention for a few months last year everyone had to check their lug nuts on their car, because somebody was going around loosening them at night.
Posted by Rydell B.

About Kelowna

Lethbridge, Alberta (2)

Lethbridge is a city in the province of Alberta. Drug-related issues related to the ongoing opioid crisis are the most common occurrences of crime.

Crime rates in Lethbridge

1. Crime Index: 62.30
2. Safety Index: 37.21

I moved here just 1 year ago now and have had in that time span my bike stolen and my car broken into, just waiting to see what more will happen at this point, definitely didn't have as many problems living in Northern Alberta.
Posted by Kumar S.

I personally think it's the homeless population trying to go to jail so they have a safe place to eat and sleep. It's sad but a lot of the homeless population that I've talked to at work says they are terrified of dying in winter and that they would rather go to jail.
Posted by Antonella M.

Grew up in Manitoba and moved to Lethbridge. I love the city and the surrounding area, the winters are wonderfully mild and the summers are lovely. As others have said most of the crime is small stuff, if you're really worried about it you could look into Coaldale or Coalhurst as well, both are pretty close to the city.
Posted by Lancelot V.

About Lethbridge

Surrey, British Columbia (1)

Surrey is a city in British Columbia. Surrey has an overall crime index of 63.80 with high rise in drug-related crimes such as possession with and without intent to distribute.

Crime rates in Surrey

1. Crime Index: 63.80
2. Safety Index: 35.34

Surrey is seen as an unfavorable place to live because of dated stereotypes and racism. It's got a large working class immigrant, Indigenous, South Asian and other BIPOC population - which means some people of more means perceive it as unsavory.
Posted by Spike M.

Any city can be unsafe. If you're walking around dark alleys at 3 am, you're gonna have a bad time anywhere. I have felt unsafe at times but it's usually just walking home alone after dark, and even then I feel safer here than a lot of other cities I've lived in.
Posted by Camille R.

This is actually very true but also very descriptive of what's going on throughout Canada - a massive increase in wealth inequality. Rich parts of cities are nicer and richer than ever, and poor parts have become an absolute hell hole.
Posted by Julietta M.

When I moved to Vancouver (Fraser and 56) I actually felt safer at night in Whalley than in my new neighbourhood. I live by the PNE now and it feels much safer here compared to south Fraser.
Posted by Agatha H.

About Surrey