Crime and Safety in Exeter
Last updated: 07 Jun 2026
Exeter is the most dangerous major town in Devon, and is the 22nd most dangerous overall out of Devon's 403 towns, villages, and cities. The overall crime rate in Exeter in 2026 is 77 crimes per 1,000 people. This compares poorly to Devon's overall crime rate, coming in 24% higher than the Devon rate of 62 per 1,000 daytime population. For England, Wales, and Northern Ireland as a whole, Exeter is the 52nd safest major town, and the 1,151st most dangerous location out of all towns, cities, and villages.
In July 2024, Exeter had the worst crime rate in Devon for shoplifting, with 243 crimes reported and a crime rate of 1.5 per 1,000 daytime population. February 2021 was also a bad month for Exeter residents, when it was Devon's most dangerous area for theft from the person, recording 4 crimes at a rate of 0.03 per 1,000 daytime population.
The most common crimes in Exeter are violence and sexual offences, with 6,066 offences during 2026, giving a crime rate of 36. This is 4.1% higher than 2025's figure of 5,825 offences and a difference of 1.41 from 2025's crime rate of 34. Exeter's least common crime is theft from the person, with 119 offences recorded in 2026, an increase of 8% from 2025's figure of 110 crimes.
Exeter 2026 Crime Scorecard
Most Dangerous
Major Towns, Devon
25% higher, regional crime rate
South West
7% higher, national crime rate
England, Wales & NI
Local Crime in Context
As of April 2026, the crime rate in Exeter is 25% higher than the South West and 7% higher than the England, Wales & Northern Ireland overall figure.
Exeter Crime Rate Over Time
| Exeter | |
| South West | |
| England, Wales & NI |
Exeter Crime Map
Incidents mapped in Exeter represent the time frame between January 2016 and April 2026. Each point on the map represents an area where crimes have been recorded locally.
Use Crime Map
Hover over a point to see a breakdown of crime types recorded at that location. You can also filter by individual crime types, or use a combinations of offences to visualise the data you need.
See How Exeter Compares
You can compare Exeter's crime statistics against any other town, village, or city from across the country. Search for a location's name below to see how they stack up.
Introduction to Exeter's crime statistics
This crime profile provides a detailed view of crime and safety around Exeter up to April 2026, the most recent data release available. The crime figures and statistics have been calculated across each of Exeter's 3,638 postcodes using three area sizes for comparison:
- Within a Five-Minute Walk
- Within a Ten-Minute Walk
- Within a Fifteen-Minute Walk
Individual crime risk scores and index figures are for the 12-month period ending April 2026 unless otherwise stated.
CrimeRate Insights
Looking into a specific address in Exeter? CrimeRate Insights reports convert raw numbers into practical insight for any location, from single addresses and postcodes, up to major towns and cities.
Crime rates don’t happen by themselves; they follow people and patterns. Where crowds gather - near pubs and late-night venues, around the station, by supermarkets and forecourts - incidents naturally concentrate.
That doesn’t mean an area is "bad"; it usually means footfall is higher.
Your report explores these factors in a calm, non-judgemental way, putting the numbers in context and helping you spot what’s typical for places like this.
Crime Risk Scores
Exeter • 12 Months Ending April 2026
The typical five-minute walk within Exeter has a crime risk score of 565. This is based on analysis of 3,638 nearby areas within Exeter, with "most" referring to roughly two thirds of the nearby locations.
Crime risk scores are on a scale of 1 to 1,000 and consider the severity of the crimes involved, as determined by sentencing guidelines. A score of 1 represents the lowest risk, and 1,000 the highest risk. This approach ensures that - unlike overall crime rate figures - bicycle theft is not given the same importance in Exeter's risk scores as, for example, robbery, or violence & sexual offences.
Within a five-minute walk of the typical location in Exeter, crime risk scores are typically around 565, while in Devon they are average 560.
Areas within a ten-minute walk typically see crime risk scores of 631 (565 for Devon), and scores within a fifteen-minute walk are most often around 675 (Devon 560).
Trends in Crime Risk
Exeter
Calculated via Seasonal and Trend decomposition using Loess, the Seasonality Adjusted line represents the original data with seasonality subtracted, and the Trend line has been plotted unadjusted. Overall trend direction has been identified using the Mann-Kendall trend test, and rate calculated from the slope of the best-fit line identified from linear regression.
No trend could be found in Exeter's crime risk scores over the last 10 years, and the trend may well be static.
Looking at the previous five years, the trend in Exeter's crime risk score is up by 52%. While potentially a good indicator of the overall risk trend, cross-referencing with major cultural events and Covid's impact during this time is advised.
Over the last year, Exeter's crime risk score has shown an upward trend of approximately 14%, indicating that the risk profile is going up. This is an extremely short time period for crime trend analysis, and caution should be exercised when interpreting this figure.
Crime Rates and Indexes
Exeter
The CrimeRate Index shows how crime rates compare against the national average.
1.0 equals the average
2.0 is double
3.0 triple
0.5 is half and
0.25 a quarter.
Highest Crime Rates
Exeter • 12 Months Ending April 2026
Excluding other crime and other theft because their geographic location is often not relevant, anti-social behaviour as its definition is too wide, and bicycle theft for its specificity.
Shoplifting offences have a crime rate of 10 reports per 1,000 people in Exeter, which is 1.41 times the national average. This figure is calculated from 1,695 crime reports logged by Devon & Cornwall Police during the 12-month period ending April 2026.
For the same period, Devon & Cornwall Police recorded 182 reports of Possession of Weapons in Exeter, resulting in a crime rate of 1.08 reports per 1,000, and a CrimeRate Index of 1.27.
The crime rate for Violence and Sexual Offences is 1.18 times the national average at 36 reports per 1,000. This is from 6,066 crime reports reported to Devon & Cornwall Police.
Most Significant 3-Year Increases in Crime Types
Exeter
Excluding other crime and other theft, anti-social behaviour, and bicycle theft, and calculated with the same STL method described in Trends in Crime Risk, using CrimeRate Index figures to identify crime types that are trending above or below the national average, and the analysis timeframe limited to the last three years.
Public Order offences are trending upwards, and have a CrimeRate Index of 0.90 for the month of April 2026.
Three years ago, the monthly Public Order CrimeRate Index was 0.27 times the national average, and the current trend indicates an increase of 233% over this timeframe.
Criminal Damage and Arson offences are trending upwards, and have a CrimeRate Index of 1.09 for the month of April 2026.
Three years ago, the monthly Criminal Damage and Arson CrimeRate Index was 0.43 times the national average, and the current trend indicates an increase of 153% over this timeframe.
Theft From the Person offences are trending upwards, and have a CrimeRate Index of 0.42 for the month of April 2026.
Three years ago, the monthly Theft From the Person CrimeRate Index was 0.08 times the national average, and the current trend indicates an increase of 425% over this timeframe.
Most Significant 3-Year Decreases in Crime Types
Exeter
Calculated with the same methodology as the largest increases section above.
Drugs offences are trending downwards, and have a CrimeRate Index of 0.87 for the month of April 2026.
Three years ago, the monthly Drugs CrimeRate Index was 0.48 times the national average, and the current trend indicates a decrease of 81% over this timeframe.
Crime Type Breakdown & Heat Map
Exeter • 12 Months Ending April 2026
Size and colour reflect the CrimeRate Index figures for each type of crime.
Exeter | Devon | South West | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crime Type | Count | Rate | Index | Count | Rate | Index | Count | Rate | Index |
| Anti-Social Behaviour | 2,484 | 14.70 | 1.04 | 14,607 | 10.70 | 0.76 | 82,030 | 12.62 | 0.89 |
| Bicycle Theft | 252 | 1.50 | 2.05 | 569 | 0.41 | 0.56 | 3,702 | 0.54 | 0.74 |
| Burglary | 407 | 2.40 | 0.77 | 2,566 | 1.86 | 0.59 | 15,750 | 2.42 | 0.77 |
| Criminal Damage and Arson | 1,169 | 6.93 | 1.10 | 8,474 | 6.20 | 0.99 | 36,459 | 5.64 | 0.90 |
| Drugs | 425 | 2.53 | 0.82 | 2,715 | 1.99 | 0.64 | 10,358 | 1.60 | 0.52 |
| Other Crime | 296 | 1.75 | 0.95 | 2,063 | 1.50 | 0.81 | 8,931 | 1.38 | 0.75 |
| Other Theft | 881 | 5.21 | 0.92 | 6,727 | 4.91 | 0.86 | 31,450 | 4.85 | 0.85 |
| Possession of Weapons | 182 | 1.08 | 1.27 | 1,242 | 0.90 | 1.06 | 3,967 | 0.62 | 0.73 |
| Public Order | 1,006 | 5.96 | 1.03 | 6,162 | 4.50 | 0.78 | 36,669 | 5.63 | 0.97 |
| Robbery | 121 | 0.69 | 0.58 | 561 | 0.40 | 0.34 | 4,567 | 0.70 | 0.59 |
| Shoplifting | 1,695 | 10.04 | 1.41 | 7,254 | 5.30 | 0.74 | 37,365 | 5.76 | 0.81 |
| Theft From the Person | 119 | 0.71 | 0.46 | 607 | 0.44 | 0.28 | 2,043 | 0.33 | 0.21 |
| Vehicle Crime | 347 | 2.03 | 0.47 | 2,359 | 1.75 | 0.41 | 16,666 | 2.56 | 0.60 |
| Violence and Sexual Offences | 6,066 | 35.90 | 1.18 | 43,244 | 31.62 | 1.04 | 189,257 | 29.13 | 0.96 |
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Total Crime by Year
Exeter | Devon | South West | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Count | Rate | Index | Count | Rate | Index | Count | Rate | Index |
| 2026 | 12,966 | 76.73 | 1.07 | 84,543 | 61.78 | 0.86 | 397,184 | 61.16 | 0.85 |
| 2025 | 12,754 | 76.18 | 1.03 | 83,193 | 61.39 | 0.83 | 402,192 | 62.40 | 0.84 |
| 2024 | 8,331 | 50.51 | 0.67 | 56,860 | 42.28 | 0.56 | 357,420 | 55.92 | 0.74 |
| 2023 | 9,404 | 57.80 | 0.73 | 62,696 | 47.11 | 0.60 | 360,086 | 56.89 | 0.72 |
| 2022 | 8,944 | 56.20 | 0.73 | 64,490 | 49.13 | 0.64 | 351,958 | 56.19 | 0.73 |
| 2021 | 7,923 | 50.58 | 0.74 | 60,586 | 46.74 | 0.68 | 311,592 | 50.21 | 0.73 |
| 2020 | 9,189 | 59.26 | 0.80 | 66,378 | 51.61 | 0.70 | 343,342 | 55.68 | 0.75 |
| 2019 | 10,399 | 67.30 | 0.88 | 72,309 | 56.53 | 0.74 | 348,574 | 56.87 | 0.75 |
| 2018 | 9,810 | 63.73 | 0.90 | 70,466 | 55.35 | 0.78 | 340,408 | 55.87 | 0.79 |
| 2017 | 9,111 | 59.84 | 0.94 | 58,856 | 46.67 | 0.73 | 312,784 | 51.72 | 0.81 |
| 2016 | 2,570 | 16.93 | 0.89 | 16,752 | 13.33 | 0.70 | 92,229 | 15.29 | 0.80 |
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Exeter Compared to Nearby Major Towns
12 Months Ending Apr 2026
| Major Town | Total Crimes | Crime Rate | Rate Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paignton | 4,097 | 79.52 | 3.6% more dangerous |
| Exeter | 12,966 | 76.73 | - |
Comparing Exeter to the UK's Major Cities
12 Months Ending Apr 2026
| City Name | Crime Rate | Rate Difference |
|---|---|---|
| Exeter | 76.73 | - |
| Cardiff | 79.55 | 3.7% more dangerous |
| Newcastle upon Tyne | 82.69 | 8% more dangerous |
| Sheffield | 84.09 | 10% more dangerous |
| Leicester | 97.87 | 28% more dangerous |
| Bristol | 104.64 | 36% more dangerous |
| Birmingham | 105.05 | 37% more dangerous |
| Liverpool | 106.48 | 39% more dangerous |
| Leeds | 107.10 | 40% more dangerous |
| Nottingham | 107.74 | 40% more dangerous |
| Westminster | 125.00 | 63% more dangerous |
CrimeRate Pro
To download charts and tables, you must subscribed to CrimeRate Pro
You can find out more, or get a CrimeRate Insights report that includes further analysis.
Offences In and Around Exeter's Parks & Leisure Spaces
Limited to spaces in Exeter that are named and have had crimes recorded within their boundaries in the 12 months to Apr 2026.
| Name | ASB | Drugs | Public Order | Robbery | VSO | All Others |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bury Meadow | 8 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 12 | 11 |
| Wonford Sports Centre | 23 | 3 | 10 | 4 | 28 | 34 |
| Bull Meadow | 10 | - | 3 | - | 17 | 21 |
| Priory Green | 10 | 3 | 4 | - | 16 | 11 |
| Exhibition Fields | 9 | 2 | 4 | - | 21 | 11 |
| Southernhay Green | 11 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 16 | 60 |
| Sylvan Heights Play Area | 1 | 1 | - | - | 8 | 4 |
| Mulberry Close Play Area | 2 | - | 1 | - | 10 | 0 |
| St Sidwell's Point | 11 | 2 | 9 | 2 | 20 | 56 |
| Exeter Boxing and Martial Arts Centre | 15 | 2 | 3 | - | 28 | 17 |
| Sports Park | 1 | - | 1 | - | - | 5 |
| Mincinglake Valley Park | 13 | 1 | 1 | - | 29 | 13 |
| Northbrook Pool | 15 | 2 | 3 | - | 28 | 17 |
| Betty's Mead Playing Fields | 2 | 1 | 1 | - | 17 | 9 |
| St Thomas Cemetery | 4 | 1 | 2 | - | 29 | 9 |
| Rougemont Gardens | 42 | 9 | 24 | 3 | 160 | 93 |
| Belmont Pleasure Ground | 21 | 3 | 13 | - | 51 | 40 |
| St Thomas Pleasure Grounds | 45 | 11 | 16 | 3 | 76 | 72 |
| Riverside | 28 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 25 | 42 |
| Cowick Barton Playing Field | 7 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 31 | 16 |
| Pinces Gardens | 5 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 14 | 10 |
| Exeter Gymnastic Club | 13 | 1 | 7 | - | 16 | 22 |
| Hamlin Lane Cycle Pad | 9 | 2 | 4 | - | 9 | 10 |
| Higher Cemetery | 9 | 7 | 5 | 1 | 26 | 18 |
| Wingfield Park | - | - | 1 | - | - | 3 |
| Whipton Lane Allotments | 1 | - | - | - | - | 4 |
| Ludwell Valley Park | 41 | 4 | 6 | 2 | 48 | 25 |
| David Lloyd Club | - | 3 | 2 | - | 4 | 6 |
| King George V Playing Fields | 8 | - | 3 | - | 10 | 6 |
| St Bartholomew's Cemetery | 11 | 3 | - | 1 | 16 | 13 |
| Friernhay Burial Ground | 3 | - | - | - | 7 | 4 |
| Heavitree Pleasure Ground | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 15 | 13 |
| Devonshire Place Play Area | 4 | - | - | - | 16 | 3 |
| Hamlin Lane Playing Field | 14 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 23 | 15 |
| Lewis Crescent Play Area | 6 | - | 1 | - | 7 | 2 |
| Eastern Fields Playing Field | 6 | 2 | 2 | - | 14 | 10 |
Recent Crimes in Exeter
The 20 most recent crime reports in Exeter.
| Date | Crime Type | Location | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| April 2026 | Anti-social behaviour | On or near Honeylands Way | |
| April 2026 | Anti-social behaviour | On or near Stadium Way | |
| April 2026 | Criminal damage and arson | On or near Nightclub | |
| April 2026 | Criminal damage and arson | On or near Alpha Street | |
| April 2026 | Criminal damage and arson | On or near Good Shepherd Drive | |
| April 2026 | Other crime | On or near Lavender Road | |
| April 2026 | Public order | On or near Athelstan Road | |
| April 2026 | Public order | On or near Cambridge Street | |
| April 2026 | Public order | On or near Little Queen Street | |
| April 2026 | Violence and sexual offences | On or near Willowbrook Avenue | |
| April 2026 | Violence and sexual offences | On or near Willowbrook Avenue | |
| April 2026 | Violence and sexual offences | On or near Stadium Way | |
| April 2026 | Violence and sexual offences | On or near Lavender Road | |
| April 2026 | Violence and sexual offences | On or near Willowbrook Avenue | |
| April 2026 | Violence and sexual offences | On or near Church Lane | |
| April 2026 | Violence and sexual offences | On or near Bishop Westall Road | |
| April 2026 | Violence and sexual offences | On or near Lavender Road | |
| April 2026 | Violence and sexual offences | On or near Lakeside Avenue | |
| April 2026 | Violence and sexual offences | On or near Cambridge Street | |
| April 2026 | Violence and sexual offences | On or near Cambridge Street |
Methodology & Data Sources
Exeter Crime Report
Data Sources & Processing
Every month, CrimeRate processes crime reports from data.police.uk, the UK's official provider of open crime report data. Each crime report includes anonymised coordinates, most often "snapped" to the middle of the nearest street, or to the nearest major landmark. The reports also include the month and year the crime was reported, as well as the type of crime.
Data releases on data.police.uk happen once a month, with a two-month delay. This means that, for example, crimes reported in Exeter during August 2026 will typically become available in October 2026. The latest release is for Apr 2026 and was released in Jun 2026. To provide current and historical crime statistics, CrimeRate processed 61,669,232 crime reports for the latest release.
Exeter Data Points
For Exeter, CrimeRate uses the geographic boundaries provided by The Office for National Statistics in the December 2023 release of their Parishes and Non Civil Parished Areas dataset, using the PARNCP23CD column value E43000052.
Due to the 2021 Census being conducted during a UK-wide Coronavirus lockdown, the daytime population figures released so far cannot be relied on for purposes such as comparing crime rates. Instead, CrimeRate uses Exeter's daytime - or "workday" - population of 143,958 from the ONS 2011 Census for calculations throughout the site.
All geographic boundaries use the full resolution - extent of the realm versions where provided to avoid missing crime reports near coastlines and rivers - the banks of the Thames in particular - that would otherwise not be included when using the clipped to the coastline datasets.
Calculating Crime Rates
CrimeRate locates the UK region, county, and town/city/village locality for each crime report, and calculates the crime rate by taking the sum of all crime reports, dividing it by the locality's daytime / "workday" population, and multiplying the result by 1,000 to get the crime rate per 1,000.
Crime Risk Score Calculations
CrimeRate calculates crime counts for local, nearby, and wider areas for every postcode in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. The postcodes locations are deduplicated by a process that ensures distinct points are approximately 50 metres apart. This process removes the bias that would otherwise come from counting the same crimes several times in heavily populated areas.
Using a custom algorithm developed in-house, CrimeRate applies a crime severity weighting to each area's crime counts, based on the type of crime reported. This increases or decreases the crime count, or zeroes it out entirely, depending on the crime type. A separate crime severity rate is then calculated, standardised, and scaled to fit the crime risk score range of 1 to 1,000, with 1 being the lowest score, and 1,000 the highest.
Crime risk scores undergo further analysis per town, city, and village plus other areas including police forces and neighbourhoods. CrimeRate uses percentiles to work out the most common range of crime risk scores in each locality. This includes identifying the high and low bounds where approximately 68% of scores fall, and finding the median (50th percentile) for easy reference.
The crime types with a weight of zero are: Anti-Social Behaviour; Bicycle Theft; Other Crime; Other Theft; and Shoplifting. The highest weights to are assigned to Violence & Sexual Offences, and the lowest to Vehicle Crime.
Frequently Asked Questions
Crime in Exeter