Crime and Safety in Cardiff

Last updated: 07 Jun 2026

Page highlights:

Cardiff is the most dangerous city in the preserved county of South Glamorgan, and is among the top 20 most dangerous overall out of South Glamorgan's 55 towns, villages, and cities. The overall crime rate in Cardiff in 2026 is 80 crimes per 1,000 people. This compares poorly to South Glamorgan's overall crime rate, coming in 9% higher than the South Glamorgan rate of 73 per 1,000 daytime population. For England, Wales, and Northern Ireland as a whole, Cardiff is among the top 20 safest cities, and the 1,145th most dangerous location out of all towns, cities, and villages.

In January 2026, Cardiff was the worst city in South Glamorgan for anti-social behaviour, with 280 crimes reported and a crime rate of 0.64 per 1,000 daytime population. January 2026 was also a bad month for Cardiff residents, when it was South Glamorgan's most dangerous city for burglary, recording 102 crimes at a rate of 0.23 per 1,000 daytime population.

The most common crimes in Cardiff are violence and sexual offences, with 12,453 offences during 2026, giving a crime rate of 28. This is 2.2% lower than 2025's figure of 12,730 offences and a difference of 0.58 from 2025's crime rate of 29. Cardiff's least common crime is theft from the person, with 325 offences recorded in 2026, a decrease of 21% from 2025's figure of 410 crimes.

Cardiff 2026 Crime Scorecard

Most Dangerous

Cities, South Glamorgan

29% higher, regional crime rate

Wales

11% higher, national crime rate

England, Wales & NI

Local Crime in Context

As of April 2026, the crime rate in Cardiff is 29% higher than Wales and 11% higher than the England, Wales & Northern Ireland overall figure.

Cardiff Crime Rate Over Time

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Cardiff
Wales
England, Wales & NI

Cardiff Crime Map

Incidents mapped in Cardiff 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.

Open Crime Map
Design element, blobs on the right

See How Cardiff Compares

You can compare Cardiff'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.

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Introduction to Cardiff's crime statistics

 

This crime profile provides a detailed view of crime and safety around Cardiff up to April 2026, the most recent data release available. The crime figures and statistics have been calculated across each of Cardiff's 7,241 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.

Overview map crime around Cardiff

CrimeRate Insights

Looking into a specific address in Cardiff? 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

Cardiff • 12 Months Ending April 2026

 

The typical five-minute walk within Cardiff has a crime risk score of 488. This is based on analysis of 7,241 nearby areas within Cardiff, with "most" referring to roughly two thirds of the nearby locations.

Five Mins
488 crime risk score
Ten Mins
563 crime risk score
Fifteen Mins
605 crime risk score

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 Cardiff's risk scores as, for example, robbery, or violence & sexual offences.

Within a five-minute walk of the typical location in Cardiff, crime risk scores are typically around 488, while in South Glamorgan they are average 482.

Areas within a ten-minute walk typically see crime risk scores of 563 (500 for South Glamorgan), and scores within a fifteen-minute walk are most often around 605 (South Glamorgan 503).

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Trends in Crime Risk

Cardiff

 

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.

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The 10-year trend indicates a decrease of 21% in Cardiff's crime risk score. This is potentially a strong signal of how the crime risk is evolving. Cross-referencing with major cultural events and Covid's impact during this time is advised.

The five-year trend may be static; no significant trend was identified in Cardiff's crime risk scores during this timeframe.

Over the last year, Cardiff's crime risk score has shown a downward trend of approximately 3.6%, indicating that the risk profile is going down. This is an extremely short time period for crime trend analysis, and caution should be exercised when interpreting this figure.

Crime Rates and Indexes

Cardiff

 

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

Cardiff • 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.

Public Order
1.63 CrimeRate Index
Shoplifting
1.57 CrimeRate Index
Vehicle Crime
1.52 CrimeRate Index

Public Order offences have a crime rate of 9.45 reports per 1,000 people in Cardiff, which is 1.63 times the national average. This figure is calculated from 4,143 crime reports logged by South Wales Police during the 12-month period ending April 2026.

For the same period, South Wales Police recorded 4,917 reports of Shoplifting in Cardiff, resulting in a crime rate of 11 reports per 1,000, and a CrimeRate Index of 1.57.

The crime rate for Vehicle Crime is 1.52 times the national average at 6.54 reports per 1,000. This is from 2,875 crime reports reported to South Wales Police.

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Most Significant 3-Year Increases in Crime Types

Cardiff

 

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.

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Robbery offences are trending upwards, and have a CrimeRate Index of 0.80 for the month of April 2026.

Three years ago, the monthly Robbery CrimeRate Index was 0.44 times the national average, and the current trend indicates an increase of 82% over this timeframe.

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Possession of Weapons offences are trending upwards, and have a CrimeRate Index of 1.00 for the month of April 2026.

Three years ago, the monthly Possession of Weapons CrimeRate Index was 0.86 times the national average, and the current trend indicates an increase of 16% over this timeframe.

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Vehicle Crime offences are trending upwards, and have a CrimeRate Index of 1.86 for the month of April 2026.

Three years ago, the monthly Vehicle Crime CrimeRate Index was 1.25 times the national average, and the current trend indicates an increase of 49% over this timeframe.

Most Significant 3-Year Decreases in Crime Types

Cardiff

 

Calculated with the same methodology as the largest increases section above.

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Shoplifting offences are trending downwards, and have a CrimeRate Index of 1.79 for the month of April 2026.

Three years ago, the monthly Shoplifting CrimeRate Index was 1.94 times the national average, and the current trend indicates a decrease of 8% over this timeframe.

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Theft From the Person offences are trending downwards, and have a CrimeRate Index of 0.50 for the month of April 2026.

Three years ago, the monthly Theft From the Person CrimeRate Index was 0.54 times the national average, and the current trend indicates a decrease of 7% over this timeframe.

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Violence and Sexual Offences are trending downwards, and have a CrimeRate Index of 0.98 for the month of April 2026.

Three years ago, the monthly Violence and Sexual Offences CrimeRate Index was 0.94 times the national average, and the current trend indicates a decrease of 4.3% over this timeframe.

Crime Type Breakdown & Heat Map

Cardiff • 12 Months Ending April 2026

 

Size and colour reflect the CrimeRate Index figures for each type of crime.

 
Cardiff
South Glamorgan
Wales
Crime TypeCountRateIndexCountRateIndexCountRateIndex
Anti-Social Behaviour4,87911.120.796,19610.200.7237,68310.960.78
Bicycle Theft7831.782.448511.401.921,5990.460.63
Burglary1,2222.790.891,5142.500.806,7041.940.62
Criminal Damage and Arson3,0066.841.093,8606.361.0121,0456.120.97
Drugs1,1392.590.841,3832.270.737,3442.140.69
Other Crime8101.861.011,1001.810.986,0081.760.95
Other Theft2,2245.060.892,8404.670.8213,3073.880.68
Possession of Weapons4230.991.165070.830.982,2960.680.80
Public Order4,1439.451.635,4048.901.5323,7476.911.19
Robbery5901.351.146751.130.961,4610.430.36
Shoplifting4,91711.201.576,0209.901.3919,1805.580.78
Theft From the Person3250.730.473650.600.391,0190.280.18
Vehicle Crime2,8756.541.523,3725.541.298,6172.520.59
Violence and Sexual Offences12,45328.370.9316,50927.170.8999,09928.830.95
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Total Crime by Year

 
Cardiff
South Glamorgan
Wales
YearCountRateIndexCountRateIndexCountRateIndex
202634,91079.551.1144,40073.081.02211,42661.530.85
202537,32584.721.1447,35577.871.05257,22975.281.02
202439,28589.471.1949,19081.401.08238,67270.430.93
202337,04285.491.0846,54077.980.99255,61575.950.96
202235,57083.741.0944,43875.810.99245,56573.850.96
202131,29974.081.0840,02468.751.00217,26665.680.96
202036,59087.091.1746,16379.921.08237,50272.150.97
201938,28291.541.2047,97483.501.10244,90574.660.98
201836,19086.711.2245,31679.061.11218,34166.570.94
201734,71383.451.3143,80076.831.20199,05960.800.95
201610,63925.591.3413,21923.201.2261,84918.940.99
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Comparing Cardiff to the UK's Major Cities

12 Months Ending Apr 2026

 

City NameCrime RateRate Difference
Cardiff79.55-
Newcastle upon Tyne82.693.9% more dangerous
Sheffield84.096% more dangerous
Leicester97.8723% more dangerous
Bristol104.6432% more dangerous
Birmingham105.0532% more dangerous
Liverpool106.4834% more dangerous
Leeds107.1035% more dangerous
Nottingham107.7435% more dangerous
Westminster125.0057% more dangerous

Offences In and Around Cardiff's Parks & Leisure Spaces

 

Limited to spaces in Cardiff that are named and have had crimes recorded within their boundaries in the 12 months to Apr 2026.

NameASBDrugsPublic OrderRobberyVSOAll Others
Gôl5-2-85
Rhiwbina RFC11-811528
Llwynfedw Gardens Park3-31716
Maindy Centre3281137
Campws Chwaraeon Rhywgwladol Caerdydd5-2-85
Forest Farm Country Park17211-3849
Maltings Park211-3011
Anderson Fields2911315750
Fishpond Wood3761917847
The Marl Recreation Ground13410-3257
Parc Mackenzie32412232
Parc Waun Fach2-4-4117
Yr Hyb31526-3741
Beech Tree Park1---43
Cowbridge Road Allotments6-3-2519
Pant Mawr Cemetery115-47
South Rise Allotments----11
Llanishen Leisure Centre3-761791
Parc Rhyd-y-Penau--3-13
Heol Chappell Allotments1---32
St Mary's Gardens1---149
Canolfan Hamdden y Tylloged4-1-40
Llandaff North Allotments16-1451823
Lon y Deri Allotments--31122
Porthamal Road Allotments----51
Hill Snook Park122621923
Birchgrove Allotments1-2-721
Rhydypenau Allotments-11-108
Ffynnon Llandennie----32
College Farm Allotments52411410
Lydstep Park3136-2527
Maitland Gardens717-3329
Demonstration Gardens1-2-27
Allensbank Allotments816-2643
Roath Park1961413266
Fairwater Recreation Ground7451155
Fairwater Allotments3-6-104
Fairwater Park8-51389
Victoria Park8-2-1627
Canolfan Hamdden y Gorllewin61712915
Trelai Park1718-3211
Ely Great Farm Allotments1-2-29
Canolfan Genedlaethol Chwaraeon Cymru1111232282
Bute Park1221736344
Alexandra Garden12212019
Friary Gardens12112138163
Jubilee Recreation Ground--3-57
Leckwith Droves Allotments31511029
Coronation Park3---413
Clare Gardens371915067
Despenser Gardens351413455
Pentre Gardens133712022
Sevenoaks Park625-1520
Parc y Gamlas25512-5130
Pentwyn Leisure Centre745-137
Eastern Leisure Centre1521432691
Cyncoed Gardens----30
Mackintosh Sports Club and Community Centre11-14319118
St Peters Rugby Football Club12-5-1615
Shelley Gardens91721426
Pengam Allotments1---56
Tremorfa Park13313-4537
Cemetery Park4786127100179
Moorland Gardens2-7-1025
Moorland Park2-7-1025
Channel View Leisure Centre21--314
Glamorgan Wanderers Memorial Rugby Ground4-3146
Western Cemetery114723720
Thornhill Crematorium and Cemetery---1-4
North Llanishen Recreation Ground516-1212
Llanishen Allotments633-169
Hailey Park30-13-3147
Hailey Park15-3-1821
Parc-y-Pentre2-1-82
Heath Park4121313
Highfield Allotments-----3
Thompson's Park614-1010
Plasturton Gardens--1-213
Sophia Gardens46426963110
Gorsedd Gardens212-415
Maes Hamdden y Rhath927-734
Roath Brook Gardens1---27
Colchester Avenue Allotments-----4
Roath Mill Gardens1---27
Waterloo Gardens2-21418
Grange Gardens1136-1726
Parc Hamadryad13110-2127
Fairwater RFC4-1-40
Parc Cymunedol Cemaes Community Park1-2-85
Sovereign Chase2---16
Mill Park1811111611
Howardian Local Nature Reserve9212-2123
Parc Cefn Onn-1--14
Llandaff Fields8132725
Whitchurch Common2-1-114

Recent Crimes in Cardiff

The 20 most recent crime reports in Cardiff.

 

DateCrime TypeLocationOutcome
April 2026Anti-social behaviourOn or near Clos Pantycosyn
April 2026Anti-social behaviourOn or near Ship Lane
April 2026Anti-social behaviourOn or near Heol Trefgarne
April 2026BurglaryOn or near Maureen Avenue
April 2026Criminal damage and arsonOn or near South Park Road
April 2026Criminal damage and arsonOn or near Heol Trefgarne
April 2026DrugsOn or near Heol Y Tollty
April 2026Other crimeOn or near Ethel Street
April 2026Other theftOn or near Heol Y Tollty
April 2026Other theftOn or near Petrol Station
April 2026Other theftOn or near Heol Y Tollty
April 2026Possession of weaponsOn or near Ship Lane
April 2026Public orderOn or near Heol Y Tollty
April 2026ShopliftingOn or near Crwys Road
April 2026Theft from the personOn or near South Park Road
April 2026Vehicle crimeOn or near Newfoundland Road
April 2026Violence and sexual offencesOn or near Clos Pantycosyn
April 2026Violence and sexual offencesOn or near Police Station
April 2026Violence and sexual offencesOn or near Further/Higher Educational Building
April 2026Violence and sexual offencesOn or near Ship Lane

Methodology & Data Sources

Cardiff 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 Cardiff 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.

Cardiff Data Points

For Cardiff, CrimeRate uses the geographic boundaries provided by The Office for National Statistics in the December 2022 release of their Built Up Areas dataset, using the BUA22CD column value W45000596.

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 Cardiff's daytime - or "workday" - population of 332,318 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.

Cardiff geographic boundaries light outline
CrimeRate's boundaries for Cardiff

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 Cardiff

 

What police force serves Cardiff?
Cardiff's local territorial police force is the South Wales Police.

How dangerous is Cardiff?
Cardiff is the most dangerous city in South Glamorgan.

What is Cardiff's most common crime?
The most common crimes in Cardiff are violence and sexual offences.

What is the least common crime in Cardiff?
Cardiff's least common crime is theft from the person (inc. pickpocketing).