Some of the safest cities in the nation can be found in Florida, according to the latest study released by U.S. News & World Report.
The study examines each city’s murder and property crime rate per 100,000 people, based on data from the FBI crime report, to figure out which spots were the best to live — and which areas you may want to avoid.
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The top three cities on the lists were Augusta, Georgia (No. 1); Montgomery, Alabama (No. 2); and South Bend, Indiana (No. 3).
However, the Sunshine State placed fairly high, with Pensacola coming in at No. 4.
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Per the report, the panhandle city had lower-than-average crime rates than many other similarly sized areas, receiving a crime index score of 9.4.
In fact, Florida actually had seven placements included in the ranking — more than any other state in the country.
The full ranking is as follows.
| Rank | City | State | Crime Index (1-10) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Augusta | GA | 9.5 |
| 2 | Montgomery | AL | 9.5 |
| 3 | South Bend | IN | 9.5 |
| 4 | Pensacola | FL | 9.4 |
| 5 | Port St. Lucie | FL | 9.2 |
| 6 | San Juan | PR | 9.2 |
| 7 | Des Moines | IA | 9.1 |
| 8 | Jackson | MS | 9.1 |
| 9 | Melbourne | FL | 9.1 |
| 10 | Lakeland | FL | 9.0 |
| 11 | Ann Arbor | MI | 9.0 |
| 12 | Naples | FL | 9.0 |
| 13 | Fort Myers | FL | 9.0 |
| 14 | Boise | ID | 8.9 |
| 15 | Sarasota | FL | 8.9 |
| 16 | Virginia Beach | VA | 8.9 |
| 17 | Santa Barbara | CA | 8.8 |
| 18 | Allentown | PA | 8.8 |
| 19 | El Paso | TX | 8.8 |
| 20 | Portland | ME | 8.7 |
| 21 | Santa Rosa | CA | 8.7 |
| 22 | McAllen | TX | 8.7 |
| 23 | Scranton | PA | 8.6 |
| 24 | Tucson | AZ | 8.6 |
| 25 | San Diego | CA | 8.6 |
On the flip side, U.S. News & World Report issued a similar study examining the most dangerous cities in the country.
In a fortunate turn for the Sunshine State, no Florida cities were included on this list.
Regardless, that full list is as follows:
| Rank | City | State | Crime Index (1-10) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Memphis | TN | 4 |
| 2 | St. Louis | MO | 4.4 |
| 3 | Detroit | MI | 5.2 |
| 4 | Birmingham | AL | 5.2 |
| 5 | Little Rock | AR | 5.3 |
| 6 | New Orleans | LA | 5.3 |
| 7 | Cleveland | OH | 5.8 |
| 8 | Kansas City | MO | 5.9 |
| 9 | Myrtle Beach | SC | 6.0 |
| 10 | Denver | CO | 6.1 |
| 11 | Minneapolis | MN | 6.3 |
| 12 | Milwaukee | WI | 6.3 |
| 13 | Salt Lake City | UT | 6.4 |
| 14 | Springfield | MO | 6.4 |
| 15 | Portland | OR | 6.4 |
| 16 | Chattanooga | TN | 6.5 |
| 17 | Philadelphia | PA | 6.5 |
| 18 | Dayton | OH | 6.5 |
| 19 | Houston | TX | 6.5 |
| 20 | San Francisco | CA | 6.7 |
| 21 | Seattle | WA | 6.7 |
| 22 | San Antonio | TX | 6.7 |
| 23 | Nashville | TN | 6.8 |
| 24 | Vallejo | CA | 6.9 |
| 25 | Winston-Salem | NC | 6.9 |