Some towns & cities just feel safer than others across Canada. They’re the kind of places where people still walk their dogs after dark without thinking about it, and the statistics from 2024–2025 back up this sense of safety. Here are ten Canadian cities where residents feel the safest, based on crime statistics & survey responses from our readers. Which of these cities do you want to live in?
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Barrie, Ontario
Ask anyone in Barrie & they’ll tell you that it feels calm there. And the numbers agree. According to a previous release from Statistics Canada, Barrie’s Crime Severity Index (CSI) sat around 47.1, well below the national average of 80.5. The lower the number, the less severe the crimes. Barrie is a city that somehow manages to stay both busy & laid-back, according to our readers.
Québec City, Québec
Life in Québec City is relatively safe, and the 2024 CSI proves that. The city’s number came in around 45.7, while a province-wide survey found roughly 9 out of 10 residents said they feel safe day-to-day. It’s not hard to see why people there sleep rather well at night. Of course, crime does happen here, but at a far lower rate than elsewhere.
Burlington, Ontario
People in Burlington talk a lot about how “nothing much happens here.” And that’s mostly true. Overall crime dropped more than 11% going into 2025, with property crime down almost 16%. Many readers said they still see patrol cars going around. In fact, they credit quick community response as the reason why they feel secure day to day.
Victoria, British Columbia
Victoria has a way of making safety feel normal. The 2024 Crime Severity Index fell about 11%, the biggest drop the city’s seen since 2020, which local people say is due to the officers who walk the streets. It helps that downtown is better lit now. Several readers said that this lighting has made them feel much safer when they’re in the city.
Guelph, Ontario
The 2024 CSI placed Guelph sixth-lowest nationwide. This was an improvement from the year before. Local police force credited community programs like Safe Semester patrols for the changes, along with the local watch groups. Many readers living there also told us the same thing. Downtown feels friendly, not sketchy.
Halifax, Nova Scotia
Halifax has that easygoing atmosphere that you’ll only find in coastal cities. The city’s 2024 Resident Survey found 94% of people felt safe during the day & about 70% even after sunset. Quite a few readers said it’s normal to walk home from the waterfront or grab a late-night donair without a care in the world.
Saguenay, Québec
Hidden between the forest & the fjord, Saguenay keeps crime rates low & community spirit high. The 2024 CSI landed around 55. Over here, people know their neighbours by name, and our readers said that it’s one of those places where, when you need help, someone nearby actually comes out to do so.
Trois-Rivières, Québec
Trois-Rivières doesn’t try too hard. Instead, it just works. Police data for 2024 showed a CSI around 63, with non-violent crime staying especially low. This is mostly because the downtown has had some upgrades over the last few years, including better lighting & more patrols near the waterfront. Such simple changes make it feel far safer to walk around after dinner, according to a few readers.
Saint John, New Brunswick
Sure, Saint John isn’t flashy, but that’s kind of its charm. With a CSI sitting in the high-50s for 2024, it remains one of the safer cities east of Montreal, and many people here know their neighbours by name. One reader said you can still see some of the area’s small-town DNA in the city. And for them, that’s one of the reasons it feels so safe here, because it doesn’t feel like a huge city.
Coquitlam, British Columbia
Quite a few readers in Coquitlam said they notice the difference lately. The city’s 2024 CSI score dropped by 15% from the year before. That’s mostly because you can see RCMP bike patrols rolling through Town Centre Park & community watch groups that actually meet in person. Altogether, these help people to feel a lot safer here.
Sources: Please see here for a complete listing of all sources that were consulted in the preparation of this article.
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