Nashville and Memphis rank among the least-safe cities in the U.S. for 2026, according to a recent SmartAsset report.
The study analyzed 83 U.S. cities with populations of at least 250,000, representing more than 90% of the nation's largest cities, to determine which are the safest.
Cities were ranked using a composite score based on violent crime rates, property crime rates, traffic fatalities and disaster risk.
Nashville placed 76th overall, while Memphis ranked 83rd. According to the study, Memphis ranked last due to its high crime and motor vehicle fatality rates, along with a “relatively high” FEMA disaster risk rating.
Here's what else to know.
Nashville, Memphis rank as two of the least-safe cities in the U.S.
Both Nashville and Memphis ranked among the 10 least-safe cities, though Memphis fared significantly
worse across nearly every metric.
Nashville ranked No. 76 overall, compared with Memphis at No. 83, the lowest position in the study. Memphis reported a violent crime rate of 25 incidents per 1,000 residents, more than double Nashville's rate of 11.2 per 1,000.
Property crime was also substantially higher in Memphis, with 69 incidents per 1,000 residents versus 45.1 in Nashville.
Additionally, Memphis recorded a higher rate of auto fatalities, at 21.5 deaths per 100,000 residents, compared with 13.6 in Nashville. Both cities were assessed as having a relatively high disaster risk.
Despite their low rankings in the national comparison, both Nashville and Memphis have seen crime decline in recent years.
As previously reported by The Tennessean, homicides, rapes, aggravated assaults and several other major crimes have decreased in Nashville, extending a downward trend that began in 2025.
Memphis has also experienced improvements.
According toThe Commercial Appeal, part of the USA TODAY Network, overall crime in the city has fallen to its lowest level since 2020 and remains well below levels seen in 2011. The decline is part of a three-year downward trend that followed a crime peak in 2023.
Safest big cities in the U.S.
Here's a look at the safest cities in the U.S., along with their violent crime rate per 1,000 residents.
- Virginia Beach, Virginia (0.9)
- Plano, Texas (1.5)
- Madison, Wisconsin (2.6)
- Honolulu, Hawaii (1.9)
- Chesapeake, Virginia (3.4)
- Laredo, Texas (3.7)
- Lexington, Kentucky (2.6)
- Boston, Massachusetts (6.3)
- Lincoln, Nebraska (3.5)
- Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (4.3)
Least safe big cities in the U.S.
On the other end of the spectrum, here are the least safe cities in the U.S., along with their violent crime rate per 1,000 residents.
- Memphis, Tennessee (25)
- Houston, Texas (11.5)
- St. Louis, Missouri (13.7)
- San Francisco, California (6)
- Kansas City, Missouri (15.5)
- Albuquerque, New Mexico (11.8)
- Oakland, California (19.3)
- Nashville, Tennessee (11.2)
- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (9.1)
- Detroit, Michigan (17.8)
Methodology
SmartAsset based its rankings on four factors: violent crime, property crime, traffic fatalities and natural disaster risk.
Crime data came primarily from the FBI's 2024 Crime in the United States report, while traffic fatality data was provided by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Disaster risk was measured using FEMA's National Risk Index.
SmartAsset combined those factors into a single score to rank 83 U.S. cities with populations of at least 250,000.
More than 90% of eligible cities were included, while some were excluded because data was unavailable or inconsistent. In cases where FBI city data was not available, state or local agency reports were used instead.
Contributing: The Commercial Appeal
Diana Leyva covers trending news and service journalism for The Tennessean. Contact her at Dleyva@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Nashville and Memphis rank as two of the most unsafe cities in the U.S. for 2026. How the two compare
