Houston might be booming in business and population, but a new study suggests it’s falling far behind when it comes to safety.
The analysis compared more than 180 cities across 41 indicators of safety, ranging from violent crime and traffic fatalities to unemployment and the percentage of uninsured residents. Houston performed especially poorly in several categories:
There were a few modest bright spots—Houston ranked 52nd for law enforcement employees per capita and 55th for hate crimes per capita, showing a stronger police presence and lower rates of bias-motivated violence compared with other large metros.
Still, WalletHub’s data paints a worrying picture for residents’ overall well-being. The city placed 81st for households with emergency savings and 128th in unemployment, underscoring the link between financial stress and perceived safety.
“When people think about safety in a city, their minds probably immediately go to things like the crime rate, auto fatality rate or risk of natural disasters,” said WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo. “The safest cities in America protect residents from these threats of bodily harm and property damage, but on top of that, they also help secure people’s financial safety.”
WalletHub’s report notes that safety is about more than crime prevention. It also includes how well a city protects residents from natural and economic hazards—areas where Houston continues to face major challenges. Between recurring floods, hurricanes, and extreme heat, the region’s “natural-disaster risk level” ranked nearly last in the country.
For comparison, the five safest cities in America were Warwick, Rhode Island; Overland Park, Kansas; Burlington, Vermont; Juneau, Alaska; and Yonkers, New York.
Other major cities that scored lower than Houston include Detroit (177th), Baton Rouge (180th), Memphis (181st), and New Orleans (182nd).
Despite ranking 176th on WalletHub’s national safety list, Houston is preparing to welcome tens of thousands of international visitors for the FIFA World Cup, with matches at NRG Stadium and fan zones across the city. Officials are bracing for surges in traffic, public transit use, and pedestrian activity, which will put local safety and emergency services to the test.
Adding to concerns over safety, Houston residents and local authorities are grappling with a chilling pattern of bodies discovered in the city’s bayous over the past year. Some experts and armchair investigators have speculated about the possibility of a serial killer operating in the area, though law enforcement has not confirmed any connection between the cases.
