These IL Suburbs Among Safest In U.S. In New Ranking

ILLINOIS — Eleven Illinois suburbs are among the 360 safest in the country, according to a new ranking of communities based on low crime and other significant safety criteria families consider when choosing a place to live.

The ranking of America’s Safest Suburbs by the financial services provider SmartAsset used publicly available data on violent crime, property crime and traffic deaths, as well as the number of adults reporting they drink excessively in a survey for the 2025 County Health Rankings & Roadmap, a project of the University of Wisconsin Public Health Institute.

Data from the FBI’s 2023 Uniform Crime Reporting Database and the Census Bureau’s 2023 American Community Survey were also used in the analysis.

According to the analysis, Highland Park is the safest place to live in Illinois. It ranks 14th nationally. The analysis shows the community of 30,794 has a violent crime rate of .0007 per capita, a property crime rate of .00116 per capita, and 7.5845 traffic deaths per 100,000 population. Also, 19.51 percent of Highland residents reported that they excessively drink in a survey for the 2025 County Health Rankings

Other suburbs that made the list are:

Deerfield

Population: 19,138

Violent crime per capita: .0028

Property crime per capita: .0183

Traffic deaths per 100,000 population: 7.5845

Adults reporting excessive drinking: 19.51 percent

Elmhurst

Population: 46,108

Violent crime per capita: .0053

Property crime per capita: .0175

Traffic deaths per 100,000 population: 4.9117

Adults reporting excessive drinking: 21.63 percent

Naperville

Population: 153,124

Violent crime per capita: .008

Property crime per capita: .0174

Traffic deaths per 100,000 population: 4.9117

Adults reporting excessive drinking: 21.63 percent

Orland Park

Population: 58,020

Violent crime per capita: .0021

Property crime per capita: .015

Traffic deaths per 100,000 population: 7.7374

Adults reporting excessive drinking: 21.49 percent

Northbrook

Population: 34,546

Violent crime per capita: .0042

Property crime per capita: .0212

Traffic deaths per 100,000 population: 7.7374

Adults reporting excessive drinking: 21.49 percent

Palatine

Population: 65,951

Violent crime per capita: .0115

Property crime per capita: .02

Traffic deaths per 100,000 population: 7.7374

Adults reporting excessive drinking: 21.49 percent

Oak Brook

Population: 8,188

Violent crime per capita: .0061

Property crime per capita: 0.0837

Traffic deaths per 100,000 population: 4.9117

Adults reporting excessive drinking: 28.63 percent

Palatine

Population: 23,776

Violent crime per capita: .0072

Property crime per capita: 0.0254

Traffic deaths per 100,000 population: 11.8944

Adults reporting excessive drinking: 21.92 percent

Oak Park

Population: 23,776

Violent crime per capita: .0104

Property crime per capita: 0.0482

Traffic deaths per 100,000 population: 8.767

Adults reporting excessive drinking: 23.24 percent

Granite City

Population: 26,854

Violent crime per capita: .0174

Property crime per capita: .0358

Traffic deaths per 100,000 population: 11.8944

Adults reporting excessive drinking: 21.92 percent

Housing costs and quality of life are often factors when people move to the suburbs, but SmartAsset said its report showed that people are willing to pay more to move to a neighborhood if they feel safe.

The 360 towns ranked in the report are all within 45 minutes driving distance of a major city.

The report found the top 20 safest suburbs are:

1. Lehi, Utah
2. Bethesda, Maryland
3. Great Falls, Virginia
4. Rockville, Maryland
5. Dacula, Georgia
6. Buford, Georgia
7. Layton, Utah
8. Edgewater, New Jersey
9. McKinney, Texas
10. Frisco, Texas
11. Gretna, Nebraska
12. Noblesville, Indiana
13. Fishers, Indiana
14. Highland Park, Illinois
15. Carmel, Indiana
16. Lexington, Massachusetts
17. Brownsburg, Indiana
18. Fort Lee, New Jersey
19. Spring, Texas
20. Canton, Georgia