These MD Suburbs Among Safest In U.S., New Ranking

BETHESDA, MD — Two Maryland suburbs are among the 20 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.

In the end, SmartAsset determined the 360 safest suburbs in the United States, and three are in Maryland.

According to the analysis, Bethesda is the safest place to live in Maryland. It ranks 2nd nationally. The analysis shows the community of 67,400 people has a violent crime rate of 0.0014 per capita, a property crime rate of 0.0197 per capita, and 5.62 traffic deaths per 100,000 population. Also, 15.3 percent of Bethesda residents reported that they excessively drink in a survey for the 2025 County Health Rankings

Other suburbs that made the list are:

#4. Rockville, population 68,417
Violent crime per capita: 0.0064
Property crime per capita: 0.0198
Traffic deaths per 100,000 population: 5.62
Adults reporting excessive drinking: 15.3 percent

#320. Aberdeen, population 16,254
Violent crime per capita: 0.0339
Property crime per capita: 0.043
Traffic deaths per 100,000 population: 8.2
Adults reporting excessive drinking: 19.5 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

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