3 HV Counties Among 25 Safest Communities In America: U.S. News

HUDSON VALLEY — Eight counties in New York, including three in the Hudson Valley, are among the 25 safest communities in the country, U.S. News & World Report said in a recent report measuring the overall health of more than 3,000 U.S. counties.

Safety rankings in the sixth annual 2024 Healthiest Communities ranking take into consideration metrics across three key areas — crime, injuries and public safety capacity — and include individual metrics such as gun violence, violent and property crime rates, access emergency rooms, spending on health and emergency services, and vehicle crash fatality rates.

The safety rankings are based on a 100-point scale.

3. Rockland County

• Population: 337,326
• Community Type: Urban, high-performing economy
• Public Safety Score: 93.86
• Performs Best In: Per capita spending on health and emergency services
• Overall Score: 68.62
• Overall Rank: 289

6. Westchester County

• Population: 997,904
• Community Type: Urban, high-performing economy
• Public Safety Score: 90.66
• Performs Best In: Vehicle crash fatality rate
• Overall Score: 74.55
• Overall Rank: 127

8. Putnam County

• Population: 97,942
• Community Type: Urban, high-performing economy
• Public Safety Score: 88.89
• Performs Best In: Violent crime rate
• Overall Score: 77.04
• Overall Rank: 85

This year, 20 of the 25 jurisdictions that scored the highest for public safety also landed among the country’s top 500 Healthiest Communities, with nine in the top 50 overall rankings.

New York had eight communities among the top 25 safest communities — and the northeastern U.S. had 10, the most of any region.

The 25 safest communities are:

1. Nassau County, New York
2. Alexandria, Virginia
3. Rockland County, New York
4. Rio Blanco County, Colorado
5. Arlington County, Virginia
6. Westchester County, New York
7. Manassas Park, Virginia
8. Putnam County, New York
9. Bergen County, New Jersey
10. Brown County, Minnesota
11. San Mateo County, California
12. Fairfax, Virginia
13. Poquoson, Virginia
14. Shelby County, Iowa
15. Eagle County, Colorado
16. Jim Hogg County, Texas
17. Richmond County, New York
18. Los Alamos County, New Mexico
19. Prince William County, Virginia
20. Queens County, New York
21. Colfax County, Nebraska
22. Suffolk County, New York
23. Morris County, New Jersey
24. Loudoun County, Virginia
25. Kings County, New York