Ventura crime: the official numbers by year
Every police agency in California sends its crime counts to the state Department of Justice (DOJ), which publishes them on OpenJustice. The table below is taken from the DOJ's Crimes and Clearances file covering 1985 to 2025 (released July 2026, the newest edition available in November 2026). It shows offenses recorded by the Ventura Police Department, the agency that polices the city of San Buenaventura. Areas outside city limits, such as unincorporated Saticoy, are policed by the Ventura County Sheriff and counted under the sheriff, not the city.
| Year | Violent crimes | Property crimes | Arsons |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 276 | 3,867 | 10 |
| 2015 | 374 | 3,900 | 11 |
| 2016 | 368 | 3,750 | 12 |
| 2017 | 460 | 3,638 | 17 |
| 2018 | 445 | 3,482 | 32 |
| 2019 | 458 | 2,969 | 7 |
| 2020 | 328 | 3,086 | 31 |
| 2021 | 378 | 2,926 | 19 |
| 2022 | 398 | 2,470 | 30 |
| 2023 | 475 | 2,324 | 13 |
| 2024 | 445 | 2,394 | 18 |
| 2025 | 383 | 1,947 | 14 |
Ventura's 2025 counts in detail
The 383 violent crimes recorded in 2025 break down into 1 homicide, 44 rapes, 60 robberies and 278 aggravated assaults. The 1,947 property crimes were 230 burglaries, 141 motor vehicle thefts and 1,576 larceny-thefts, the last group covering shoplifting, thefts from cars and similar offenses. Using the Census Bureau's 2020-2024 population estimate for the city, 109,857 residents, that is about 349 violent and 1,772 property crimes per 100,000 people.
Ventura against the state
Adding up every agency in the same DOJ file and dividing by California's 39,287,377 residents (Census, 2020-2024) gives a statewide rate of about 434 violent and 1,797 property crimes per 100,000 in 2025. On those figures Ventura's violent rate was below the state's and its property rate a little below it. Over eleven years the city's property count fell 50%, from 3,867 in 2014 to 1,947 in 2025, while the violent count rose from 276 to 383. Most of that rise came before 2018; since 2019 the violent count has moved between 328 and 475.
Ventura against other Ventura County cities
In 2025 the DOJ file shows 1,109 violent and 3,215 property crimes for Oxnard, 168 and 960 for Simi Valley, 157 and 1,218 for Thousand Oaks, and 99 and 769 for Camarillo. Per 100,000 residents (Census 2020-2024 populations), that is about 552 violent and 1,600 property in Oxnard, 134 and 764 in Simi Valley, 125 and 973 in Thousand Oaks, and 141 and 1,096 in Camarillo. Ventura's violent rate sits between Oxnard and the eastern county cities, and its property rate is the highest of the five. The city holds about 13% of the county's people but recorded 16% of the county's violent and 20% of its property crimes in 2025.
How to read these figures before you decide
A crime count is a record of what was reported to police and written up, not a measure of risk on a given street. Three points matter for Ventura in particular.
Visitors and shoppers inflate per-resident rates
Rates per resident assume the people involved live in the city. Ventura draws daily visitors to the pier, the Promenade and the state beaches, to Ventura Harbor Village, to the Pacific View shopping center, to the fairgrounds on Harbor Boulevard and to the county's main government center and hospitals. Thefts at stores and from parked cars near those places count in the city's total. That is one likely reason the larceny-theft line, 1,576 offenses, is so much bigger than the burglary line.
Clearance rates show what happens after a report
The same DOJ file records clearances, offenses closed by an arrest or by other means. In 2025 Ventura police cleared 224 of 383 violent crimes (58%) and 426 of 1,947 property crimes (22%). Across all California agencies the figures were about 46% for violent and 11% for property crimes. A higher clearance rate does not mean less crime, but it tells you something about follow-up.
Year-to-year changes in reporting
California agencies have been moving from the old summary reporting format to the FBI's incident-based system (NIBRS), which counts offenses differently. Ask the Ventura Police Department which system it used in each year before reading a small change, such as 2024 to 2025, as a trend. Over a decade, the direction of the property figures is clearer than any single year.
Why this page does not rank Ventura neighborhoods
The DOJ and the FBI publish figures for each police agency, not for neighborhoods. We did not find an official dataset that gives crime rates for Ventura areas such as Pierpont, Midtown, the Avenue or Juanamaria, so we do not rank them or label any area. Lists that grade Ventura neighborhoods for safety are estimates built from models, and they can steer people for the wrong reasons. If you want to know about the blocks around one address, use the tools below and look at incidents yourself, over several months.
For prices and descriptions of each area, see our Ventura neighborhoods guide, and for what each ZIP code covers, our Ventura ZIP codes page.
How to check crime near a Ventura address
Ventura Police Department records and maps
Start with the Ventura Police Department. Ask whether it publishes a public crime map or recent call data, and how to request incident reports for a specific block. The city website did not respond to our automated requests in October 2026, so we cannot list the current tools here; check the department's pages on cityofventura.ca.gov or call its records unit.
California DOJ OpenJustice for long-term trends
OpenJustice is the place to compare Ventura with other cities on the same definitions, back to 1985. Download the Crimes and Clearances file and filter by agency. It reports at city level only.
FBI Crime Data Explorer for national comparisons
The FBI's Crime Data Explorer shows NIBRS data by agency with rates and national comparisons. Search for the Ventura Police Department and check which months it reported in full before comparing years.
Megan's Law search for a specific address
The DOJ's Megan's Law website lets you search registered sex offenders by address or ZIP code. Run it for any home you are considering in 93001, 93003 or 93004.
Visit at different times
Walk the street on a weekday evening and a weekend afternoon, notice parking, lighting and traffic, and talk to people who live there. If you are renting, ask the landlord or HOA what security issues have come up and what was done.
Fire, flood, tsunami and earthquake checks for Ventura homes
For most owners a natural hazard costs more over time than crime, through insurance premiums, required disclosures and repairs. Ventura sits between the coast and the foothills, with the Ventura River along its west side and a working harbor on its south shore, so hazards differ sharply by address.
Fire hazard zones in the Ventura hillsides
Homes on the hillside streets above downtown and along the northern edge of the city near the foothills are the ones to check first. Look the address up on Cal OES MyHazards, which shows fire, flood, earthquake and tsunami layers together. A fire hazard zone affects insurance, defensible space rules and the seller's disclosure; our California wildfire zones guide explains the rules and our FAIR Plan guide covers coverage if regular insurers decline.
Flood zones near the rivers and the Keys
Check the FEMA Flood Map Service Center for homes near the Ventura River, the Santa Clara River and the harbor's residential waterway, the Ventura Keys. A mapped flood zone usually means a lender will require flood insurance.
Tsunami hazard areas along the coast
The California Geological Survey publishes tsunami hazard area maps for the coast. Low-lying areas near the beaches, Pierpont and the harbor are the ones to look up.
Earthquake insurance and fault zones
Earthquake damage is not covered by a standard homeowners policy. Read our earthquake insurance guide and check fault and liquefaction zones on MyHazards for the address.
A checklist before you buy or rent in Ventura
- Read the citywide DOJ trend above, then ask Ventura police about tools for the blocks around the home.
- Search the address on the Megan's Law site.
- Look up fire, flood, tsunami and earthquake layers on MyHazards and the FEMA flood map.
- Get an insurance quote before you remove your contingencies, especially in the hillsides.
- Read the seller's natural hazard disclosure; our disclosure guide explains what it must contain.
- Visit at different times of day and on a weekend.