Hackney records 97.19 crimes per 1,000 people, about 18 per cent above the London rate of 82.39, with 31,315 offences in the 12 months to April 2026, up 1.0 per cent on the year before. That places it 6th of the 33 London areas on CrimeRate’s ranking. Within the borough the picture is uneven: Hackney Central records 160.03 per 1,000 and Dalston 133.45, while Brownswood Park, around Finsbury Park, records 64.59.
Data: police-recorded crime, 12 months to April 2026, counts and rates from CrimeRate’s analysis of data.police.uk (Metropolitan Police, Hackney); neighbourhood monthly counts from police.uk (Hackney Central and Dalston, September 2025 to August 2026); resident population from the ONS Census 2021. Shares and ratios are our own arithmetic on those figures. Updated 3 October 2026.
Is Hackney safe compared with London and England?
Hackney recorded 97.19 crimes per 1,000 people in the 12 months to April 2026, according to CrimeRate. That is about 1.18 times the London rate of 82.39 and 1.43 times the England rate of 67.79. The headline total of 31,315 excludes anti-social behaviour: the 13 other categories add up to exactly 31,315, and 8,014 anti-social behaviour reports come on top, 39,329 incidents in all. Hackney is 6th of 33 London areas. See our London crime rate by borough ranking for the full list.
How does Hackney compare with its neighbours?
Hackney sits in the upper middle of its corner of London. Newham, across the River Lea, records more crime per head; Haringey and Islington are close behind Hackney; Waltham Forest and Tower Hamlets record noticeably less on CrimeRate’s measure.
| Area | Per 1,000, 12 months to April 2026 | Rank in London (of 33) |
|---|---|---|
| Newham | 100.22 | 4 |
| Hackney | 97.19 | 6 |
| Haringey | 95.10 | 7 |
| Islington | 90.89 | 10 |
| London (all) | 82.39 | – |
| Waltham Forest | 80.11 | 17 |
| Tower Hamlets | 69.03 | 22 |
| England | 67.79 | – |
All rates come from one source, CrimeRate, so they use the same method. Tower Hamlets looks low partly because CrimeRate divides by a population that includes Canary Wharf’s large daytime workforce; we explain that in is East London safe?, which puts Hackney next to the other six East London boroughs. For the neighbours, read is Stratford safe?, is Tottenham safe? and is Walthamstow safe?
Why is Hackney’s crime rate higher than the London average?
Hackney combines dense housing with some of London’s busiest nightlife and shopping streets. Shoreditch, Dalston and Hackney Wick draw large crowds on Friday and Saturday nights, and Mare Street, Kingsland High Street and the Overground stations bring heavy daytime footfall. Visitors are victims of theft and robbery too, but they are not counted as residents, so busy evening districts push a borough’s rate up. Against the 259,200 people counted in the ONS Census 2021, the 31,315 offences work out at about 121 per 1,000 residents, higher than CrimeRate’s 97.19 because CrimeRate divides by a larger population base. Either way, Hackney is above the London average, but most of the extra crime is concentrated in a few busy centres rather than spread across the borough.
What kind of crime is recorded in Hackney?
Violence and sexual offences is the largest category at 28.0 per cent, but theft from the person is unusually high in second place. The table shows each category’s count and share of the 31,315 total (anti-social behaviour excluded).
| Category | Hackney, 12 months to April 2026 | Share of total |
|---|---|---|
| Violence and sexual offences | 8,771 | 28.0% |
| Theft from the person | 4,296 | 13.7% |
| Other theft | 3,014 | 9.6% |
| Shoplifting | 2,234 | 7.1% |
| Drugs | 2,165 | 6.9% |
| Public order | 2,162 | 6.9% |
| Vehicle crime | 1,913 | 6.1% |
| Burglary | 1,879 | 6.0% |
| Criminal damage and arson | 1,627 | 5.2% |
| Robbery | 1,515 | 4.8% |
| Bicycle theft | 1,152 | 3.7% |
| Other crime | 321 | 1.0% |
| Possession of weapons | 266 | 0.8% |
Three points stand out. First, theft from the person, mostly pickpocketing and phone snatching: 4,296 offences, 13.32 per 1,000, about 2.9 times the 1,463 recorded in neighbouring Waltham Forest. It follows the crowds in Shoreditch and Dalston. Second, bicycle theft: 1,152 offences, roughly three times Waltham Forest’s 369, which fits a borough where many people cycle. Third, theft of all kinds (theft from the person, other theft, shoplifting and bicycle theft) adds up to 10,696 offences, 34.2 per cent of the total. Violence and sexual offences is a broad category that includes harassment, stalking and offences without injury, and possession of weapons is the smallest line at 266. Drugs and weapons offences are mostly recorded when police find them, so they reflect patrols as much as the underlying problem. Anti-social behaviour, at 24.86 per 1,000, is 20.4 per cent of all incidents including it.
Is crime in Hackney going up or down?
Roughly flat, slightly up. CrimeRate records 31,001 offences (96.80 per 1,000) in the previous year against 31,315 (97.19) in the 12 months to April 2026, an increase of 314, or 1.0 per cent. More recent police.uk figures, which include anti-social behaviour, show the two busiest centres steady through the year:
| Month | Hackney Central (police.uk) | Dalston (police.uk) |
|---|---|---|
| Sep 2025 | 208 | 248 |
| Oct 2025 | 229 | 280 |
| Nov 2025 | 191 | 216 |
| Dec 2025 | 187 | 234 |
| Jan 2026 | 239 | 216 |
| Feb 2026 | 200 | 184 |
| Mar 2026 | 250 | 231 |
| Apr 2026 | 225 | 224 |
| May 2026 | 222 | 254 |
| Jun 2026 | 205 | 243 |
| Jul 2026 | 232 | 284 |
| Aug 2026 | 217 | 257 |
| 12 months | 2,605 | 2,871 |
Hackney Central ranged from 187 to 250 a month. Dalston ranged from 184 in February to 284 in July, and its summer months were among its busiest, which fits an area with a large evening economy. Neither shows a sustained rise or fall.
Which parts of Hackney record the most and the least crime?
CrimeRate splits Hackney into 16 areas. The highest rates are in the busy centres; the lowest are in the quieter residential north. These are CrimeRate’s own area boundaries, so the 16 counts add up to slightly more than the borough total and should be read as a guide.
| Area | Crimes, 12 months to April 2026 | Per 1,000 |
|---|---|---|
| Highest rates | ||
| Hackney Central | 3,018 | 160.03 |
| Dalston | 4,687 | 133.45 |
| Manor House | 1,059 | 126.95 |
| Hackney Wick | 1,543 | 113.14 |
| Lower Clapton | 2,708 | 111.20 |
| Lowest rates | ||
| De Beauvoir Town | 958 | 78.72 |
| Stamford Hill | 1,697 | 77.02 |
| Stoke Newington | 2,881 | 75.07 |
| Upper Clapton | 1,790 | 70.02 |
| Brownswood Park | 587 | 64.59 |
Hackney Central’s rate is about 1.65 times the borough’s, and Brownswood Park’s is about two-thirds of it. Dalston has the largest count of any area, 4,687, around the Kingsland Road, the Overground interchange and the late-night bars. The other areas sit in between: Homerton 108.83, Hoxton 90.09 (3,402 crimes), South Hackney 88.32, Shoreditch 85.38 (2,306) and Haggerston 82.22. Hackney Marshes is left out of the table because it recorded only 13 offences; with so few people living there, its rate means little. Shoreditch’s mid-table rate still comes with 2,306 offences, one of the larger counts in the borough. A high count in a town centre partly reflects more shops, transport and footfall, not more risk for people who live nearby.
Is Hackney safe at night?
Police street-level data carries no time of day, so it cannot say directly whether Hackney is riskier after dark. The mix points to the main issues: phone snatching and pickpocketing around Shoreditch High Street, Dalston Junction and Hackney Central stations, and violence and public order offences near busy bars. In August 2026 the largest categories in Hackney Central were violence and sexual offences (50), anti-social behaviour (44) and shoplifting (36); in Dalston they were anti-social behaviour (76), violence and sexual offences (48) and shoplifting (25). Keep your phone out of sight near station entrances and at the kerb, stay on lit, busy routes such as Mare Street and Kingsland High Street, and check the streets you will use in the postcode checker.
Is Hackney a safe place to live?
Hackney’s borough rate is above the London average, but the difference between its areas is larger than the difference between Hackney and London. The quieter residential parts in the north, such as Stoke Newington, Upper Clapton and Brownswood Park, record rates below the London average on CrimeRate’s measure, while the busiest centres record much more. For a home, the streets you will live on matter more than the borough average. If you cycle, use a good lock and store the bike indoors where you can, given the high level of bicycle theft. Compare two postcodes before you decide, and read how to check crime in your area for the limits of any single number. This page describes what was recorded, not the people who live here.
How do I check a specific street or postcode in Hackney?
- Enter your postcode in the postcode checker to see 12 months of police-recorded crime and the trend by month.
- Add a second postcode, for example one near Clissold Park or Victoria Park, to compare two areas side by side.
- Zoom into the UK crime map to see what was recorded near a street.
These figures describe areas, not addresses. Police data covers reported crime only, and each crime is shown at a nearby anonymised point. Read where our crime data comes from for the limits. Rates from different websites use different population estimates and are not directly comparable, so the borough rates on this page all come from one source.
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Hackney crime FAQ
What is the crime rate in Hackney?
Hackney recorded 97.19 crimes per 1,000 people in the 12 months to April 2026, against 82.39 for London and 67.79 for England (CrimeRate). Anti-social behaviour is not included in that figure. Per resident, using the ONS Census 2021 population of 259,200, it is about 121 per 1,000.
Is Hackney one of the most dangerous boroughs in London?
It is 6th of 33 London areas on CrimeRate’s crime rate, behind Westminster, Kensington and Chelsea, Lambeth, Newham and Camden. Much of its crime is concentrated in busy centres such as Hackney Central, Dalston and Shoreditch.
Is crime in Hackney going up?
Slightly: 31,315 offences in the 12 months to April 2026, up 1.0 per cent from 31,001 a year earlier. Monthly police.uk counts for Hackney Central and Dalston to August 2026 show no sustained rise.
What is the safest part of Hackney?
On CrimeRate’s area figures, Brownswood Park has the lowest rate (64.59 per 1,000), followed by Upper Clapton (70.02) and Stoke Newington (75.07), all below the London rate.
Where does this data come from?
Police-recorded crime published on data.police.uk and police.uk under the Open Government Licence v3.0, analysed by CrimeRate for counts and rates, with the ONS Census 2021 for residents. See where our crime data comes from.
More on London: London crime rate by borough, is London safe?, safest areas in London and crime in London: what the police data shows. Other London areas: East London, Stratford, Tottenham, Walthamstow and Camden. In an emergency call 999.