How do I find the safest places to live in Florida?
To compare places in Florida, check each place's crime reports with its sheriff's office or police and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
Read the answer →Ask 1stFlorida
Where do I find Florida's crime figures?
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement collects Florida's crime reports, and its FIBRS data shows offenses reported from 2021 to the present.
FIBRS is the Florida Incident-Based Reporting System, Florida's version of the FBI's National Incident-Based Reporting System. Sheriff's offices and police departments submit their crime reports to it, and the department groups offenses by the date each one happened. The figures are updated as cases move forward, so a total can change after it is first posted.
The way crime is counted changed. Before January 1, 2021, only the most serious offense in an incident was counted. The new system can count several offenses, victims and offenders in one incident. Crime totals rose after agencies switched because the counting is more complete, not because there was more crime, and the new totals cannot be compared directly with the old ones.
The department's newest yearly statewide summary report covers 2021. The FBI stopped collecting the old summary data after 2020, and during the change some agencies reported the old way, some the new way, and some had not yet reported.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is the state agency, based in Tallahassee, that also handles criminal investigations, forensic science and the Florida Capitol Police. Its headquarters number is 850-410-7000. For a single county or city, some sheriff's offices and police departments also post their own yearly crime reports on their websites.
Where to go from here.
How do I check whether a part of Florida is safe?
Whether Florida is safe for you depends on the area, and state agencies publish crime reports and hurricane evacuation zones you can check before you move.
Read the answer →What does a Florida county sheriff's office do, and how is it different from city police?
Each of Florida's 67 counties has one sheriff, elected by county voters to a 4-year term, whose office polices the county outside city limits.
Read the answer →Where this comes from.
- Florida Incident-Based Reporting System (FIBRS), Florida Department of Law Enforcement ↗ Read October 28, 2026
- Annual State Summary Crime Data Reports, Florida Department of Law Enforcement ↗ Read October 28, 2026
- Contact FDLE, Florida Department of Law Enforcement ↗ Read October 28, 2026
- Contact, Florida Sexual Offenders and Predators, Florida Department of Law Enforcement (headquarters address, 2331 Phillips Road, Tallahassee) ↗ Read October 28, 2026
- Flagler County Sheriff's Office Releases 2025 Crime Statistics, Flagler County Sheriff's Office ↗ Read October 28, 2026
- 2022-2025 Offenses and Benchmarking Crime Recommendations, Fort Lauderdale Police Department, March 2026 ↗ Read October 28, 2026
More questions like this.
How do I find the safest places to live in Florida?
To compare places in Florida, check each place's crime reports with its sheriff's office or police and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
How do I check whether a part of Florida is safe?
Whether Florida is safe for you depends on the area, and state agencies publish crime reports and hurricane evacuation zones you can check before you move.
How do I meet people and join clubs and social groups after moving to Florida?
Senior centers, public libraries and county parks departments all run group programs in Florida, and volunteering is another way to meet people.
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