Crime in Amherst, New York
Updated ·Vorp Labs
The model puts major crime in Amherst at 30% above the U.S. rate per resident: 61% lower for persons crimes and 1.5 times for property crimes. Expected major crimes are down 2.9% from a year earlier.
- Modeled from FBI crime data for the police agencies serving Amherst. Where an agency didn't report to the FBI, its totals are estimated from its past reports or similar agencies.
- The model estimates about 22.4 major crimes per 1,000 residents a year (1.2 violent, 21.2 property), against 17.2 for the U.S.
- By the model's major-crime rate per resident, Amherst is higher than 83% of the 482 other New York places and 77% of the 8,446 other places nationwide on CrimeMetric.
Where these numbers come from
The estimates start from what police agencies report to the FBI, modeled across Amherst's 89 census block groups for 130,450 residents. How New York residents' crime totals reach the FBI: detailed incident reports for 74.9%, summary counts only for 17.9% and estimates from past reports or similar agencies for 7.2% (shares of 2020 residents). Sources · Method
- Year: many show an agency's last full FBI year (often two years back). These figures are the model's estimate for the current year, release 2026-11-10.
- Crimes counted: some add simple assault, vandalism or drug offenses to "violent" or "property" crime; here major crime is persons plus property crime, and social disorder is separate.
- Area: an agency's totals cover its jurisdiction, which can differ from the city's limits; these are summed over the block groups inside Amherst.
- Scale: a grade or a 1-to-100 score ranks places against each other; a rate per 1,000 residents and an index against the U.S. rate don't.
Rates are the model's estimates of reported crime per 1,000 residents a year. Index: 100 is the U.S. rate per resident; 200 is twice it. How we calculated this
How crime varies across Amherst
Half of residents live where the major-crime index is between 51 and 117.
- 0–5023.2%
- 50–10040.4%
- 100–20022.2%
- 200–4009.0%
- 400+5.1%
Check an address in Amherst
Shoplifting stands out most, at 2.5 times the U.S. rate
Citywide indexWhere the middle half of residents live
Property crimes
Social disorder
Highest on weekend daytimes
100 is the U.S. rate, same hours.
Expected major crime fell 2.9% in a year; across New York it fell 8.7%
Change in the model's expected crimes, not a count of reports; New York in gray. 2031 is a model projection, not tested against past years.
Amherst against U.S. places with 100,000 to 250,000 residents
74 of the 278 other places of this size have a major-crime index at least 15% above Amherst's, and 56 are within 15% of it; the middle of the group is 107. The 9 nearest in population:
U.S. = 100. Residents in gray.
Amherst's major-crime index is higher than 6 and within 15% of 2 of its 8 nearest neighbors
The closest, Williamsville (3 mi), is within 15% of Amherst's rate.
U.S. = 100. Miles between population centers.
Questions about crime in Amherst
Is Amherst safe?
Amherst's major-crime index is 130, 30% above the U.S. rate per resident and higher than 83% of the 482 other New York places on CrimeMetric: violent crimes against people are 61% below the U.S. rate, and property crimes 1.5 times the U.S. rate.
What is the crime rate in Amherst?
The model expects about 2,918 major crimes a year in Amherst, about 22.4 per 1,000 residents, 30% above the U.S. rate.
Is crime going up or down in Amherst?
Expected major crimes in Amherst are down 2.9% from a year earlier; across New York they're down 8.7%.
What are the most common crimes in Amherst?
By the model's expected count, the most common crimes against people and property are shoplifting (about 1,035 a year), other larceny (about 936 a year) and theft from vehicle (about 336 a year).
Are car break-ins common in Amherst?
The model expects about 336 thefts from vehicles a year in Amherst, about the U.S. rate per resident.
Are car thefts common in Amherst?
The model expects about 292 motor vehicle thefts a year in Amherst, 41% above the U.S. rate per resident.
Is Amherst safe at night?
The model's major-crime index is 120 on Sunday to Thursday nights from 6pm to 6am, against 154 at its highest in the daytime; 100 is the U.S. rate for the same hours. That's a citywide estimate per resident for those hours: it can't speak to a particular street, venue or evening. For one address, use the address lookup on this page.
Is crime in Amherst higher than the New York average?
Amherst's major-crime index is 130, 22% above the New York rate per resident. New York as a whole is 106, where 100 is the U.S. rate.
How does crime in Amherst compare with Williamsville?
Williamsville, 3 miles away, has a major-crime index of 144, within 15% of Amherst's rate per resident. Amherst's is 130.
How we calculated this
Each police agency's crimes, as reported to the FBI or estimated where it didn't report, are spread across the census block groups it serves using population, jobs, points of interest and, where available, local incident records. Amherst's figures add up its 89 block groups. The index compares crimes per resident with the U.S. rate.
- Amherst has no published incident records in our data, so its estimate relies on agency totals and neighborhood characteristics.
- Rates are per resident, so places where many people work or visit but few live, such as downtowns, airports and stadiums, can read high.
- Disorderly conduct and trespassing are modeled, because the FBI records them only through arrests.
- Residents: 130,450. Model updated Nov 10, 2026. Release 2026-11-10
Full method and validation·Data sources
CrimeMetric. "Crime in Amherst, New York." Vorp Labs, updated November 9, 2026 (model Nov 10, 2026). https://crimemetric.com/ny/amherst
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Major-crime index, U.S. = 100
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