The Nation’s Two Crime Measures, 2015–2024

• NCJ Number: 310700
• Author(s): Lizabeth Remrey, PhD, BJS Statistician; Erin Tinney, PhD, BJS Statistician
• Date Published: March 2026
• Publication Series: Nation’s Two Crime Measures, NCVS and NIBRS Comparisons
• Publication Type: Publication

Description

This report presents statistics from BJS’s National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) and the FBI’s National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS), both of which measure the magnitude, nature, and impact of crime in the nation. It presents rates of violent and property crime from the NCVS and the NIBRS Estimation Program’s Summary Estimates for the most recent 10-year period (2015 to 2024). The NCVS measures nonfatal criminal victimizations, reported and not reported to police. NIBRS collects data on fatal and nonfatal crime incidents reported by law enforcement agencies. The NCVS and NIBRS collections have different purposes, use different methods, and measure a set of criminal offenses that are similar but not identical. Taken together, the information they produce provides a comprehensive understanding of crime in the United States.

Highlights

• In 2024, the NCVS rate of violent crime excluding simple assault was 8.9 victimizations per 1,000 persons age 12 or older. The rate increased from 2015 (6.8 per 1,000) to 2018 (8.6 per 1,000), then declined from 2018 to 2021 (5.6 per 1,000) before rising to 9.8 per 1,000 in 2022. Since 2022, the rate has not changed significantly.
• The NCVS rate of violent crime excluding simple assault reported to police followed a similar pattern to that of the NCVS rate of violent crime excluding simple assault, varying between 2.8 and 5.3 per 1,000 persons age 12 or older from 2015 to 2024.
• During the 10-year period from 2015 to 2024, the NIBRS Estimation Program Summary Estimates rate of violent crime fluctuated between 3.7 and 4.0 per 1,000 persons.
• During the same 10-year period, the NIBRS Estimation Program Summary Estimates rate of property crime declined 28%, from 24.9 per 1,000 persons to 17.9 per 1,000.