Despite how peaceful Copenhagen is, it's not a crime-free city by any means. Unfortunately, such a thing doesn't exist in this day and age. It'd be great if the Danish capital was peaceful enough that there'll be no need to worry about crimes and criminals, but alas, that's far from reality. There are still crimes committed in Copenhagen and those who want to visit or even move here will have to accept that. The silver lining here, however, is that the situation here isn't as dire as in other major capital cities. You only have to look at Copenhagen's crime rates to understand this.
Copenhagen's General Crime Rate
At 27.54%, Copenhagen boasts a generally low crime rate that will put many other capital cities to shame. More often than not, since capital cities are usually crowded and always busy, they tend to have higher general crime rates than other parts of the country. But for Copenhagen, which is also an influential capital city at that, the fact that it has a low general crime rate is notable. Unfortunately, however, the city's rate of increasing crimes is at a moderate 56.11%. It's not necessarily a cause for alarm, but it does pose a concern nonetheless.
Copenhagen's Highest-Rated Crimes
Now, onto the highest-rated crimes in Copenhagen. Although the city's general crime rate is low, it bears knowing what the highly committed crimes in the city are. Right off the bat, drug dealing tops the list at 35.08%. This comes as no surprise considering that many other major capital cities, like
Zürich and
Istanbul, also have drug dealing among their highest-rated crimes. This is more so about Europe's overall drug problem than one that Copenhagen has to deal with on its own. After that, vandalism and theft come second at a combined 34.69%. Since Copenhagen is a beautiful tourist destination, it makes sense that vandals and thieves commit their crimes here.
Copenhagen's Other Notable Crimes
With a rate of 26.81%, verbal abuse ranks as the third highest-rated crime in Copenhagen. If you know anything about
Danish social customs, you'll know that they tend to be blunt and communicate directly. It's possible that this trait had led others to go beyond what's necessary and start insulting, mocking, and berating others to the point of verbal abuse. Meanwhile, the fourth highest-rated crime is car theft at 26.17%. Though it's low on the scale, this still poses a major concern among car owners in the city. Fortunately, there's always
public transport to avoid falling victim to this crime altogether.
Copenhagen's Safety Rate
How about Copenhagen's safety rate? If the city's general crime rate is low, surely its safety rate would be high, right? That's correct! As of 2021, Copenhagen's safety rate is at a very high 85.83% during the day and only falls to 67.58% at night. Even with the substantial difference between the two, they're both still considered high on the scale, which means you can explore the many
districts of Copenhagen without much worry at all. But still, it pays to be careful at the same time. You never know what may happen the moment you step outside.
Copenhagen's Most Dangerous Areas
Speaking of districts, even a city like Copenhagen can't avoid having one or two areas where you're better off not going to at a certain time. Even though the city's general crime rate is low and its safety rate is high, it's still worth noting that criminals remain committing all sorts of deviant acts here. If you're not careful, you can easily fall victim to any of them. This is most common in trains stations and public transport stops late at night. You never know what kind of sketchy characters lurk around these sorts of places. The same goes for Kødbyen, Copenhagen's meatpacking district. Though it's normally a lively foodie hotspot, when it's late at night, it's not exactly the safest place to be in!
Copenhagen may seem like a safe city overall, but that doesn't mean that crime doesn't exist here. According to the city's crime rates, there's still cause for some concern when it comes to certain crimes. You'd do well to remain careful and aware!
