How Safe Is My Berlin Neighborhood? Here's How to Check Officially

Before renting an apartment in Berlin, it's natural to wonder how safe a given area really is. Instead of relying on forums or a general gut feeling about a neighborhood, there's an official, free source for that: the Kriminalitätsatlas Berlin (Berlin Crime Map), run by the Berlin police and the state criminal investigation office. The tool shows recorded offenses and frequency rates for all 143 district regions and 12 administrative districts over a ten-year period.

What exactly is the Kriminalitätsatlas Berlin?

The Kriminalitätsatlas is an interactive map operated by the Berlin police and the Landeskriminalamt, available online since 2018. It covers 17 different offense types and categories, from burglary to street crime, and, per the official description, is updated annually as of December 31, in step with the publication of the annual police crime statistics report. That lets you check, for any of the 143 district regions, how many cases in a given category were recorded in that specific area.

What does the frequency rate mean?

The central metric in the atlas is the "Häufigkeitszahl," or frequency rate: the number of known cases per 100,000 residents. This normalization makes areas of different sizes comparable, regardless of whether a district has a large or small population. A district with a high frequency rate for street crime has relatively more recorded cases per capita than a district with a low rate, even if the absolute case count differs.

If you already know which part of the city you want to live in, our guide to Berlin's top neighborhoods is a good starting point.

How do I use the atlas for my own apartment search?

Look up the specific district region of the apartment you're considering, rather than just the overall administrative district. Within a single district, individual neighborhoods can vary considerably, for instance because a lively nightlife area has different crime patterns than a quiet residential street a few hundred meters away. Comparing multiple years within the ten-year time series also shows whether an area is trending in a particular direction, rather than looking at just a single snapshot.

Is the crime statistic enough on its own?

No, it's one piece of the puzzle among several. The frequency rate says nothing about how safe an area feels, street lighting in the evening, or proximity to a busy subway station. Visiting in person at different times of day, ideally including the evening, adds impressions that no statistic can capture. If family-friendliness matters to you as well, combine the Kriminalitätsatlas with information on schools, daycare centers, and green spaces in the district.

Our family-friendly Berlin neighborhoods guide goes into more depth on exactly those factors.

Conclusion

The Kriminalitätsatlas Berlin is the only official, continuously updated source for checking a specific neighborhood's safety yourself before moving in, instead of relying on hearsay. Combine the frequency rates with your own visit to the area and other factors like transit connections and infrastructure to make an informed decision. Waitly's waitlist then helps you find listings specifically in the district regions that match your priorities. If budget matters just as much, our guide to affordable neighborhoods for expats has concrete figures, and our neighborhood guide covers the most popular expat areas.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where can I find the official Kriminalitätsatlas Berlin?

It's free at kriminalitaetsatlas.berlin.de and is run by the Berlin police and the Landeskriminalamt.

How often is the Kriminalitätsatlas updated?

Per the official description, annually as of December 31, in step with the publication of the previous year's police crime statistics.

What is a frequency rate (Häufigkeitszahl)?

It's the number of known offenses per 100,000 residents, which makes areas of different sizes directly comparable.

Should I look at the administrative district or the district region?

The district region. Within a single administrative district, individual neighborhoods can have noticeably different values that get averaged out in the district-wide figure.

Does the statistic replace visiting in person?

No. The frequency rate is an objective data point, but it says nothing about lighting, how safe an area feels, or the immediate surroundings. A visit at different times of day meaningfully complements the official numbers.