Warm Safe Places to Live in the US

You’re tired of cold weather, gray skies, and dealing with snow or ice. I don’t blame you. I hate cold weather with a passion, too. I absolutely adore clear skies, hot summers, and warm winters. I wither away in cooler weather, let alone properly cold, gray days.

I assume you desire warm weather or sunny weather, and if possible, both. But you don’t want just the weather. You also want access to all the amenities and feel safe where you live. If that’s you, I’m happy you’re reading my article. I’m going to show you some options for safe warm climate places in the US.

And this isn’t just a generic article listing the same places as everyone else. As I always do for each article, I personally conducted proper research to identify the best safe places where you can enjoy warm weather.

Defining Warm Safe Places to Live

When looking for a warm, safe place to live in the United States, we have at least two criteria we need to look at. First: how do we define “warm weather?” And second: what does it mean that a place is safe? Let’s start with the first one.

What Does “Warm Weather” Mean?

Different people have different definitions of warm weather. For some, this means year round mild weather coastal California style where it’s never too hot or too cold. For others, this means mild winters and hot summers. And some people are only interested in warm weather found year round in South Florida or Hawaii.

For the purposes of this article, I don’t want to limit the options too much. So, my primary criteria is that the average temperature in the winter in the coldest month is at least 60 °F during the day. Ideally, nighttime temperatures don’t go too cold, either.

Such average winter temperature means that you don’t have to deal with snow and freezing temperatures. It also means that no matter the time of the year, you can always enjoy the outdoors. As for sunny weather, in the case of the United States, high winter temperatures often go together with abundant sunshine hours throughout the year.

How Do We Determine Whether a City Is Safe?

While no method is perfect to identify the safest cities, we can go with standardized crime statistics from FBI to pick areas where you’re least likely to become a victim of crime. Using this data, Moneygeek published a super interesting article on the safest cities in the US which I’m going to use for this article to make a list of the safest warm cities in the US.

Factors I Don’t Take Into Consideration

Since we’re focusing on warm safe places, I won’t be covering factors like median home price or cost of living in general. Rather, treat my list as a starting point for more detailed research for the cities that interest you the most. My assumption for this article is that pleasant weather plus safety get priority over affordable housing or prices below the national average.

Remember that warm weather is one of the most universally desirable factors for people looking for a new place to live. This means that these places rarely offer a truly low cost of living.

But don’t despair. It doesn’t matter that they’re for millionaires, only, either.

I’m only writing this as a reminder that you need to have clear priorities.

If affordable cost of living is more important than climate, be honest with yourself. If getting the best weather possible is essential, be ready to accept potential higher housing prices and overall higher living costs.

I wrote an article on places with warm weather that have a low cost of living for some budget-friendly options. Note that in that article, I don’t focus on safety but instead on the cost of living. I also list cities with cooler weather than in this one.

For international options, you may also want to read my article on the safest warm countries to live in.

Top 15 Warm Safe Cities to Live in the United States

Each city below comes with violent crime rate and property crime rate per 100,000 inhabitants. I also share the city’s average temperature during the day and at night in the coldest month and the hottest month.

I ranked the cities by their violent crime rate, starting with the safest cities. Below I describe only top 15 safest cities. Later in the article I share a table with 68 cities.

1. El Monte, CA

Violent crime rate: 43

Property crime rate: 386

Coldest month temperatures (average maximum/average minimum): 67/45 °F

Hottest month temperatures (average maximum/average minimum): 87/65 °F

Out of the analyzed cities, El Monte is the safest warm city in the United States. Its violent crime rate is extremely low while its property crime rate is the tenth lowest in the entire ranking. The city enjoys a mild Mediterranean climate.

2. West Covina, CA

Violent crime rate: 49

Property crime rate: 415

Coldest month temperatures (average maximum/average minimum): 60/42 °F

Hottest month temperatures (average maximum/average minimum): 89/65 °F

Since I couldn’t find climate data for West Covina I took data from nearby Covina. Like nearby El Monte, West Covina is a suburban city in Los Angeles County. It has slightly cooler winter weather than El Monte and similar crime rates.

3. Glendale, AZ

Violent crime rate: 62

Property crime rate: 135

Coldest month temperatures (average maximum/average minimum): 66.2/45.3 °F

Hottest month temperatures (average maximum/average minimum): 106.5/84.5 °F

Glendale has the second lowest property crime rate in this ranking (New Orleans is first but it has a much higher violent crime rate). Due to its hot desert climate it enjoys very mild winters and experiences extreme temperatures in the summer.

4. Sugar Land, TX

Violent crime rate: 66

Property crime rate: 1,247

Coldest month temperatures (average maximum/average minimum): 61.9/41.5 °F

Hottest month temperatures (average maximum/average minimum): 93.7/74.5 °F

Sugar Land has a much higher property crime rate than the previous three cities but it’s still one of the safest places in the United States when we look at violent crime rates. Winter nights in Sugar Land can be chilly but the average high temperature is still pleasant.

5. Oxnard, CA

Violent crime rate: 69

Property crime rate: 176

Coldest month temperatures (average maximum/average minimum): 65.9/46.1 °F

Hottest month temperatures (average maximum/average minimum): 73.5/60.6 °F

Oxnard has one of the mildest climates on this list. Hot weather is rare and winters feature mostly pleasant temperatures (except for chillier nights). Oxnard has one of the lowest property crime rates in the US.

6. Thousand Oaks, CA

Violent crime rate: 71

Property crime rate: 1,167

Coldest month temperatures (average maximum/average minimum): 66.6/35.9 °F

Hottest month temperatures (average maximum/average minimum): 91.4/54.2 °F

Thousand Oaks has some of the coldest winter nights in this ranking. Still, the climate is otherwise warm year round. While the city has a low violent crime rate, its property crime rate is much higher than in many other cities in top15.

7. Rancho Cucamonga, CA

Violent crime rate: 73

Property crime rate: 210

Coldest month temperatures (average maximum/average minimum): 66.2/41.4 °F

Hottest month temperatures (average maximum/average minimum): 93.9/61.2 °F

As most warm places in California in this ranking, Rancho Cucamonga enjoys consistent sunny weather with warm to hot temperatures year round. Its has both low violent crime rate as well as property crime rate, making it one of the safest warm places in California.

8. League City, TX

Violent crime rate: 84

Property crime rate: 1,097

Coldest month temperatures (average maximum/average minimum): 64/46 °F

Hottest month temperatures (average maximum/average minimum): 92/76 °F

League City is a city within the Greater Houston metropolitan area. Its humid subtropical climate gives it mild winters and hot, humid summers (that feel much hotter than summers in California or Arizona). The city has the lowest violent crime rate in Texas after Sugar Land.

9. Norwalk, CA

Violent crime rate: 90

Property crime rate: 322

Coldest month temperatures (average maximum/average minimum): 70/48 °F

Hottest month temperatures (average maximum/average minimum): 91/68 °F

Since I couldn’t find climate data for Norwalk I took data from nearby Buena Park. Norwalk has the warmest winters in California out of all Californian cities featured in top15. Its property crime rate is one of the lowest in the state.

10. Jurupa Valley, CA

Violent crime rate: 92

Property crime rate: 373

Coldest month temperatures (average maximum/average minimum): 67/42 °F

Hottest month temperatures (average maximum/average minimum): 95/66 °F

Jurupa Valley, located in Riverside County, has very similar crime rates to Norwalk. The city enjoys warm winter days and records hot summers. As most Californian cities in this ranking, it has very low precipitation and is blessed with abundant sunshine.

11. Pearland, TX

Violent crime rate: 107

Property crime rate: 1,447

Coldest month temperatures (average maximum/average minimum): 61.9/41.5 °F

Hottest month temperatures (average maximum/average minimum): 93.7/74.5 °F

Because no climate data was available for Pearland, I took temperature averages from nearby Sugar Land. As the third largest city in the Greater Houston area, Pearland is one of the best options to enjoy warm weather while also enjoying the safety the area provides.

12. Gilbert, AZ

Violent crime rate: 119

Property crime rate: 1,070

Coldest month temperatures (average maximum/average minimum): 67/40 °F

Hottest month temperatures (average maximum/average minimum): 106/77 °F

As is the case with most cities in Arizona located in the desert, Gilbert experiences very hot summers. The city experiences very little rainfall and is consistently sunny. Its property crime rate is several times higher than in Glendale, AZ.

13. Glendale, CA

Violent crime rate: 120

Property crime rate: 912

Coldest month temperatures (average maximum/average minimum): 66.1/44.2 °F

Hottest month temperatures (average maximum/average minimum): 88.9/64.9 °F

The second Glendale in this ranking is located in California, in the San Fernando Valley. The city’s Mediterranean climate guarantees clear skies and pleasant temperatures throughout the year. Glendale has one of the highest property crime rates out of all Californian cities in this top15 ranking, though.

14. Orange, CA

Violent crime rate: 129

Property crime rate: 697

Coldest month temperatures (average maximum/average minimum): 68/44 °F

Hottest month temperatures (average maximum/average minimum): 86/62 °F

Orange in southern California enjoys great weather throughout the year. While summers may sometimes come with hot weather, overall Orange offers some of the best weather in the state. Its crime statistics portray it as a safe place, too.

15. Surprise, AZ

Violent crime rate: 132

Property crime rate: 1,476