Copyright Chicago Tribune
Aurora was ranked in the top 40 safest cities in the United States, according to a list published this week from financial website WalletHub. Aurora came in 33rd of the 182 cities included in WalletHub’s ranking. The 182 cities ranked are made up of the 150 most populous cities across the country, plus at least two of the most populous cities in each state, according to WalletHub. Aurora is the second-largest city in Illinois. Chicago, the only other city in the state included in the list, came in at 161st. WalletHub said the cities were evaluated based on home and community safety, natural disaster risk and financial safety, using 41 weighted metrics. Each city is awarded a score out of 100. Aurora got an overall score of 64.5, according to the ranking. The city ranked first, Warwick, Rhode Island, was given a score of 71.21. The complete list of WalletHub’s 2025 Safest Cities in America is available at: https://wallethub.com/edu/safest-cities-in-america/41926. Aurora also ranked high on the list for home and community safety, at 17th of all the cities WalletHub looked at. That measure accounts for things like the presence of terrorist attacks, the number of mass shootings and the number of murders, rapes, assaults, thefts, sex offenders and hate crimes per capita. A city’s home and community safety score from WalletHub also factors in a city’s total number of police, firefighters and paramedics; the number of drug poisoning deaths, traffic fatalities and pedestrian fatalities per capita; road quality; and the overall perception of safety. The city came in 62nd for natural disaster risk and 126th for financial safety. The Aurora Police Department said in a news release that the ranking “highlights the city’s strong commitment to public safety and the combined efforts of its police officers, firefighters, emergency medical professionals and engaged residents,” and is “a reflection of both measurable safety outcomes and public confidence in local first responders.” The department cited how “just a few decades ago, national headlines portrayed Aurora as one of the most dangerous cities in America per capita,” calling it “a stark contrast to the recognition the city receives today.” There was only one homicide in 2024 in Aurora, the city said earlier this year, part of a continued downward trend that has been going on since 2019, according to past reporting. Police Chief Matt Thomas, in the department’s news release, attributed Aurora’s public safety to “the dedicated men and women who serve at the Aurora Police Department and the community that stands behind (them).” The news release also noted the city’s “continued investment” in staffing, training and technology, along with its community partnerships. “Together, we’ve worked to drive those numbers down, and we’ll keep using every resource available to make Aurora even safer,” Thomas said in the release. mmorrow@chicagotribune.com
