Property Crime: How Does Memphis Compare to Nashville, Birmingham, and Little Rock?

Memphis gets talked about a lot when crime comes up — and sometimes deservedly so. But if we’re going to have an honest public safety conversation, it helps to compare Memphis against other regional cities using similar property-crime categories: burglary, theft/larceny, and motor vehicle theft.

A few things stand out from the latest available 2025/2026 data.

Memphis is still a high-crime city, but the property crime trend has improved sharply. Through late 2025 reporting, Memphis showed major declines in burglary, larceny, and motor vehicle theft. MPD’s 2025 year-to-date update through September showed burglary down from 4,125 to 3,321, larceny down from 20,979 to 16,810, and motor vehicle theft down from 7,956 to 4,956 compared with the same 2024 period. That’s still a lot of victims — but it is not a flat or worsening trend.

Nashville looks better overall, but it is not crime-free. Nashville reported property crime down nearly 12% in 2025, and burglaries dropped to 2,524 — reportedly the lowest total in Metro government history. That’s a strong trend, especially for a larger city, but Nashville still deals with the same common issues: vehicle break-ins, theft from cars, retail theft, and residential/commercial burglary.

Birmingham’s 2025 picture was more mixed. In the first half of 2025, Birmingham reported property crime up 9.1%. Theft was the main driver, up 13.9%, while burglary increased 3.8% and auto theft actually fell 3.6%. So Birmingham is a good reminder that the “crime is down nationally” headline does not mean every city or every category is down at the same time.

Finally, Little Rock is interesting because its property crime had a big 2025 decline, but early 2026 looks flatter. LRPD’s latest 2026 reporting through May 11 showed property crime almost even with the same period in 2025: 2,985 incidents vs. 2,942. Burglary was down 10%, vehicle theft was down 1%, but larceny/theft was up 4%.

These are unique cities and not ideal for comparison in all municipal categories, but they are the major metro areas nearby. So, what’s the fair takeaway?

Memphis still has real public safety challenges. Nobody should pretend otherwise. But the “Memphis is uniquely out of control while every other regional city is fine” narrative is too simple.

Across the region, property crime is mostly about opportunity: unlocked vehicles, visible valuables, weak lighting, repeat locations, retail theft patterns, and homes or businesses that are easy to approach without being noticed. Follow standard protocols to address these vulnerabilities and you greatly reduce your risk of becoming a victim. This goes for any of the cities being discussed here.

The goal is not to smear any city — Memphis, Nashville, Birmingham, or Little Rock. Having good, accurate data is critical to making good decisions.