Crime Index 2025: Kuala Lumpur is the 3rd Most Dangerous City in Southeast Asia, 5th in Asia

Numbeo, a crowd-sourced online database of perceived quality of life metrics, recently published the Crime Index 2025, which doesn’t make for good readings for Malaysians, especially those living in the capital city.

This is because Kuala Lumpur has a crime index of 60.4, the third highest in Southeast Asia and the fifth highest overall in Asia. 

Kuala Lumpur is the third most dangerous city in Southeast Asia, 5th in Asia

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Only four Asian cities, two of which are in Southeast Asia, have a higher crime index than Kuala Lumpur in the study, which are Damascus, Syria in first place, Manila and Quezon City in the Philippines in second and third, and Dhaka, Bangladesh, in fourth.

Here are the top 10 cities with the highest crime indexes in Asia, according to Numbeo:

Globally, Kuala Lumpur, with its 60.4 crime index, was ranked 69th overall.

Besides the capital city, three other Malaysian cities were listed in the Crime Index 2025, which are Klang, Johor Bahru and Penang.

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Klang recorded a crime index of 54.8, placing the city 12th in Asia and 105th globally, while Johor Bahru recorded a crime index of 48.7, making it the Asian city with the highest crime index and 157th in the world.

As for Penang, it is the safest city in Malaysia with a crime index of 29.9, placing it 55th in Asia and 308th out of 382 cities globally.

A crime index of above 60 is considered high 

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According to Numbeo, the Crime Index 2025 is based on data derived from surveys conducted by visitors to its website. Numbeo further elaborated that the crime index is an estimation of the overall level of crime in a given city or country.

The study considers crime levels lower than 20 as very low, crime levels between 20 and 40 as low, crime levels between 40 and 60 as moderate, crime levels between 60 and 80 as high, and crime levels higher than 80 as very high.

Specifically, the crime index takes into account survey responses about:

1. The general perception of crime levels
2. Perceived safety: Survey responses from residents and visitors regarding their feelings of safety while walking during daylight and at night
3. Concerns about specific crimes: Survey questions about worries regarding mugging, robbery, car theft, physical attacks by strangers, harassment in public places, and discrimination based on factors like skin colour, ethnicity, gender, or religion
4. Property crimes: Assessment of the extent of property-related crimes, such as burglary, theft, vandalism and others
5. Violent crimes: Evaluation of the perception of violent crimes, including assault, homicide, sexual offences and others

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Kuala Lumpur was the world’s 10th most visited city last year

Previously, Kuala Lumpur was ranked the 5th most dangerous Southeast Asian city for tourists to visit by Forbes.

However, this did not stop tourists from visiting the Malaysian capital city, as Kuala Lumpur was the 10th most visited city in the world in 2024.

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So, what do you guys think of the four Malaysian cities’ rankings in the Crime Index 2025? Share your thoughts with us in the comments!

Also read: Forbes Names Kuala Lumpur the 5th Most Dangerous ASEAN City for Tourists to Visit, 29th Globally