Newcastle scores 83 out of 100 (very high safety) on World Safety Map, ranked 464 of 6168 cities worldwide. The score combines the homicide rate, nearby conflict deaths, income equality and human development from published data (UNODC, UCDP, World Bank, UNDP).

Is Newcastle safe?

Australia · Oceania · data updated 2026-09-04

83.1Very high · rank 464 / 6,168
safer than 92% of ranked cities

Newcastle is a city in Australia, home to about 183k people, and one of 6,168 cities worldwide ranked on this site from published safety data. It currently ranks 464 of 6,168, with a safety score of 83.1 out of 100, which puts it in the top band of the ranking.

US 1/4 Exercise normal precautions

Emergency 000 (ambulance, fire, police)

No official source names specific areas to avoid here: travel advisories for Australia are country-level, and no published dataset covers neighborhood-level crime - so this briefing does not invent it.

How safe is Newcastle really?

The most direct evidence is measured in the city itself: Newcastle recorded 0.7 homicides per 100,000 residents in 2016 - well below the global city median. Australia's income inequality is middling (Gini 33.8) - in this dataset inequality predicts city violence better than any other structural factor, so this neither raises nor lowers the picture much.

What the travel advisories say

The US State Department currently rates Australia at level 1 of 4 - "Exercise normal precautions" (updated 2025-05-29). The UK Foreign Office publishes travel advice for Australia without any avoid-travel warning in force. Both advisories are country-level: no official source publishes verified neighborhood-level crime guidance for individual cities, which is why this page reports named areas only where an official source names them.

What to watch out for in Australia

Terrorism in Australia · Protecting your belongings · Scams · Personal ID · Smoking and e-cigarette laws · Alcohol · Illegal drugs and prison sentences · LGBT+ travellers · Mobile phones · Working holidays · Swimming safety · Diving and snorkelling safety · Dangerous wildlife · Walking and hiking · +11 more

Topic headings from the official UK FCDO travel advice for Australia — country-level, not specific to Newcastle. Read what each one says →

The numbers

Homicide rate: 0.7 /100kcity-measured, 2016
Conflict deaths: 0within 100 km, 2022-2024 (UCDP)
Income inequality: Gini 33.8country, 2020
Human development: HDI 0.958country, 2023
Income: $69,930/yrGNI per capita PPP · context only, not scored
Population: 183kurban centre · 1,885/km²

Country context for travelers

Road deaths: 4.9 /100kWHO, 2019 · often the biggest real travel risk
Political stability: 79/100World Bank WGI, 2024 · higher = more stable
Rule of law: 82/100World Bank WGI, 2024 · police and courts reliability
Corruption perceptions: 76/100Transparency International, 2025 · higher = cleaner
Natural-hazard risk: 2.4/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
Women, Peace & Security: 0.90Georgetown WPS Index, 2025 · 0-1, higher = better
Air quality: 6.4 µg/m³PM2.5 annual mean, 2023 · WHO guideline is 5
Safely managed drinking water: no dataof the population · WHO/UNICEF JMP
Healthcare capacity: 4.1 doctors /1k3.8 hospital beds per 1,000

Natural hazards in Australia

Drought: 5.9/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
Tsunami: 5.7/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
Flood: 5.4/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
Cyclone: 4.1/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier

Hazard types scoring under 1 out of 10 are not listed. These describe Australia as a whole, not Newcastle specifically.

Same-sex sexual activity is legal in Australia (as of 2025).

All country-level figures shared by every city in Australia; none of them affect the safety score.

How the score works

Low homicide40%78

Peace25%100

Equality25%69

Development10%96

One fixed, calibrated mix for every city: 40% homicide · 25% peace · 25% equality · 10% HDI. Homicide and conflict deaths are measured outcomes; income inequality carries the structural share because it predicts real city violence far better than national income (which is shown above but scored at zero). Each factor maps to 0-100 against fixed anchors, missing data drops out and is never estimated, and cities with data behind less than half the weighting get “no data” instead of a score. For Newcastle that gives 83.1/100. Full methodology, anchors and sources →

Newcastle compared with Sydney

The nearest ranked city of comparable size. Green favours Newcastle, red favours Sydney.
Measure	Newcastle	Sydney	Difference
Safety score	83.1	87.1	−3.9 — better for Sydney
Homicide ratecity-measured where published, otherwise the national rate	0.7 /100k	0.4 /100k	+0.3 /100k — better for Sydney
Conflict deaths within 100 km	0	0	±0

Differences are plain arithmetic between the two stored figures — nothing is modelled. Both cities are in Australia, so they share every country-level figure and only the city-level ones are listed. Full report for Sydney →

Nearby cities

Sydney 87.1
Wollongong 81.1
Canberra 85.5
Gold Coast 80.6
Brisbane 83.1
North Lakes 83.1
Dallas 91.9
Melbourne 91.9

See Newcastle on the interactive map → · Safest cities in Oceania → · Full travel briefings →