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Is Boulder, Colorado Safe? The 2025 Police Numbers
Published October 30, 2026
Boulder Police logged 5,187 property crimes and 1,727 crimes against persons in 2025, both down from 2024. Here is what the city's and CU Boulder's numbers show.
Is Boulder, Colorado safe? By the city's own 2025 numbers, property crime is about three times as common in Boulder as crime against people (our calculation from the police report), and both counts fell from 2024. Below are Boulder Police's and CU Boulder's official figures, linked and dated, plus the safety services a CU student can use, gathered by Tour The Hill, a Boulder company whose guides are current CU Boulder students.
Is Boulder, Colorado safe for a college student?
For a college student, Boulder, Colorado's 2025 police numbers show property crime as the most commonly reported crime: the Boulder Police Department recorded 5,187 property crimes and 1,727 crimes against persons citywide in 2025, according to its 2025 annual report.
Both numbers were lower than in 2024, when the department recorded 6,319 property crimes and 1,752 crimes against persons, per its annual reports page (read October 2026). That is a drop of about 18% in property crime in one year and a small drop in crimes against persons (our calculation).
Boulder Police also logged 533 drug offense cases in 2025. These are counts for the whole city, students and residents together, not rates per person.
The practical step for a family: lock up bikes, cars and front doors, since property crime is the largest of the crime counts in Boulder Police's report. The full 2025 report is on the City of Boulder's site.
How safe is the CU Boulder campus?
The CU Boulder campus recorded 1 robbery, 8 aggravated assaults, 13 burglaries and 27 motor vehicle thefts on campus property in 2025, according to CU's Annual Security and Fire Safety Report, which CU publishes each year by October 1 under the federal Clery Act. The same table also lists:
- 223 arrests and 1,008 disciplinary referrals for liquor law violations, 882 of those referrals in residence halls
- 49 arrests and 170 disciplinary referrals for drug law violations
- 21 reported rapes (18 in residence halls), 109 fondling reports, 20 stalking reports and 6 dating violence reports
CU's footnotes explain single cases behind some of those counts: one rape report concerned a 2016 incident reported in 2025, and the rise in fondling reports comes from one perpetrator's repeated acts against one victim over two years. Read them in the full report before comparing years.
The report also covers recognized sorority and fraternity houses as "non-campus" property, where Boulder Police has primary responsibility. CU tells prospective students that, as with any community, crime occasionally happens on and off campus, and to take reasonable precautions at all times.
How do CU students get home from The Hill at night?
CU students get home from The Hill at night on foot, by bus, or with CU NightRide, a free ride service. NightRide is a student-operated ride service, "free for CU students, faculty, and staff," that covers the main campus and any point "within the city boundaries," per CU's 2026 security report. Book it at the dispatch desk in the UMC or by calling 303-492-SAFE (7233).
The HOP bus, which serves University Hill and downtown, runs until 10 p.m. every day, every 20 minutes on weekday evenings, per CU's bus page and the City's HOP page (read October 2026).
Boulder Police has "University Hill officers" who work "with University Hill neighbors, students and the business community," and University Hill was one of its 12 targeted community projects in 2025, per its annual report. CU Boulder Police also holds police authority across the city through a commission from Boulder's police chief.
How does CU Boulder keep students safe in the dorms?
CU Boulder keeps students safe in the dorms with locked doors, escorted guests and security patrols, according to its 2026 Annual Security and Fire Safety Report.
- Locked doors. "All residence hall doors that lead to living areas are locked 24 hours a day." Lobbies are open 6 a.m. to 8 p.m., and residents get in with their Buff OneCard.
- Escorted guests. "All visitors and guests must be escorted by the resident."
- Patrols. Residential Security Officers "regularly patrol and walk through the residential communities."
- Campus police. CU Boulder Police "serves campus 24/7 by foot, bike, motorcycle and vehicle," per CU Boulder Today (February 2025). The non-emergency line is 303-492-6666; for an emergency, call or text 911.
- Alerts. Every colorado.edu address is "automatically registered to receive emergency and safety alert" emails, per CU Boulder Today (February 2025). Add a mobile number at alerts.colorado.edu to get texts as well.
Set up the alerts before move-in day, and have your student save the CU police number in their phone.
How common is bike theft in Boulder?
Bike theft in Boulder is common: even after a drop of "about 33%" from 2024, more than $1,000,000 in bicycles was stolen in Boulder in 2025, according to the Boulder Police 2025 annual report. That drop was about 270 fewer stolen bikes for the year, and "The average cost of a stolen bicycle in Boulder is more than $1,500."
Boulder Police points riders to the Bike Index registry, and CU's security report says "All bicycles regularly parked on campus should be registered," because registration "discourages theft and aids in identification and recovery." Register the bike in the first week and lock the frame with a U-lock.
Our transportation guide covers bikes, buses and scooters around campus.
To walk campus and The Hill with a current CU student and ask your own questions, book Tour The Hill's Private Tour, $150 per group for 60 to 90 minutes, at tourthehillboulder.com/request-tour.
Frequently asked questions
What is the CU Boulder Police non-emergency number?
The CU Boulder Police non-emergency number is 303-492-6666, according to CU Boulder Today and CU's 2026 Annual Security and Fire Safety Report. For an emergency, call or text 911. CU's police department serves campus around the clock, and it also has police authority in the city of Boulder through a commission from the city's chief of police.
Is CU NightRide free?
Yes, CU NightRide is free for CU students, faculty and staff, according to CU Boulder's 2026 Annual Security and Fire Safety Report. The student-run service gives night rides on the main campus and to or from any point within Boulder's city boundaries. Book it by calling 303-492-SAFE (7233) or at its desk in the University Memorial Center.
Where can I read CU Boulder's crime statistics?
You can read CU Boulder's crime statistics in its Annual Security and Fire Safety Report, posted on CU's Clery compliance site. CU publishes it each year by October 1, with three years of statistics for campus, the public property next to it, and non-campus property such as recognized Greek houses. The 2026 report covers 2023, 2024 and 2025.