Cambridge is a compact, bike-borne city, and its crime map reflects that. The CB1 city centre, Romsey and Petersfield sits in a very different environment from affluent west Cambridge and Newnham (CB3), the mixed northern estates of Chesterton, Arbury and King's Hedges (CB4), or the southern district of Trumpington and Cherry Hinton (CB2). Beyond the city the CB postcode reaches Newmarket, Saffron Walden, Ely's southern edge and a wide ring of villages. For university-town buyers and bike-theft-conscious renters, knowing where a postcode falls in the CB area matters a great deal.
This breakdown uses recent data from the official UK Police API. The Cambridge postcodes sit inside Cambridgeshire Constabulary, with the southern fringe shading into Suffolk and Essex.
Cambridge Crime at a Glance
Within Cambridge itself, crime concentrates in the centre around the market, the shopping core and the night-time strip, with bike theft running through every central and college district, while west Cambridge and the surrounding villages record consistently lower counts. The northern estates of CB4 carry the city's higher residential property-crime load.
| Postcode | Area | Character | Risk level |
|---|---|---|---|
| CB1 | City centre / Romsey / Petersfield | Commercial and college core, station, night-time economy | Higher |
| CB4 | Chesterton / Arbury / King's Hedges | North Cambridge, mixed estates and residential | Medium |
| CB2 | Trumpington / Cherry Hinton / Addenbrooke's | South Cambridge, hospital and biomedical campus, new estates | Medium |
| CB3 | Newnham / west Cambridge / villages | Affluent west-side residential and university land | Lower |
| CB5 | Fen Ditton / east Cambridge | Eastern edge, residential and villages | Lower |
| CB8 | Newmarket | Market and racing town east of Cambridge | Medium |
| CB7 | Soham / Ely edge | Fenland market towns and villages | Lower |
| CB10 | Saffron Walden | Settled Essex market town | Lower |
| CB23 | Cambourne / west villages | New-build town and surrounding villages | Lower |
| CB22 | Shelford / Sawston / villages | Affluent south-Cambridge commuter villages | Lower |
Source: data.police.uk. Risk level is relative within the CB postcode area.
The Safest Parts of Cambridgeshire
The lowest-crime parts of the CB area sit in the affluent west of the city and the surrounding villages. CB3 — Newnham and west Cambridge is the quietest central district, with a settled owner-occupier and university profile. Beyond the city, the south-Cambridge commuter villages of CB22 — the Shelfords, Sawston and Stapleford, the new town of Cambourne (CB23) and the Saffron Walden (CB10) belt record some of the lowest counts in the region — the kind of profile our rural crime guide covers.
Crime Hotspots in Cambridge
The CB1 city centre records the highest counts in the CB area, driven overwhelmingly by bike theft and shop theft, plus public order and violence around the market and the night-time strip. The northern estates of CB4 — Arbury and King's Hedges carry the city's higher residential property-crime and ASB load, sitting in the middle band rather than the centre's footfall-driven top. The pattern is typical of a compact university city, as our anti-social behaviour by area guide explains.
What Crime Types Dominate in Cambridge?
Bike theft dominates Cambridge more than almost any other English city. With the highest cycling rate in the country and a dense student population, recorded cycle theft sits far above the national baseline and is concentrated in CB1, the college core and around the station — the single most important number for anyone renting in the centre. Our bike theft hotspots guide covers the scale of it. Beyond bikes, shop theft and violence and sexual offences lead the table, lifted by the central footfall, while the villages carry a low, steady vehicle-and-property profile.
How to Check Your Cambridge Postcode
Outcode-level data gives you the broad picture, but the difference between the Newnham streets in CB3 and the village end of the same outcode, or between Arbury and the riverside in CB4, is significant. See our safest places to live UK ranking for wider context, or run a CrimeSafe report for 24 months of trend data, a ward-level breakdown, outcome rates, and a safety score for any Cambridge postcode.