The number of murders, retail theft, robberies and subway crime continued to decline in New York City in 2025, according to year-end data released by the New York City Police Department on Tuesday.
Shooting incidents and the number of individuals harmed by gunfire reached record lows last year across the city, officials said.
In 2025, New York City recorded 688 shooting incidents, a decline of 24% from 2024. In the fourth quarter of 2025, shooting incidents decreased 36% (134 vs. 211) compared to the same period last year. In December, there were only 35 shooting incidents citywide — the fewest shootings ever recorded in any single month in New York City history.
The number of people shot in New York City also fell 24% when compared to the previous year with 856 shooting victims citywide, according to officials.
“Last year, New York City had its safest year for gun violence ever. This achievement—among many others—is a testament to the leadership of Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch, the dedication of the NYPD, and the tireless work of community-based organizations that help keep our neighborhoods safe," New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said in a statement.
The historic decline reflected a citywide effort, with reductions across all five boroughs in 2025 and Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island each recording the lowest number of shooting incidents in their history. Shooting incidents declined by 38% in Manhattan, 26.7% in Staten Island, 25.4% in the Bronx, 24.4% in Queens, and 15% in Brooklyn.
"These numbers describe an agency that’s firing on all cylinders: taking down violent gangs, removing thousands of guns off the street, and shattering record-low violent crime numbers," said Tisch. "New York City is still the safest big city in the country, thanks to the extraordinary work of the women and men of the NYPD who answer the call every day to protect and serve.”
Across the city, murders declined by 20.2% (305 vs. 382), with 77 fewer murders compared to 2024. Murders also decreased in four of the five boroughs. On Staten Island, murders fell by more than 60% in 2025, with no murders reported in December. Murders decreased 33% in Manhattan, 24% in Brooklyn, and 18% in the Bronx. In Queens, murders increased 7%.
Robberies declined by nearly 10% citywide, with 1,600 fewer incidents compared to last year, while crime in the city’s housing developments declined by 3.6%.
Hate crimes decreased by 12% compared to 2024 (576 vs. 657). Antisemitic incidents were down 3%, but still accounted for 57% of all hate crimes reported in 2025, despite Jewish New Yorkers representing approximately 10% of the city’s population.
For six consecutive months, major crime on the subways declined, contributing to a 4% reduction in 2025 (2,160 vs. 2,251). Officers recovered an all-time high of 77 firearms, which helped drive a reduction in shooting incidents from eight to three as well as a reduction in shooting victims from 14 to three. This decline in violence also contributed to a drop in murders in the subway system, which reached their lowest levels in five years and declined by 60% from 2024.
Transit robberies reached their lowest levels ever, including the pandemic years, and fell 12.5% (398 vs. 455), compared to last year. Grand larceny pickpocketing within the subways also declined to its lowest level outside of the pandemic years, down nearly 44% (122 vs. 217), compared to last year.
The NYPD’s revamped strategy led to a 14% (52,696 vs. 61,328) decline in retail theft citywide compared to 2024.
There were three crime categories that saw an increase. Rape incidents increased by 16%, but the rise in reported incidents is partly attributed to legislative changes made in September 2024 that broadened the legal definition of rape in New York State to include additional forms of sexual assault.
Domestic-violence-related rapes increased by 25% and now account for roughly half of all reported rape cases citywide. To address this trend, the NYPD launched the Domestic Violence Unit (DVU) in October 2025 — the largest unit of its kind in the nation with 450 fully dedicated domestic violence investigators — to investigate domestic violence cases, build stronger relationships with survivors, and receive enhanced training.
Felony assault increased slightly by 0.4%, largely driven by assaults on public sector employees and domestic violence, officials said. Assaults on public sector employees, which include police officers, increased by roughly 25% in 2025. Domestic violence incidents accounted for 41% of recorded felony assaults.
The number of youth violence remains troubling, Tisch said at a press conference. In 2025, 14% of shooting victims were under the age of 18, an increase of five percentage points from 2024. And 18% of shooting perpetrators were also under the age of 18.
"These are the highest percentages that we've ever seen for both measures since we began tracking this data in 2018. That reality demanded a change in approach," Tisch said.
The NYPD in the fall implemented school safety zones, which focus on the places where young people are most likely to fall victim to a crime, commuter corridors, bus stops, and the route students take to and from school. Since September, within these zones, overall crime was down 53% and shooting incidents and shooting victims are down more than 75%, she said.
“Our aggressive approach is paying off: crime has fallen to record lows, making New York a safer place to live, work and visit," Governor Kathy Hochul said.
