Harlow crime rates August 2026
Harlow often gets a bad press when it comes to crime. It comes from some dubious ‘online’ news/magazines as well as from Harlow residents. There are of course some excellent online news site like Your Harlow (Your Harlow) that print facts, but there are lots more that are nothing more than ‘click bait’.
Does Harlow have a crime problem? Yes! But the reality is that so does great chunks of the UK.
Sales and Marketing Director of Jukes Estate Agents Geoff Flewers takes up the story: “In my opinion, one crime is one too many and I am not for one second saying that Harlow does NOT have its issues with some crimes. Nearly all of the UK does.”
“It annoys me greatly when I see incorrect reports about Harlow. Harlow has its problems as do most towns in the UK. However, in this day and age of mis-information, we feel that it is only right and proper that we call out false statistics about Harlow.”
He continues: “When it comes to crime, many Harlow residents are very quick to be detrimental about the town they live in and in the main, it is down to being fed incorrect facts. I have studied figures about crime in Harlow and the county of Essex to put into perspective where Harlow sits. Harlow is consistently quoted as being the crime capital of Essex. The actual facts tell a much different story”.
Where does Harlow stand in the Essex ratings for crime statistics?
THE TOP 10 HOTSPOTS FOR ALL CRIMES IN ESSEX AS OF AUGUST 2026
** Number 1 will nearly always be Stansted Airport as oddly, all Airports have massively high crime rates
- Stansted Airport CM24 1 is 1,27% of the national crime rate.
- Southend on Sea SS1 2 is 294% of the national crime rate.
- Colchester CO3 8 is 278% of the national crime rate.
- Southend on Sea SS1 1 is 233% of the national crime rate.
- Basildon SS13 3 is 229% of the national crime rate.
- Clacton on Sea CO15 1 is 214% of the national crime rate.
- Chelmsford CM1 1 is 201% of the national crime rate.
- Clacton on Sea CO15 3 is 196% of the national crime rate.
- Grays RM16 5 is 190% of the national crime rate.
- Jaywick CO15 2 is 186% of the national crime rate.
Data supplied by Plumpot Analytics (https://a.plumplot.co.uk/).
SO WHERE DO THE 9 HARLOW POSTCODES SIT IN THE BIG SCHEME OF THINGS?
There are just two Harlow postcode sectors that make the top 25 Esse crime spots.
18th is CM20 1 at 170% of the national crime rate.
20th is CM20 3 at 166% of the national crime rate.
There are three Harlow postcode sectors that rank in the top 26-50 Essex crime spots.
Harlow crime rates August 2026.
32nd is CM18 7 at 154% of the national crime rate.
34th is CM18 6 at 127% of the national crime rate.
42nd is CM20 2 at 126% of the national crime rate.
The other 4 Harlow postcode sectors rank much lower
CM17 0 is at 112% of the national crime rate.
Then there is CM19 4 which is at 111% of the national crime rate.
Then CM17 9 which is at 110% of the national average.
Finally, CM19 5 which is at 64% of the national average.
When it is said that Harlow is the most dangerous place to live in Essex. When people say Harlow is a ********, Sales and Marketing Director of Jukes Estate Agents Harlow says: ” You only have to look at the map above to see what absolute nonsense this is. Yes there is too much crime everywhere BUT, to lay the blame on Harlow’s doorstep is simply ridiculous.”
He continues: “Out of the 100+ postcode sectors in Essex, the highest any Harlow postcode sector appears is 18th. With one more appearing in the top 25 (20th).
Geoff adds: ” Therefore, it is plain to see that there are many many places in Essex that have a higher crime rate than Harlow. A closer look at the maps above will show you that the hotspots for most Essex towns are the town centres but even then there are 17 places in Essex alone that have a higher crime rate than CM20 1. Therefore, the next time people decide to pop at Harlow, I genuinely think they need to get their facts straight first!”
CM POSTCODES v ADJOINING POSTCODES (against national crime rates)
Harlow crime rates August 2026
When we look at all CM postcodes (which of course includes Harlow), it is extremely interesting to see how it performs against other postcodes that border CM.
CM has a crime rate of 90% of the national average. Let’s look at the entire list:
CB 83%.
SG 88%.
CM 90%.
CO 98%.
SS 106%.
EN 115%.
RM 126%.
IG 131%.
Conclusion
Only The Cambridge CB post codes and Hertfordshire SG postcodes have a lower overall crime rate than CM. All other bordering postcodes are substantially worse.
ESSEX CRIME RATES v ADJOINING COUNTIES
ESSEX has a crime rate of 100% of the national average.
How do other counties (including London) fair?
LONDON 130%.
KENT 106%.
CAMBS 100%.
HERTS 98%.
SUFFOLK 68%.