The Crime Severity Index (CSI) is Statistics Canada's official measure of police-reported crime severity. CrimeMaps.ca publishes the CrimeMaps Severity Score (CMSS) — the same weighted-rate formula applied to municipal open-data at our own update cadence. This page ranks 6 Canadian cities by latest-year CMSS.
What is the Crime Severity Index?
CSI weights each offence by its average Canadian court sentence length. A murder is weighted at 7,042 units; a minor theft at 37. Dividing total weighted incidents by population × 100,000 gives a single comparable number across cities of different sizes. The national 2006 CSI is scaled to 100, so a city CSI of 87 means that city had 87% of the national 2006 per-capita severity.
CMSS ranking by city (2026)
| # | City | Province | CMSS | Incidents | Population | Latest year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gatineau | QC | 512,589 | 19,032 | 291,041 | 2026 |
| 2 | Saskatoon | SK | 118,270 | 5,863 | 266,141 | 2026 |
| 3 | Lethbridge | AB | 100,347 | 2,158 | 98,406 | 2026 |
| 4 | Windsor | ON | 81,636 | 3,811 | 229,660 | 2026 |
| 5 | Victoria | BC | 78,647 | 2,601 | 91,867 | 2026 |
| 6 | Medicine Hat | AB | 42,594 | 1,506 | 63,260 | 2026 |
CMSS vs official Statistics Canada CSI
- Same formula shape: severity-weighted incidents / population × 100,000.
- Different data sources: CSI uses the UCR2 survey (every police service); CMSS uses municipal open-data portals (not every service publishes).
- Different cadence: CSI is annual; CMSS is monthly/rolling.
- Different granularity: CSI publishes at Canada, province, and CMA level; CMSS adds neighbourhood-level scoring where polygons are known.
For the official CSI from Statistics Canada, see StatCan Table 35-10-0026-01. Full weight table and caveats: methodology.
Frequently asked questions
Is CMSS the same as Statistics Canada CSI?
No — it uses the same formula but different data sources (open-data portals vs the UCR2 survey) and updates more frequently.
Can I compare my city's CMSS to its CSI?
Not directly. CMSS uses the same weighted-rate formula shape, but open-data coverage, category collapsing, and scaling differ from Statistics Canada CSI. Use CMSS to compare CrimeMaps.ca pages against each other, not as a replacement for official CSI.
Does a high CMSS mean a city is unsafe?
It measures severity-weighted incident rate, not personal safety for any individual. Neighbourhood-level pages show where the rate concentrates.
Which weights does CMSS use?
Statistics Canada 2006-base UCR2 severity weights, collapsed to 13 CrimeMaps categories. Homicide 7042, robbery 583, break-and-enter 187, auto theft 84, theft 37, mischief 30. Full table on /methodology.