The San Francisco Covid Burglary Map

Here/Say Media has been inspired by claims that burglary is on the rise in San Francisco to map out the change in the number of burglaries in San Francisco since the start of the Covid epidemic. Here / Say's Interactive Map of SF COVID Burglaries shows which census tracts have seen a rise in burglaries and which tracts have seen a fall (comparing the period March 16 2020 to June 1 2021 with Jan 1 2019 to March 15 2020).

The map reveals that the experience has been very different in different San Francisco neighborhoods. Some neighborhoods, such as Sunset, Richmond & Marina, have seen large increases in the number of burglaries. Conversely other neighborhoods, particularly in the south east of the city, have seen a decrease in the number of burglaries during the Covid epidemic. 

Here / Say's accompanying article San Francisco’s Uneven Burglary Spikes by Neighborhood points out that overall crime is down in San Francisco. In particular car break-ins have fallen, possibly as a result of the fall in tourists. Burglaries have however increased by 56% overall in San Francisco. This may be one reason why many San Franciscans have the mistaken impression that crime has increased in the city.