Crime in Dublin, Ireland

Crime rates in Dublin, Ireland

Level of crime
59.78 Moderate
Crime increasing in the past 5 years
73.68 High
Worries home broken and things stolen
46.26 Moderate
Worries being mugged or robbed
48.71 Moderate
Worries car stolen
38.87 Low
Worries things from car stolen
49.21 Moderate
Worries attacked
51.81 Moderate
Worries being insulted
55.78 Moderate
Worries being subject to a physical attack because of your skin color, ethnic origin, gender or religion
36.14 Low
Problem people using or dealing drugs
76.32 High
Problem property crimes such as vandalism and theft
60.92 High
Problem violent crimes such as assault and armed robbery
51.35 Moderate
Problem corruption and bribery
46.37 Moderate

Safety in Dublin, Ireland

Safety walking alone during daylight
65.39 High
Safety walking alone during night
38.38 Low

Contributors: 881

Last update: December 2024

These data are based on perceptions of visitors of this website in the past 5 years.

If the value is 0, it means it is perceived as very low, and if the value is 100, it means it is perceived as very high.

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67 Comments so far
Anonymous on Dec 03, 2024:
I got pickpocketed by a kid pretending to be drunk on O'Connell Street. Don't put your belongings in your outside pockets. While he had his arm around my, my friend pushed him and he stumbled away while threatening to kill us. We called the Gardai, but they never found him. They gave us a lift home. It was crazy.
Meghistos on Aug 09, 2024:
I visited Dublin in August 2024 and I was shocked because I didn't expect Dublin so unsafe!
There is a drug dealing even with daylight, in central areas of the city.
There are many crazy people who walk around the streets screaming or bothering the visitors.
I noticed also very young boys trying to steal bikes or push scooters.
Then, there are pickpockets operating on board the buses
Anonymous on Aug 04, 2024:
I was born in Dublin. I moved to London 20 years ago. I moved back in the pandemic, and now I live between London and Dublin.
I was SHOCKED at how dangerous Dublin has become, seriously, it's very bad! I don't feel safe in Dublin (ironically, I feel safer in London).

Negatives -
There is a huge drug and homeless problem in Dublin. You'll get harassed on the street daily.
The Government seems completely ineffective.
Ireland's police-to-population ratio is below the European average (The Police are unhelpful, chip on their shoulder, fob you off when you try to report a crime, delay going to crime scenes because they are scared / can't be bothered and their reporting systems are archaic).
Housing is a huge issue in Dublin, most people live with their parents, even into their 30's, as they can't afford to rent a house, let alone buy one.
Everything is expensive, especially eating out.
A terrible transport system (you can be waiting 20 mins for a bus that never comes, there is also no train / tram / quick transport etc from the airport).
Undercurrent of xenophobia, racism and homophobia, even though Irish people will tell you they are none of those things, but their casual comments show otherwise...

Positives -
Irish people are very friendly.
If you like small cities, Dublin only has a population of 1 million (feels like a town, rather than a city compared to London).
Dublin is both close to the mountains and the sea if you like the outdoor life.
There's ALOT of pubs, and a big pub culture which leads to alot of "craic".
Easy to fly places in Europe / uses the Euro.
Rich History and Culture.

I would love to love the city I was born in and grew up in. But for me, I prefer London.
I'm planning on moving back to London permanently, as the negatives of Dublin outweigh the positives.
N McG on May 13, 2024:
Dublin City centre is becoming worse and worse everyday unfortunately. We have feral teenagers that will harass you for no reason and recently we’ve many illegals entering whom also start trouble. Avoid North inner city if possible along with certain suburbs such as Ballymun, Coolock, Finglas if you’re a tourist. I’m from Dublin and very disappointed to see how my city has worsened in the last 10-15 years
Alex on Apr 03, 2024:
I lived in Dublin from 1988 to 1994.I was never a victim of crime.However,Poverty was a huge problem back then.But besides that I felt very safe during my time here.
Sergei Goncharov on Mar 02, 2024:
Been to Dublin a couple of times and haven’t witnessed any crime at all. My last time there was in late 2021. Felt pretty safe when I was walking alone in the Mountjoy Square Park area at 3AM in December. People say some places in the city (especially the northern suburbs) are rough, but I found Drumcondra, Whitehall and Beaumont quite lovely. Walked there alone at night as well and felt completely safe. Was approached by a group of chavvy teens once around midnight — they asked for a lighter. I gave it to them and they thanked me and walked away. Feels much safe than London, at least to me.
Anonymous on Nov 24, 2023:
The people of Dublin have shown their true colours. Racism and xenophobia are rampant after 23rd of November. Nowhere is safe. There are groupchats asking people to kill any foreign national they see. It's horrifying to see the city in such a state and people backing this vile and inhumane movement. Immigrants are not the problem, it's the scumbags who looted the shops and viciously attacked people. My heart is with the parents of the children involved in the attack. This is the saddest I have ever seen this once beautiful city.
Dee on Oct 10, 2023:
I've never been scared of walking around Dublin in the day. There are a lot of drug addicts but as long as you don't speak to them you should be okay. The violent crime rate is low for people minding their own business. I'd totally avoid walking there alone at night but in the daytime it's safe.
Anonymous on Aug 17, 2023:
Gangs can start fighting over small stuff like one gang robbing another gang and then they start beefing each other. Dublin gangs can have connections in other parts of Ireland and the uk so it can get bad really quicky
Anonymous on Aug 17, 2023:
Gangs fighting each other over money for drugs that weren’t paid back. Gangs going around robbing random people or assaulting them and then trying to rob them. Gangs attacking deliveroo drivers and robbing the food they have. Poverty is the reason why they act like this.
Anonymous on Aug 15, 2023:
Poverty is a big thing that creates crime. I from coolock myself and remember hearing a story of that a 17 year old from coolock bought 2 ounces of weed(€600) of some fella from ballymun and never paid him back for it. This started fights among multiple areas. I know 600 is a good bit to owe someone but you’d think gang violence would only start if you owe someone over a grand. These gangs would also go up to regular people and try to rob them or would just attack you and record it to scare the other gangs there fighting.
Anonymous on Aug 07, 2023:
Poverty creates problems. There are a few council areas in Dublin that are dangerous. These areas formed gangs. These gangs would also be connected to other council parts of Ireland and in the uk that are in gangs. The nickname they have gotten now is chav/Roadman/scumbag. Some of these gangs together and some are fighting each other due to the drugs trade because cocaine is taken by all classes now in Ireland and the uk. Some think it’s not fuelling the problem because they’re just taking a bit of coke and doing nothing else wrong but this is why they there’s a problem. These gangs have very little money but they could be making 100 euro a day each instead of 50 a day. These gangs are also bad for targeting random people. They assault and rob random people for money. Even if they don’t get money if you they’ll assault you and record to show how tough they are to the other gangs they’re fighting.
FormerDubliner on Aug 04, 2023:
I would warn anyone to be extremely careful in Dublin. I've been attacked and harassed several times for no reason other than I was on my own and an easy target. There are a lot of scary stories. It has gotten way worse in recent years since COVID. It's a shame because I used to love Dublin but now it's more risky than it's worth.
state briga on Jul 25, 2023:
Cris tell,I literally saw teenagers stealing bikes two days in a row! Broad daylight, 100 meters from gardai station. They were cutting chains and locks. Yesterday evening, I saw group of teenagers attacking a guy in Talbot street. Last week group of teenagers attacked one black guy in spar. I can go on and on and I have been living here for 6 years only!
Cris tell on Jul 25, 2023:
I’ve lived here 34 years and walked the streets day and night and have never once encountered any violence.
state briga on Jul 25, 2023:
I have been living in Dublin since 2017 and I wouldn't recommend visiting or living in it. Irish teenage gangs are out of control. They're stealing bikes midday, public spaces. They're attacking people every day, especially delivery drivers. Drug users and alcoholics everywhere. Homeless people wherever you look. Dublin is a shi t hole
Mael on Jul 21, 2023:
This depends where you live in the city. I don’t understand why people are saying drugs are everywhere. I live in Blanchardstown since 2006. Some people say that Blanchardstown has a bad reputation yet here I’ve never come across drugs in my life. Sure you might see people smoking/vaping at a young age but that doesn’t mean you’re endangered if you see that. It’s really rare to come across crime in this city. I’ve never had an issue with it. I’ve been walking the streets at around 3am even in the centre of Dublin and people are still nice to me. If you’re planning on coming here then I wouldn’t recommend you to move to Ballymun, Tallaght or Finglas because I’ve heard dodgy stories from those places. I’m not saying Dublin is completely safe I just think that people are exaggerating safety here. If anyone has any questions you can ask me.
Anonymous on Jul 20, 2023:
Gangs of scumbags that go around robbing people because they have barely any money due to poverty. Sometimes they will go up to you and demand money (possibly with a weapon in hand) or hit you and then rob you
Anonymous on Jul 13, 2023:
it depends where you live tbh, but in my 9 years in South Dublin I've experienced these

theres lots of drugs.... ive encountered grown men asking me and my friends if we want drugs. teens/kids as young as 11 smoking in public.

also, people here can be assholes. I've been stalked, harassed,and beat
Anonymous on Jul 10, 2023:
Loads of drugs and knackers if you do something wrong you will be killed
Anonymous on Jul 04, 2023:
Eircode beef has became a thing here. There’s 6 council estate areas fighting another 6 council estate areas. All down to drugs and money. Some in the gangs are aged as young as 12 and then there’s the olders which are in their 40s and 50s. These gang members all die before 55 because of their stupid behaviour.
Anonymous on Jun 30, 2023:
Scumbags that are in gangs. If you mess with one of them you’ll have there gang from there estate on you. There are also gangs that fight each other from different areas. At the moment there is a gang from ballymun and summerhill fighting a gang from darndale and finglas over money
Anonymous on Jun 16, 2023:
The gangs of scumbags are coming from these areas. Ballymun,coolock(mainly darndale but a few from kilmore part of coolock)west finglas,ballyfermot,summerhill,parts of tallaght(jobstown and fetercairn) parts of Blanchardstown(Corduff and clonsilla) neilstown in clondalkin,Oliver bond,the liberties,Pearse street,ballybrack and brick field park which is between crumlin and driminagh. The other parts of Dublin are lovely and perfectly safe but there is gangs in every main city. If you avoid these areas you will be fine.
Anonymous on Jun 14, 2023:
Gangs of people from council estates and inner city. All out of school by 16 and then live of dole or end up homeless or in a caravan and spend their life then in and out of prison. This is only a small percent of the population of Dublin tho. Probably like 6-7% but they still can make Dublin seem like a dangerous place. If you see a group all in tracksuits or tracksuit shorts stay away from them. They lifestyle is so rough that they would have no problem robbing u on a Main Street. And if u don’t hand your stuff over this can lead to an attack. There’s girls in the gangs aswell that will have no problem attacking the women but that’s not to say that the boys wouldn’t attack the women either
Anonymous on May 06, 2023:
From doing research on these people that cause crime here I understand why they are like this. There are a few areas in Dublin that are known for high levels of crime They are born into lives of extreme poverty and turn to crime for money. These people can be homeless or living on dole/benefits. You get a few that will get help getting a job by multiple different serves or after prison/juvenile detention but they usually can’t last more then a year in a job due to there behaviour. But if you were brought into a life like this you would turn out the same way. It’s lack of education. These people leave school at age 16 and before they leave they don’t even put in the work in school and just cause problems for others and themselves
Jack on May 02, 2023:
The most dangerous city I have ever been. Some people's aegument that "every sizeable city has these problems" is a complete nonsense. I have never seen so many drug addicts and beggars anywhere in Spain, Portugal, Denmark, Poland and Germany. It is a completely failed city with hardly any Garda presence, and they don't even carry guns. There are news that someone was attacked or murdered in Dublin pretty much every week. Politicians are useless and do nothing for years and the problem is growing.
Anonymous on Apr 16, 2023:
Gangs from council estates or inner city of all ages mugging/attacking people and involved in drugs weather that be dealing or using
Anonymous on Feb 16, 2023:
About 6-7% of people from Dublin give the place a bad name
Anonymous on Feb 09, 2023:
Crime is rampant in this city, groups of teenagers roam the city violently attacking, mugging, sexually assaulting women. Justice system do absolutely nothing, barely any Gardai present in the city. Be very careful visiting here.

Political Class don't care at all, no increase in Gardai numbers, no new prisons built, no jail time for criminals. Recently a judge gave a man no custodial sentence who was pouring boiling water over women in the city. The judge said reputational damage was adequate on its own. Out of touch doesn't begin to describe it.

If you dare try to defend yourself then you are in big trouble, a jury may eventually do the right thing, but the state will still punish you for daring to undermine its monopoly of force by denying bail & delaying trial for a year or two. This happened to a Brazilian man who stabbed in self defence a teenager who was in a group attacking him. Jury cleared him but spent over a year in prison on remand.

Extremely dangerous and violent city
Diaspora on Feb 06, 2023:
I left Ireland a long time ago, but still have family there. From talking with them, crimes against the personal do appear to have increased in the past few years. Muggings are "commonplace". Drug use appears to be a big problem.

Dublin, like any sizeable city, has its problem areas. Traditionally these were council estates where unemployment and poor educational attainment were generational.

Dublin is on an island in the Atlantic, and the weather can be wet and miserable for extended periods. Despite the wealth generated in the economy, the government has no strategy for spending it on indoor facilities for sport and recreation that are both easily accessible and affordable for the working class. As there is nothing for youth to do ( except for chasing a ball around a field in the wet and cold ), they are bored. Drugs and antisocial behaviour follow.

The lack of effective policing means there is no consequence for youthful bad behaviour. The government pleads it has no resourced. And yet wasted 82,000,000 euros on a new Water Charging Board that they then disbanded without it ever doing anything.

Contrast that to where I live now : there are too many facilities for indoor youth activities **in each post code** to count. All are accessible by public transport, and a lot are co-located, so easy for parents to drop off the kids in one place.

The Irish government instead sacrifice everything on the altar of high property prices. This eliminates the possibility of building facilities for indoor sport, when they favour more and more hotels or office developments.

If working class people can't see a way to move from Tallaght to Dalkey during their lives through honest work, because of poor education and discrimination against certain working class areas, people will give up, and their kids pick up on that.

Dublin is over priced, a very poor tourism product ( more so if you don't drink ), lacks effective public transport and policiing, is high tax, low government spend. And people wonder why even the upper middle earners are turning towards Sinn Fein (a political party traditionally associated with terrorism in the past 50 years ) and more socialist politics. There has been no "trickle down" wealth effect for the majority of people.

When there is such a level of anti-social behaviour, it's a government/ societal problem. Irish people are world class complainers. But the problem with complainers is that they rarely do anything proactively to improve things. In the place where I live, people protest regularly, and the government takes notice of their complaints. When was the last time there was a mass gathering of people in Dublin city centre to demand more police, more facilities for the youth, and better education.

There never was, and there never will be
Anonymous on Nov 10, 2022:
Scumbags in gangs going around attack people for no to little reason and some even have Weapons on them
Anonymous on Oct 24, 2022:
Oh I was wrong about people on the dole. Most people on it can get it without working at all there’s only a small percent of people that go to there local warehouse
Anonymous on Oct 24, 2022:
Scumbags/skangers/knackers/scrotes/chavs. Whatever you want to call them are the people who commit crime here. They all leave school at 16 when there legally able to and before that there the bully’s in school. Get constant suspended for all sorts and when they leave at 16 they get into drug dealing,selling robbed dogs or other robbed iteams like bikes or cars pickpocket people and rob houses for money. Some get a free council house and go on the dole but to that one person in the house needs to work once so it’s not all them. They always work in there local warehouse for about 2-3 months and never work again. Not everyone in warehouses is like this to make clear only like 5% and you’ll which ones they are from how they act. The ones who never do that will either live in the home or end up living homeless or in a hostel or a hotel or caravan
Anonymous on Oct 14, 2022:
Some of these comments are straight BS. I just left the place and haven’t experienced any pickpocketing or other petty crimes. Even during nighttime it is safe. I even walked at night to Merrion Beach and back without being attacked. Felt safer than London or even some German cities.
Anonymous on Sep 13, 2022:
Dublin scumbags. They are either on the dole in a council house,living in a caravan or homeless. They wear tracksuits or tracksuit shorts or swimming togs and deal drugs and rob and attack people
Anonymous on Aug 22, 2022:
Scumbags who wear tracksuits with jacket going around robbing people and if someone refuses to hand over what they have they get attacked. The adults can get locked up for about 4 months if you report it but juveniles will completely get away with it. There all over the place and make Dublin a bad place.
Anonymous on Jul 27, 2022:
All the stories on here are the same for a reason. Plenty of content on this website is not accurate but the Dublin page is spot on.
Drugs, teenagers, gangs, abuse, harassment, assaults - all unprovoked. This is Dublin. It's bridging on lawless.
Anonymous on Jul 27, 2022:
Lads in who have nothing to do. Gangs of then that all wear jackets tracksuits and expensive trainers with hands down pants and have terrible attitude. Spend there days burning things or harassing people or smoking weed and if they don’t have money for money they go out robbing people. These are the fuckers in the Dublin that give the city a bad name. It’s even worse when there underage because then there’s no consequences for them. At least the older ones spend time in prison
Anonymous on Jul 06, 2022:
Dublin scumbags (basically the Irish version of a chav) are the problems with all of Dublin. They all go to school until they can legally drop out at 16/17 and don’t work. Live on the dole and make money by selling drugs. They also harass normal people. Most of them live a life in and out of prison
Anonymous on Jun 26, 2022:
All the bad areas in Ireland were put in Dublin. That’s why other places seem so much nicer compared to Dublin. Dublin is filled with scumbags who harass and attack people from no reason. The scumbags always were puffer/rain jacket with tracksuits and expensive runners
Anonymous on Jun 21, 2022:
It’s filled with gangs in certain estates around Dublin. I’ve worked the people like this and they all live the same lifestyle. As young kids under the age of 13 they are left to hang around the streets with other kids there ages till all hours doing all sorts from throwing eggs at people house to throwing fireworks at people and burning random things. They then join gangs from 13/14 on where they attack people for no reason or rob them for money. They get away doing anything until they turn 18 when they then spend there life in and out jail. Some end up homeless some scheme the government and get a dole house which is basically a free house and a certain amount of money a week for free.
Anonymous on Jun 20, 2022:
Ireland is quite safe but Dublin is clearly not, one of the biggest shitholes of Europe
Anonymous on Jun 17, 2022:
Ireland is one of safest country in the world. It's in top ten list.
Anonymous on Jun 14, 2022:
Got attacked in Tolka Valley Park with stones, branches, palets by over 15 underage brats. They were trying to steal my bike. Called Garda which only showed up after more than 40 minutes time in which I had to defend myself.
First three kids came talking and looking at it then came back with the huligans.
Garda won't do anything so stay safe and avoid that area as much as possible.
Anonymous on Jun 11, 2022:
Ireland is NOT a safe country - Irish people have huge problem with alcohol and drug addiction. Irish people are also extremely violent.
Anonymous on May 24, 2022:
I was in Dublin yesterday and the city centre around O’Connell street is awful and had a very antisocial vibe to it.
One problem is that it is difficult to get around Dublin City with the absent of good public transport (ie there is no metro in Dublin and the backbone is made up of slow clunky buses) and then there is the ever increasing discrimination against private cars, which has resulted in normal people avoiding the city and leaving it with drug addicts and knacker teen gangs who harass the few normal people who are left visiting the city.
To tourists I would not recommend visiting Dublin, instead I would recommend Cork and Galway instead. Sadly Dublin has turned into a horrible city.

Sadly
Anonymous on May 22, 2022:
I got assaulted yesterday in the middle of Tolka Valley Park, by 5 or 6 very young kids (like 12 or 13 years old), very young indeed! They wanted to be intimidating and without any reason threatened to hit me with a metal pipe from a bicycle seat. Firstly I didn't react, but the "leader" started approaching me closer and closer with his "scary" weapon, and then actually hit me twice, although I blocked the hits. I tried to talk some sense to them, did not want to fight then since they weren't even half my height, but nothing was helping. Then the guy ordered me to "run", which I also declined, in order not to give them satisfaction. The group stayed in the back for the most part, but then one fat kid also started to kick me, but then they just stopped and I walked away.

Like someone said here,they wore grey Adidas hoodies and there was an option to avoid them (if I knew they would be so weirdly aggressive), but I guess it would be best to have pepper spray with you for this kind of situation, since it's undeniably a self defense and they couldn't sue you for body damage or something.
I have reported it to Garda, but not much attention was given.

Stay safe guys
Anonymous on May 08, 2022:
I'm an international student in Ireland. Just got my 400 Euros worth of smartphone and my bank card stolen by a young teenager on a bike, as I was walking down Dominick Street yesterday. I could not find a single Garda on sight even near O'Connell Bridge. NONE!!! Such crowded areas. Everyone at the Luas station just watched carelessly the teen cycling away with my phone in his hand even though I blew my whistle loudly. This must be quite normal for Dubliners. Then I went to the Ilac Shopping Centre and asked the security personnel to call the Garda for me, but they refused and said they wouldn't help because the incident did not take place within the shopping centre.

As the theft happened, the gang of teens congregating on Dominick Street told me to be quiet, which tells me that he was known to them. Then I went to the Mountjoy Garda station, I had to wait in line for almost 20 minutes. A female Garda taking notes on an empty piece of ripped paper told me that I would need to go to another garda station because they were only responsible for the Mountjoy area. As she was taking notes, she said "these things happen anywhere in the world". Such a relief. She said it would take WEEKS before I could get any response. When she asked me about the phone brand, the expression on her face was like "it's not worth wasting my time here, just go home".

I called my phone from another number and a drunk, homeless person answered and asked for 100 Euros on behalf of the teens. I met that person on O'Connell, and luckily there I saw a garda car driving and I whistled and shouted. The Garda man climbed out of his car and confiscated his drugs. He cursed at him and told him to bring the phone and "you'll get your drugs back"... He even scolded me for blowing a whistle to catch his attention, and that I was holding the homeless person's arm — who was clearly part of this organized crime. The Garda man said I could get into trouble for holding his arm... WOW!

When I got home I called my bank to cancel my card, and they told me that there have been contactless transactions, which should be refunded they said. Isn't that amazing, my phone is stolen and my bank account is almost depleted and I am left with no money or food until my payday. And I am still expected to be motivated to work and study...

I will not live in Dublin in the future. Dublin has a major drug, alcohol and gang problem and the Garda is useless.
Johnny on Dec 03, 2021:
I would also recommend visiting the suburban towns such as Malahide, Swords, Portmarnock, Donabate, Rush, Skerries, Bray, Greystones and Blessington.. These towns are much safer than the city and in my opinion they have much nicer experience. Plus the scenery is lovely too...
Johnny on Dec 03, 2021:
People say the northside is bad but really it's on both sides.. Do your research and look up the bad neighborhoods instead of blindly thinking you'll be safe on the Southside... Crumlin, Tallaght, Ballyfermot and Rialto are among the worst neighborhoods in Dublin and they are all on the Southside.

Personally I would recommend going to Dun Laoghaire, Howth, Ballsbridge, Phibsborough, Stoneybatter, Rathmines, Clontarf and Drumcondra if you want to visit Dublin without the anoyying scumbags..
Anonymous on Oct 19, 2021:
Why can’t a vigilante group of strong men be formed to beat these scums up it would serve justice as police don’t seem to care. It’s a big problem and I don’t know why it’s not being covered more by medias about the problems in the city. When I see on youtube everyone saying (especially tourists) how charmig and friendly the people are.
Irish people are social and often friendly but these criminal teenagers are the worst people I’ve ever encountered.
Interesting how someones life can go to that level of violence at such a young age but its hard to feel empathy for them when they target random innocent people. This seem to be a culture in Ireland and UK by these menaces to society.
Anonymous on Oct 18, 2021:
I was punched from behind once in dublin city centre 2012 or 2013 in broad daylight with hundreds of people around to see. It was a weak punch but still quite shocking since I’ve never been assaulted before and I’ve been in many big cities.
I’m not irish and maybe I looked foreign to them so it could be that they target more foreign looking people and not irish looking?

I would say you would be more likely to be assaulted or harassed in Dublin and some other parts of Ireland then many major cities around the world from my experience but it also depends on what you look like, what clothes you wear, if you are alone etc.
The scumbags seem to always wear grey adidas tracksuits and have a buzzcut for some reason I guess in their minds they think they look tough lol.

I’ve been to the city centre maybe 5 times and with those aggressive teenagers and junkies everywhere I wouln’t recommend going alone.
If you see a group of teenagers with grey adidas tracksuits, stay away
Shane on Oct 17, 2021:
Just witnessed five young guys (14 ish) having an organised gang fight on Ringsend bridge. 10 minute walk to the Google HQ.

What a disgrace this country is, inequality heaped upon generation after generation.
Anonymous on Aug 27, 2021:
In Dublin (and Ireland overall), OK areas and very bad areas are sometimes separated by nothing more than a few metres. It's therefore really tricky for tourists or foreigners to gauge where is safe and where isn't. Adding to the problem, as many others have commented, is abysmal problem of young gangs. Many are under 18, meaning little happens even if they are caught committing crimes. If under-18's don't sound threatening, you might think again when surrounded by 10 or 20 of them. Many are on drugs.

Sometimes the motivation is robbery to pay for their habit. Other times it is boredom. Unlike in other major cities, crime in Dublin often has no motivation other than to pass the time or look 'hard' in front of friends. This can involve random physical attacks, harassment, verbal abuse and of course regular anti-social behaviour.

I am sure there are criminological reasons - whether it is the breakdown of the family structure or the failure of criminal justice. But the result is that few places in Dublin are safe.

My advice is -
Isolated areas: Be mindful of groups of young people congregating and approaching and keep a wide berth. Always be on the lookout for large groups and get offside quickly. If they are far enough away and you spot them early, it is unlikely they will chase you down. But if you have to pass them on the street or in a park, it is likely you will at the very least encounter some verbal abuse. Or of course worse.

Crowded areas: Here you need to aware of pickpockets. Crowded areas are safer from the gangs because there are simply so many people and it is easy to blend in and not be targeted. But the flip side is that this is where pickpockets will operate - and they are prevalent in Dublin, so be very careful.

Public transport: This is awkward because if the previously mentioned gangs get on and sit all around you, there is little you can do. But the obvious thing here is to swallow your pride and get off at the next station, or move to another carriage. Don't engage with them. It only makes a negative encounter more likely. So many people, young and old, get beaten and harassed by these gangs. Don't give them a chance. It doesn't matter if you are in a couple, in a family, or alone. The smaller your group, the more likely you will be targeted. But save being in a group of 10 rugby guys, they don't discriminate. They'll target anyone.

Night: During the day Dublin can be OK if you follow the advice listed above, but at night the atmosphere really changes and becomes very unpleasant. Getting mugged or attacked isn't guaranteed, but it is a possibility and you need to minimise your exposure to the city dark because if there are lots of crazies about during the day, they multiply at night.
Anonymous on Jul 12, 2021:
Dublin has gotten worse during the pandemic. In general areas on the north side(of the river Liffey), and more specific Ballyfermot, Finglas, the north inner city (among many others) are traditionally dangerous, but also areas on the south side, such as around st James hospital, and areas such as Clondalkin, Drimnagh, and Tallaght, are best avoided
.
The general problems arise from aggressive teenage gangs (also locally referred to as 'knacker' kids, but not politically correct) who commit knife crimes and other serious antisocial behaviour. Knife crimes are a serious problem in Dublin, according to Dublin live article ',Calls for clampdown on knife crime after weekend of violence of Dublin's streets'. Available at: https://www.dublinlive.ie/news/dublin-news/calls-clampdown-knife-crime-after-20866257 (accessed 12-07-2021).
A typical newspaper headline about Dublin on the Irish Times, 'Investigations launched into three separate stabbings in Dublin', available at: https://www.irishtimes.com/news/crime-and-law/investigations-launched-into-three-separate-stabbings-in-dublin-1.4598536 (accessed 12-07-2021).

The general problem is caused by liberal judges not handing down adequate sentences and it is not unusual to see criminal individuals with dozens of previous convictions on a rampage committing further crimes.
Anonymous on May 16, 2021:
Dublin is unlike any other city I have ever lived in because the chances of meeting trouble are not necessarily confined to particular areas. Of course there are very,very dangerous areas in Dublin but it seems you can meet hassle throughout Dublin. No offence but the city is a shithole and is in massive social decline. Lived in London,New York and Amsterdam but I am more anxious walking around Dublin than in any of those cities. Personal safety is a constant lietmotif in Dublin. Zombie-like druggies looking for money, gangs of kids making life a misery for so many people in estates etc...it's a fecking nightmare. How this has been allowed to continue is mind-boggling. Absolutely no will by anyone to put a stop to it so I guess we get what we deserve. Advice: if you can leave this dump do so before it all goes down. I'm sorry to write this.
Iftimie Tudor on May 03, 2021:
2019 - late december - 1 AM: I called the police while they where using a crawlbar trying to break my door. I stared the alarm and they just left for the next house. I was watching them from the window stealing from my neighbor's car . Police never showed up. Dublin is not a safe city!
Karl Peyton on Apr 30, 2021:
I forgot about Kiliney, Dalkey and Shankill however they're very expensive so don't go broke for them.
Pie on Apr 30, 2021:
Some of the best places to live are, Dun Laoghaire and surrounding areas, Malahide, Portmarnock, Howth, Sutton, Whitehall, Drumcondra, Sandymount and surrounds (if you can afford it), Dundrum and surrounds, Blackrock, Rathmines, Ranelagh, Rathgar, Dartry, Milltown, Skerries (even though it's far away), parts of Glasnevin, Chapelizod, Castleknock east, Grand Canal Dock, Stepaside and Sandyford.
Pie on Apr 30, 2021:
I forgot about Ronanstown, Clondalkin, Drimnagh, Liffey Valley, Corduff and some parts of Blanchardstown in my last comment
Pie on Apr 30, 2021:
Dublin is safe in most parts, a lot of people say the north side is worse however most of it's fine from personal experience. Places you should avoid are, Darndale, Tallaght (all parts), Crumlin, Ballymun, Finglas west (east is better), Ballyfermot, Coolock, Clonshaugh, The city centre (at night), North Strand, Sherrif street, Cherry Orchard and Dolphins Barn. Overall any other area is safe enough.
Sarah on Mar 30, 2021:
Some parts of Dublin are lovely, especially the south side and during the day. Have lived in Dublin west my whole life and once you're locked away in your own space by the time it starts to get dark, generally you're fine. Also, while you should always report crime, the gardai are normally useless, so I wouldn't expect that anything would be done about it.
Advice for tourists: Just don't go anywhere near the hostels/ food drives or the routes between them at night, or near any hospitals, train stations, buses, shopping areas etc... Just stay in your hotel / the pub across the road from your hotel. Most areas are good during the day, just watch your belongings on crowded streets and try to not stand out too much. 99% of people have no trouble. Would also recommend that you don't travel alone in most areas. Even during the day.
@Cesar: Once you don't use excessive force, there is no problem here with self-defense, as far as I've seen (our house was broken into and my partner was not prosecuted for causing the guy injury).
New Guy on Mar 02, 2021:
North is so dangerous, south is average (depends on the areas). I have never felt this unsafe before. I traveled more than 20 cities in U.S by myself at the age 18, went to Mexico at the age 19 and never felt that unsafe. Juviline Crime Laws must be reconsidered. I was planing to live and invest in here, but probably won't.
Anonymous on Jan 24, 2021:
I don't feel safe in Dublin and I'm a tall, well-built guy.
Too many young gangs randomly starting fights, mugging people.
Anon on Dec 12, 2020:
Terrible underclass that have nothing better to do than harass/attack/insult/intimidate the people who are trying to do something useful with their lives.
Ahmet on Nov 18, 2020:
Most perpetrators of crimes in Dublin are junkies and scumbag teenagers who have nothing to do all day. If you keep vigilant and know where all your stuff is you should be safe as with any other big city in the world. peace
Javi on Sep 27, 2020:
Dublin (and Ireland in general) has a huge scumbag issue, and in the last 5 years is only growing without any control. The police is utterly useless as they are under armed and under stuffed, there are multiples cases reported where neighbors call them and they just answer that there are no police cars available at the moment, a serious joke! It sounds ridiculous that in a city like Dublin with a 99.999% of the population is impecable, is being terrified by 15 year old scumbags. Not to mention that the law, which is non-existent for underages, doesn’t help much, and apparently there’s little interest in changing it.