Map the Block › Places › Indiana › Lake County
Lake County, Indiana in numbers: crime, income, hazards
Lake County averaged 3.6 reported violent crimes per 1,000 residents a year in 2021-2025, 17% higher than the Indiana rate (3.1). The median household earns $71,493 and the unemployment rate was 4.8% in August 2026. It is home to roughly 500,379 residents.
Last updated . Crime: FBI 2021-2025. Income and housing: Census ACS 2020-2024. Unemployment: BLS August 2026. Road work: October 11, 2026.
Also on the map: income · hazard risk · Superfund · dams
What is the crime rate in Lake County?
Police agencies in Lake County reported an average of 1,764 violent crimes and 7,545 property crimes a year from 2021 to 2025. Per 1,000 residents, the violent-crime rate works out to 3.6: 17% higher than the Indiana rate (3.1), and close to the national rate (3.7). Burglary, theft and car theft together come to 15.6 per 1,000 residents, compared with 14.1 across Indiana. Most violent crimes here are aggravated assaults (76%). CDC death records show about 84 homicide deaths a year in the county (17.1 per 100,000), a count that includes cases police may classify differently.
| Offense (yearly average, 2021-2025) | Lake County | Per 1,000 | Indiana per 1,000 | U.S. per 1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crime | 1,764 | 3.6 | 3.1 | 3.7 |
| Murder | 64 | 0.13 | 0.06 | 0.06 |
| Rape | 132 | 0.27 | 0.34 | 0.40 |
| Robbery | 225 | 0.47 | 0.38 | 0.62 |
| Aggravated assault | 1,343 | 2.8 | 2.3 | 2.6 |
| Property crime | 7,545 | 15.6 | 14.1 | 18.1 |
| Burglary | 802 | 1.7 | 1.9 | 2.4 |
| Larceny-theft | 5,614 | 11.6 | 10.2 | 13.0 |
| Motor vehicle theft | 1,128 | 2.3 | 2.0 | 2.6 |
Most crime never reaches the police, so these are reported crimes, a floor rather than the full count. In 2024 about half of violent crimes (48%) and about 3 in 10 property crimes (31%) were reported to police (U.S. Justice Department, National Crime Victimization Survey). Rates also depend on how completely each agency reports to the FBI. County figures add up the city police and sheriff reports in the county (16 agencies; 97% of residents covered).
What is the median household income in Lake County?
Half of households in Lake County make more than $71,493 and half make less; across Indiana the midpoint is $71,957. Owner-occupied homes have a median value of $230,600, and the median rent is $1,131 a month. 12.9% of households received SNAP benefits in the past year (state: 9.1%). The newest monthly figure from the Bureau of Labor Statistics is 4.8% for August 2026 (preliminary), with 11,548 people out of work and looking.
| Census ACS 2020-2024 | Lake County | Indiana | United States |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 500,379 | 6,851,073 | 334,922,499 |
| Median household income | $71,493 | $71,957 | $80,734 |
| Median home value (owner-occupied) | $230,600 | $218,200 | $332,700 |
| Median gross rent | $1,131 | $1,062 | $1,413 |
| Unemployment rate (2020-2024 average) | 6.1% | 4.3% | 5.2% |
| People below the poverty line | 14.3% | 12.3% | 12.5% |
| Households receiving SNAP (food stamps) | 12.9% | 9.1% | 12.1% |
| Adults 25+ with a bachelor's degree or higher | 25.8% | 29.5% | 35.7% |
| Homeowner households | 71.7% | 70.6% | 65.2% |
| Median age | 39.7 | 38.1 | 38.9 |
| Households with broadband internet | 89.7% | 89.9% | 91.0% |
| People without health insurance | 6.6% | 7.4% | 8.4% |
What natural hazards and environmental sites are in Lake County?
Lake County carries a “Relatively High” overall rating in FEMA's National Risk Index. Of the seven hazards on our map, FEMA rates these highest: tornadoes (Very High) and river flooding (Relatively High). The index compares counties with each other and also weighs how vulnerable and resilient a community is, so it is a long-run estimate, not a forecast.
Superfund sites
EPA lists 8 active Superfund sites (final or proposed) in Lake County: Federated Metals Corp Whiting, American Chemical Service, Inc., U.S. Smelter And Lead Refinery, Inc., Gary Development Landfill, Lake Sandy Jo (M&M Landfill), Midco I, plus 2 more. A listing means EPA is managing a long-term cleanup; it does not by itself mean anyone is exposed today.
High-hazard dams
The National Inventory of Dams lists 7 high-hazard dams in Lake County. 5 are rated Poor or Unsatisfactory in condition, 1 Satisfactory or Fair. The two tallest are Lake of The Four Seasons (Lower) C (36 ft) and Indiana Harbor and Canal Confined Disposal Facility (35 ft). “High hazard” describes what lies downstream (people would probably die if the dam failed), not how likely the dam is to fail.
Industrial chemical releases
44 facilities in the county filed Toxics Release Inventory reports for 2024, together reporting 33,032,157 pounds of listed chemicals released on site. Reported releases are legal permitted amounts in most cases.
Disasters, air and water
Lake County was covered by 2 federal major disaster declarations from 2016 through 2025 (Severe Storm 1, Flood 1), not counting COVID-19. In 2024, 5 of 366 monitored days had an air quality index of “unhealthy for sensitive groups” or worse (EPA). Of 30 community water systems, none had an open health-based drinking-water violation in EPA's records (September 2026). EPA puts the county in radon zone 2 (moderate). NHTSA counted 36 traffic deaths in the county in 2024, including 4 pedestrians.
Is there road construction in Lake County?
On October 11, 2026 the state transportation feed listed 57 highway work zones in Lake County (46 active that day). Listed roads include I-80, IN 53 and US 41. 20 are on interstates. The map's construction layer is refreshed every morning.
See today's work zones on the map →
How many schools, nursing homes and parks are in Lake County?
Lake County has 121 public schools (2024-25) and 41 private schools (2023-24) in federal school lists. 20 nursing homes are certified by Medicare or Medicaid here; star ratings for each are on the map and on Medicare's Care Compare. USGS mapping shows 54 fire or EMS stations and 22 police or sheriff stations.
Gun shops, liquor stores and Planned Parenthood in Lake County
Gun shops
13 gun shops with a public storefront are on the map in Lake County, plus 30 more licensed dealers without a public storefront (not shown). 7 of them are pawnshops licensed to sell guns. On the ATF list: Cabela's 424 (Hammond), Cash America Pawn (Hammond), Cash Indiana INC (Lake Station), Dbg Firearms (Cedar Lake), Highland Pawn Jewelry & Loan (Highland), Jacks Loan Office INC (Gary), Lake Station Ace Hardware (Lake Station), Mega Cash Pawn (Hobart) and 5 more.
Liquor stores
76 liquor stores are on the map in Lake County: 41st Avenue Liquors, A2Z Liquor (Hobart), Bee Liquors (Hobart), Binny's Liquor & Tobacco (Gary), Briar East Liquors (Hammond), Cask N Cellar Liquors (Highland), Cask-N-Cellar (Hammond), Cask-N-Cellar (Lake Station) and 68 more. Indiana has no complete public liquor licence list we can use, so this count also draws on OpenStreetMap and Overture Maps and may miss some stores or include closed ones.
Planned Parenthood
2 Planned Parenthood health centers are on the map in Lake County: Planned Parenthood (Hammond) and Planned Parenthood (Merrillville).
See them on the map: gun shops · liquor stores · Planned Parenthood →
Sources: ATF licensee list (Sept 2026); state liquor licence lists, OpenStreetMap and Overture Maps (non-official; partial in some states); HHS Title X directory and CMS NPPES.
Common questions
What is the crime rate in Lake County?
Lake County averaged 1,764 reported violent crimes a year in 2021-2025, or 3.6 per 1,000 residents, 17% higher than the Indiana rate (3.1). The property-crime rate was 15.6 per 1,000 (FBI Uniform Crime Reporting).
What is the median household income in Lake County?
$71,493 (Census American Community Survey, 2020-2024 average), compared with $71,957 for Indiana and $80,734 nationally.
What is the unemployment rate in Lake County?
The newest monthly figure from the Bureau of Labor Statistics is 4.8% for August 2026 (preliminary), with 11,548 people out of work and looking.
What natural hazards affect Lake County?
Lake County carries a “Relatively High” overall rating in FEMA's National Risk Index. Of the seven hazards on our map, FEMA rates these highest: tornadoes (Very High) and river flooding (Relatively High).
Are there Superfund sites in Lake County?
EPA lists 8 active Superfund sites (final or proposed) in Lake County: Federated Metals Corp Whiting, American Chemical Service, Inc., U.S. Smelter And Lead Refinery, Inc., Gary Development Landfill, Lake Sandy Jo (M&M Landfill), Midco I, plus 2 more.
Is there road construction in Lake County right now?
On October 11, 2026 the state transportation feed listed 57 highway work zones in Lake County (46 active that day). Listed roads include I-80, IN 53 and US 41. 20 are on interstates.
How many nursing homes are in Lake County?
20 Medicare- or Medicaid-certified nursing homes (CMS provider data, September 2026).
How does Lake County compare with neighboring counties?
| County | Population | Violent crimes per 1,000 (2021-25) | Median household income |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cook County, IL | 5,182,090 | 3.8 | $83,498 |
| Jasper County | 33,234 | – | $77,314 |
| Kankakee County, IL | 106,635 | 2.2 | $71,281 |
| Newton County | 13,922 | 0.00 | $75,481 |
| Porter County | 174,818 | 1.3 | $87,972 |
| Will County, IL | 701,462 | 1.9 | $109,984 |
Cities in Lake County with their own page: Hammond, Gary.
More: Indiana statewide numbers · Sex-offender registry search (U.S. Justice Department, NSOPW)
Where do these numbers come from?
- Crime: FBI Uniform Crime Reporting 2021-2025 (agency level, Return A), averaged and summed by county by Map the Block; Census population; state and national rates: FBI estimated crimes 2021-2025.
- Income, housing, education: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year, table B19013 (median household income) and related tables.
- Monthly unemployment: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS), county data, not seasonally adjusted. Public domain.
- Hazards: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), county scores; disasters: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries.
- Superfund: U.S. EPA, Superfund site boundaries and NPL status (October 2026). Dams: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, National Inventory of Dams (public map service, October 2026). Chemical releases: U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory, reporting year 2024 (basic data file).
- Air and water: U.S. EPA AirData, annual AQI by county 2024; EPA Air Quality Design Values 2023-2025 (June 2026); U.S. EPA SDWIS via ECHO drinking-water download (September 30, 2026). Traffic deaths: NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) 2024; Census population.
- Work zones: State departments of transportation, via the U.S. DOT Work Zone Data Exchange (WZDx) and state 511 feeds; refreshed every morning (snapshot October 11, 2026).
- Schools: National Center for Education Statistics, EDGE public school locations 2024-25; budgets: U.S. Census Bureau, Annual Survey of School System Finances, fiscal year 2024; National Center for Education Statistics, EDGE Private School geocodes (Private School Survey 2023-24). Nursing homes: U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Nursing Home Provider Information and Penalties (September 2026). Stations: U.S. Geological Survey, National Structures Dataset (Fire Stations/EMS Stations), October 2026 pull.
- Parks: USGS Protected Areas Database of the U.S. (PAD-US 4.1); state park agencies' open data (CA, NY, PA, TN, TX, FL, NJ, KY, HI, UT, MT and others); OpenStreetMap contributors for some hours, phones, fees and camping; U.S. National Park Service: unit boundaries (Land Resources Division), Acreage Report (Sept 30, 2026), park pages on nps.gov (hours, fees), Visitor Use Statistics (2025).
Map the Block shows public statistics about places, not people, and does not rate or rank neighborhoods as places to live. Figures are as published by each source; check the source before relying on a number.
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