While Montreal's crime rates pale in comparison to many other major cities across North America, the city certainly has its fair share of criminal activity. In fact, break-ins are on the rise across Montreal this year, and some neighbourhoods are seeing a lot more than others.
According to data released by the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM), there have been 4,812 break-ins reported city-wide since January 2025 — about 280 more than during the same period last year, marking a 6.5% increase.
Those numbers come from the SPVM's interactive Vue sur la sécurité publique map, which tracks crime trends across the island. It shows that some boroughs have become hot spots for residential and commercial break-ins.
A look at local criminal activity in 2025. Vue sur la sécurité publique,
So far this year, the hardest-hit areas include Ville-Marie (especially downtown), Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, the Plateau-Mont-Royal, Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension, and Montréal-Nord.
While those numbers may sound high, they're still well below what Montreal saw a decade ago. Back in 2015, the city recorded 9,947 break-ins, the highest total since the SPVM began publishing data. For comparison, 2021 had the lowest tally in recent history with just 4,809 incidents.
Statistics Canada reports that 14,785 adults in Quebec faced formal breaking and entering charges between 2020 and 2024, including 3,294 in 2023 alone.
Here's how Montreal's break-in numbers have evolved over the years:
- 2015 — 9,947
- 2016 — 9,483
- 2017 — 8,816
- 2018 — 7,052
- 2019 — 6,715
- 2020 — 5,733
- 2021 — 4,809
- 2022 — 5,554
- 2023 — 6,048
- 2024 — 5,844
- 2025 (Jan 1 – Oct 16) — 4,812
The SPVM's map is updated monthly and lets you explore reported crimes by neighbourhood, showing where certain types of offences — from vandalism to theft — are trending up or down across Montreal.
This story was inspired by the article "4.800 entrées par effraction depuis janvier: Voici les quartiers les plus visés à Montréal" which was originally published on Narcity Quebec
