The safest suburb in Gisborne is Whataupoko East, with a safety score of 84/100 and 16.7 recorded crimes per 1,000 residents a year. Hexton and Hangaroa come next. These rankings cover 26 Gisborne suburbs, using NZ Police data.
Police data to August 2026
| # | Suburb | Safety score | Crimes per 1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Whataupoko East | 84/100 | 16.7 |
| 2 | Hexton | 65/100 | 22.9 |
| 3 | Hangaroa | 61/100 | 24.1 |
| 4 | Wainui-Okitu | 59/100 | 24.4 |
| 5 | Te Arai | 55/100 | 19.6 |
| 6 | Mangapapa East | 49/100 | 33.6 |
| 7 | Whataupoko West | 44/100 | 44 |
| 8 | Waipaoa | 41/100 | 27.1 |
| 9 | Tamarau | 33/100 | 36.4 |
| 10 | Tokomaru | 29/100 | 60.4 |
| 11 | Te Hapara North | 26/100 | 51.1 |
| 12 | Wharekaka | 26/100 | 52.8 |
| 13 | Kaiti North | 25/100 | 32.7 |
| 14 | Riverdale | 22/100 | 43 |
| 15 | East Cape | 21/100 | 38.5 |
| 16 | Elgin | 19/100 | 35.3 |
| 17 | Mangapapa North | 18/100 | 46.3 |
| 18 | Outer Kaiti | 17/100 | 40.3 |
| 19 | Te Hapara South | 14/100 | 45.9 |
| 20 | Ruatōria-Raukumara | 14/100 | 76.8 |
Scores compare each suburb with every ranked suburb in New Zealand; higher is safer. How the score works. Suburbs with very few residents or incomplete Police records are not ranked.
