SafeSuburbs Logo SafeSuburbs

Papaioea South Safety Snapshot

Manawatū-Whanganui, New Zealand

Police data to August 2026

Generates a printable report with charts & summary.

Is Papaioea South safe? It has more recorded crime than most NZ suburbs. Papaioea South has a safety score of 7/100, meaning less recorded crime harm per resident than about 7% of New Zealand suburbs, with 108.5 recorded crimes per 1,000 residents a year. It is the #123 safest of 131 ranked suburbs in Manawatū-Whanganui.

The annual total crime rate in Papaioea South is 108.5 crimes per thousand residents, making it the #123 safest of 131 ranked suburbs in Manawatū-Whanganui Region. The overall crime trend in the area has decreased in recent months with criminal activity peaking in November 2025, January 2026, March 2026.

How the safety score works

Safety Score (NZCHI-adjusted)

iHow it works
7 / 100
Crimes per 1,000 residents
i
108.5
Regional rank #123 / 131 (Bottom 25%)
3-Month Trend
i
▼11.1%(improving)

Offence breakdown · past 12 months

Based on total incidents. Police data to August 2026
  • Theft 81.4%
    Theft accounts for 81.4 percent of incidents.
  • Assault 9.3%
    Assault accounts for 9.3 percent of incidents.
  • Burglary 7.8%
    Burglary accounts for 7.8 percent of incidents.
  • Sexual Offences 1.0%
    Sexual Offences accounts for 1.0 percent of incidents.
  • Robbery, Blackmail, And Extortion 0.5%
    Robbery, Blackmail, And Extortion accounts for 0.5 percent of incidents.
View full safety overview for Papaioea South ›

Papaioea South Demographics

2023 Census data

Loaded live from the API for this suburb.

Population

1,887

Households

867

Median income

$59,600

Median rent

$345

Age distribution

Share of total population.

Age 0-14
273 (14.5%)
Age 15-64
1,311 (69.5%)
Age 65+
312 (16.5%)

Birthplace

Share of stated birthplace records.

Born in NZ
1,401 (74.5%)
Born overseas
480 (25.5%)

Ethnicity

Normalised to ethnicity responses (can exceed population).

European
1,284 · 58.9%
Māori
363 · 16.6%
Pacific
93 · 4.3%
Asian
390 · 17.9%
MELAA
24 · 1.1%
Other
27 · 1.2%

Home tenure (as stored)

Normalised to stated total when present.

Owned
1,506 · 100%
Not owned
1,020 · 67.9%
Other
99 · 6.6%

Household composition

Normalised to household composition total.

One family
384 (14.9%)
Two families
9 (0.3%)
Three+ families
0 (0%)
Other composition
2,184 (84.7%)

Demographic data sourced from Stats NZ , licensed under CC BY 4.0

FAQ

  • Is Papaioea South a safe suburb to live in?

    Papaioea South has a safety score of 7/100, making it the #123 safest of 131 ranked suburbs in Manawatū-Whanganui Region. 89% of recorded crime is property crime (theft, burglary, fraud or damage).

  • What is the crime rate in Papaioea South?

    The annual crime rate in Papaioea South is 108.5 recorded crimes per 1,000 residents.

Crime heatmap for Papaioea South

For deeper suburb insights visit CrimeStats.co.nz

Nearby Suburbs