Is Wichita safe in 2026? Citywide 2025 numbers, empty houses, and why people still order ADT
People search “is Wichita safe” because they want a citywide number they can hold. The Wichita Eagle reported 45 homicides in 2025, up two from 43 in 2024, with a 91 percent clearance rate. The Wichita Police Department year-end snapshot said overall crime was down 12 percent, with burglaries down 18 percent, auto thefts down 10 percent, and larcenies down 15 percent. Those are citywide numbers. They mix College Hill, Delano, Downtown, East Wichita, Westlink, and South Wichita. They are not a report card on your street. We do not publish neighborhood crime rates. Call (316) 600-9771 if you want the house watched while it sits empty. Home Security Systems Wichita is the local line. SafeStreets installs. ADT monitors 24/7. This site is not ADT corporate.
Mayor Lily Wu and Chief Joe Sullivan have both spoken to public safety. Direction on the citywide mix is real. Porch theft and empty houses did not take the year off. People order monitoring for occupancy — not for a verdict on the ZIP.
What 2025 actually said, and what it did not
The Eagle and WPD used different homicide counting in public 2025 wrap-ups. We cite both and do not flatten them into one invented total. Property-crime drops in the WPD snapshot are real. They are not a reason to leave a College Hill side door unlocked on a Tuesday while you sit downtown. A quieter citywide year is not 24/7 monitoring. A neighbor on the porch is not an ADT operator.
We will not invent a College Hill crime rate. We will not invent a Derby crime rate. We will not scare you with a map we did not measure. We will count doors, windows, and the garage. We will photograph leftover keypads. We will name the city desk from the ZIP.
Packages start at $53.99/mo* for ADT Secure+. Many plans have a $99 install*. Homeowners only. 36 months. Indoor sensors plus 24/7 still protect the house if you skip cameras. Cameras are optional. The door is not.
Empty houses are the product, not the headline
Weekdays empty Wichita houses after Kellogg, I-135, K-96, a Spirit or Textron shift, a McConnell schedule, or a USD 259 drop-off. That stretch is why people call. Weekday empty houses is that clock. Schools and empty houses is the campus version. This article is the citywide number and the limit of that number.
Old Town and Delano porches collect boxes. A doorbell helps. ADT 24/7 watches the door. Porch packages is the walkable-street article. HOA lots in Andover and Derby may limit cameras. Indoor sensors still count. HOA camera rules is the board article.
Ask about cellular backup so the panel still reaches ADT if Evergy drops on a storm night. Evergy backup is the outage article. Storm nights are occupancy too.
The desk still follows the ZIP
City of Wichita Chapter 3.41 is $25 to register with the Wichita Alarm Program at (877) 888-1355. Derby bills $25 / $50 / $75 after two free false alarms in a calendar year. Andover charges $10 after six. Goddard bills $100 / $200 / $300 after three. Confirm the office from the ZIP. We do not invent a dollar. Wichita versus Derby and Wichita versus Andover are the desk articles.
A leftover keypad is not an account. Photograph it. Leftover keypads is the hardware article. Builder leftovers in Maize and Goddard are usually not ADT. Builder leftover keypads is the new-build article.
College Hill, Delano, and Downtown are not one number
College Hill brick streets, Delano west of the river, Old Town warehouse blocks, and stacked downtown condos sit inside the same citywide 2025 mix. They do not share a porch. They do not share a leftover keypad. They do not share a board rule. We will not flatten them into a single “safe” or “unsafe” label. We will quote the openings on the address you actually own.
East Wichita along Rock Road and Kellogg empties toward office days. Westlink empties toward Central. Northwest 67205 empties toward Maize Road. South Wichita empties toward Pawnee and I-35. Those weekday empties are occupancy. They are not a neighborhood crime rate we invented. Arm after the last adult leaves. That is the product.
Derby, Andover, and Maize still empty on a school-day clock
Collar cities sit outside the City of Wichita desk and still empty after drop-off. Derby High, Andover Central, Maize South, and Eisenhower are school facts. They are not a reason to skip indoor sensors. Photograph leftover keypads. Confirm the office from the ZIP. Do not treat a citywide burglary drop as a watch on a Tuesday slider in 67037 or 67002.
Aviation shifts at Spirit, Textron, and McConnell empty houses at odd hours. Night work is still an empty house. Storm nights are still an empty house if you are in the basement. Ask about cellular backup so Evergy dropping is not the end of the watch. That question belongs on the same 316 call as the ZIP.
What we will cite, and what we will not
We will cite the Eagle’s 45 homicides for 2025 and WPD’s year-end snapshot that overall crime was down 12 percent with burglaries down 18 percent. We will name Mayor Lily Wu and Chief Joe Sullivan. We will not invent a College Hill rate, a Delano rate, or a Derby rate. We will not use scare copy as an H1. We will not tell you the city is too safe to order monitoring. We will not tell you the city is too dangerous to live in. We will tell you the house sits empty, and that is when people call.
Call (316) 600-9771 with the ZIP, house versus condo, leftover-keypad photo, and cameras yes or no. How to order is the path. Wichita homeowners can trust a SafeStreets security system monitored by ADT. Citywide 2025 numbers are real. They are not a watch on your rear slider.