Montreal had nearly 6,000 break-ins in 2025 — Here are the most targeted neighbourhoods

As 2025 winds down, Montreal police are releasing year-end crime statistics that show break-ins have been on the rise across the city.

The Service de police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM) has recorded close to 6,000 break-and-enter incidents so far this year, and the data reveals some neighbourhoods are getting hit way harder than others. If you live in certain areas, you’re more likely to be dealing with this reality than residents elsewhere.

Break-ins are climbing across Montreal

The SPVM has recorded 5,871 break-ins between January 1 and December 17, 2025, according to the latest public data available through the city’s Vue sur la sécurité publique interactive tool.

That represents a noticeable uptick from last year. Between January and November alone, police logged 5,715 break-and-enter incidents across the island. That’s 336 more cases than during the same period in 2024, marking an increase of about 6.2%.

The numbers have continued climbing through December, with approximately 156 new cases added in recent weeks, bringing the year-to-date total to nearly 5,900 incidents.

These statistics have been compiled and made public since 2015, allowing Montrealers to track how different types of crime evolve across the city over time. And while the overall trend has been downward over the past decade, 2025 is bucking that pattern.

When break-ins are most likely to happen

If you’re wondering when thieves are most active, the data shows some clear seasonal patterns.

October 2025 was the busiest month for break-ins, with police receiving 579 reports from victims across the city. Summer months were also particularly active, with July seeing 561 incidents and June recording 559 cases.

On the flip side, February was the quietest month (aside from December, which isn’t finished yet), with just 392 break-in reports filed with police.

The uptick in warmer months could be related to several factors: people leaving windows open, taking vacations and leaving homes unattended, or simply thieves being more active when conditions are more comfortable for their activities.

The Montreal neighbourhoods getting hit the hardest

The SPVM’s interactive crime mapping tool paints a revealing picture of where break-ins are concentrated across the city, and it’s clear that some areas are dealing with significantly higher rates than others.

According to the data, these neighbourhoods and boroughs are experiencing the most break-and-enter activity:

Ville-Marie (particularly the downtown core) is seeing heavy activity, which makes sense given the density of residential buildings mixed with commercial properties in the area.

Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve is another hotspot appearing prominently in the data, with multiple sectors within the borough showing elevated numbers.

Plateau-Mont-Royal continues to be targeted, likely due to its mix of older buildings and high residential density that can make certain properties more vulnerable.

Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension is also among the hardest-hit areas, with incidents spread across different parts of this diverse borough.

Montréal-Nord rounds out the list of most-affected neighbourhoods, with the data showing concentrated activity in several sectors.

The SPVM’s interactive crime mapping tool.SPVM

The interactive map allows residents to zoom in on their specific street or neighbourhood to see exactly how many incidents have been reported nearby, giving a granular view of the situation in their immediate area.

How 2025 stacks up against previous years

While the 6% increase from 2024 is concerning, it’s important to look at the bigger picture of how break-ins have trended in Montreal over the past decade.

The good news? We’re still far from the peak levels the city experienced in the mid-2010s. Here’s the complete breakdown of break-and-enter incidents recorded by the SPVM since 2015:

• 2015: 9,947 break-ins
• 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 (January 1 to December 17): 5,871

Break-ins peaked in 2015 with nearly 10,000 incidents, the highest level since the SPVM began publicly tracking this data. From there, cases steadily declined year after year, hitting a low point in 2021 with fewer than 5,000 reported incidents.

That 2021 dip likely had something to do with pandemic-related factors. More people working from home meant fewer empty residences during the day, and general movement restrictions may have impacted criminal activity patterns.

Other crimes reported in Montreal this year

Break-and-enters are just one piece of the crime picture. When you add up all the incidents tracked by the SPVM, Montreal has seen approximately 23,427 reported crimes so far this year.

Here’s what else has been recorded in 2025:

• 4,957 mischief incidents
• 22 offences causing death
• 12,557 theft-related crimes, including:
  • 1,546 robberies
  • 5,156 car thefts
  • 5,855 thefts from or on vehicles

For context, Montreal saw more than 27,310 crimes reported in 2024, 29,350 in 2023, and 28,042 in 2022.

If you want to see how your specific neighbourhood is affected, the SPVM’s Vue sur la sécurité publique tool is available through the City of Montreal’s website, where you can explore the interactive map and filter by different crime types and time periods.

This story was inspired by the article “5 900 entrées par effraction en 2025 : Voici les quartiers les plus visés à Montréal” which was originally published on Narcity Quebec