Car theft is rampant in the U.S. According to the National Crime Information Center, car theft was up 7% last year from the previous year. There were over a quarter million cars stolen in the last quarter of 2022 alone. 

Not all models stolen at equal rates. Kia and Hyundai have been a huge part of that uptick with these two models making up 60% of all auto thefts. 

Where you live also makes a big difference in how likely you are to experience car theft. To find the highest-risk areas for auto theft in the U.S., we evaluated the top 50 metropolitan areas based on population. First, we looked at the rate of motor vehicle thefts per 100,000 residents. Next, we looked at the change in thefts between 2020 and 2021 (the last year for which data is available) to determine if auto theft is on the rise or the decline. These stats all came from the National Insurance Crime Bureau.

Coming in at number four, the most populated city in New Mexico: Albuquerque. Albuquerque experiences a theft rate of 710 per 100,000 residents. Additionally, the number of thefts is growing year over year at a rate of 12.4%.