Montreal recorded over 300 break-ins in March alone — Here’s which areas are most affected

March was another rough month for break-ins in Montreal, with 331 incidents recorded across the island.

That pushes the 2026 running total to 1,323 as of March 31, according to data from the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM).

For context, those figures are based on the latest data available through the city’s Vue sur la sécurité publique interactive mapping tool, which tracks criminal incidents across Montreal in near real-time.

The March number works out to roughly 10.7 break-ins per day throughout the month. That may sound like a lot, but it’s better than what the city is used to. In fact, with more than a quarter of the year now in the books, 2026 is shaping up to be a notably quieter year for break-and-enters than 2025 was.

Where the incidents are concentrated

The SPVM’s interactive map shows the same general patterns that defined 2025, with certain parts of the island absorbing a disproportionate share of incidents. The Ville-Marie and Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve area continues to show the heaviest concentration, with the downtown core and surrounding east-end neighbourhoods remaining the most targeted parts of the city.

Montréal-Nord is also showing elevated numbers in the northeast, and the Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension corridor remains active. Côte-des-Neiges and Notre-Dame-de-Grâce are still appearing prominently in the data as well.

On the western end of the island, the numbers are considerably lower, with some pockets of activity visible around Dollard-des-Ormeaux.

How 2026 is trending

At the current pace, Montreal could finish the year somewhere around 5,200 break-ins, which would actually be a meaningful improvement over recent years. For context, here’s how the numbers have stacked up going back a decade:

• 2015: 9,947
• 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: 6,139

It’s worth keeping in mind that early-year projections don’t always hold. In 2025, the fall months drove a significant spike — October alone accounted for 579 incidents, the busiest single month of the year — so the warmer seasons will be telling.

If you want to check activity on your specific street or neighbourhood, the SPVM’s interactive map is available through the City of Montreal’s website, where you can filter by crime type and date range.