neighbourhood in Haarlem

Burgwal

2,335 residents · postal code 2011 · Part of Oude Stad, Haarlem

Top 49% in the Netherlands

Everything close by, little space

Greenery is nearly absent in Burgwal: within three hundred metres less than a sixth of the ground is green, against well over half nationally, and the tree canopy is thinner still. Together with a noise level far above the Dutch middle, that explains the 2.9 for quiet & nature almost single-handedly. Anyone moving here trades a view of trees for a 9.4 in amenities; restaurant and GP are a few hundred metres away.

The 5.6 for families stands out because the primary school is five hundred metres away. Distance therefore cannot explain that figure; the share of children can. Fewer than one in ten residents is under fifteen, and more than half of all households consist of a single person.

This is an old inner city and the numbers say so: dense, loud, well served and short of children.

no. 6,325 of 13,075 neighbourhoods with a grade
no. 68 of 97 in Haarlem

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Is Burgwal a safe neighbourhood?

For 2025, Burgwal comes out at 28 recorded crimes per 1,000 people present; the national middle is 24. That is more than in most Dutch neighbourhoods.

The figures ⌄

Safety

Registered crimes per 1,000 people present per year: residents plus business activity. Figures for small neighbourhoods are smoothed.

Total crime

28.4 per 1,000

Violent crime

2.7 per 1,000

Burglaries

0.5 per 1,000

Property crime

11.4 per 1,000

Vandalism

1.1 per 1,000

In 2025, 118 crimes were recorded here. The figures above are per 1,000 people present (residents + businesses).

Tick = Dutch median

The safest neighbourhoods in Haarlem →The most dangerous neighbourhoods in Haarlem →

The figures ⌄

Amenities

Average distance to everyday amenities, compared with the Dutch median.

Supermarket

0.7 km

GP practice

0.4 km

Train station

1.7 km

Restaurant

0.2 km

Hospital

2.2 km

Café

0.6 km

Library

1.3 km

Motorway ramp

2.0 km

Tick = Dutch median

Best amenities in Haarlem →

The figures ⌄

Wealth & income

What the homes are worth, what residents earn and how many homes stand empty. It describes the area, not the people living in it.

Property value

€ 478,000

Welfare recipients

17.1 per 1,000

High incomes

27%

Low incomes

33%

Vacancy

Owner-occupied

45%

Social housing

22%

Not counted

Part of this score's subject, but not part of the grade.

Single-family homes

30%

Built after 2000

Tick = Dutch median

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The figures ⌄

Quiet & nature

How tightly the addresses sit together, how much noise there is, and how much green, trees and water surround it.

Population density

13,079 inw/km²

Noise level

57 dB

Green surroundings

15%

Trees nearby

Water share

14%

Not counted

Part of this score's subject, but not part of the grade.

Addresses per km²

5,768

Fine particles (PM2.5)

8.6 µg/m³

Not part of the grade: air quality varies mostly between regions, barely between neighbourhoods within one municipality. WHO guideline: 5 µg/m³. Calculated annual mean, RIVM 2024.

Tick = Dutch median

The quietest, greenest neighbourhoods in Haarlem →

The figures ⌄

Families

How practical this area is with children: distance to school and childcare, and how many children already live here.

Primary school

0.5 km

Households with children

17%

Childcare

0.7 km

Secondary school

1.3 km

Residents under 15

Tick = Dutch median

The best neighbourhoods for families in Haarlem →

Who lives here

Burgwal has strikingly many residents aged 25 to 45: 36%, against 22% in the average Dutch neighbourhood.

Age profile

0–158%
NL median 14%
15–2511%
NL median 11%
25–4536%
NL median 22%
45–6529%
NL median 28%
65+16%
NL median 22%

Share of residents per age group (CBS, 2025). All five bars share one scale, so their lengths can be compared with each other.

Average household size
1.6 — far smaller than average
NL median 2.3
Single-person households
57% — far more than average
NL median 31%
Households with children
17% — far fewer than average
NL median 35%
Residents per km²
13,079 — far more densely populated than average
NL median 2,364

Tick = Dutch median. Households with children counts towards Families, population density towards Quiet & nature; the other figures here get no grade.

Frequently asked questions

Is Burgwal a safe neighbourhood?

For 2025, Burgwal comes out at 28 recorded crimes per 1,000 people present; the national middle is 24. That is more than in most Dutch neighbourhoods. One caveat: the figure counts per person present, not per resident. In a neighbourhood with many visitors — a centre, a station, a shopping area — it therefore comes out higher than residents experience. The figure is about what the police record, not about the people who live there.

How much crime is there in Burgwal?

In Burgwal the police recorded 118 crimes in 2025: theft, burglary, violence and vandalism combined. The comparison figure above (28 per 1,000) is not simply that count divided by the number of residents: we count residents plus workplaces, so a shopping street or station is not unfairly penalised, and for small counts we pull the figure towards the national average — otherwise a single incident would make a small neighbourhood look unsafe.

How is the grade for Burgwal calculated?

Burgwal scores 6.4 as its total score. That grade is a national position: we weigh five equally heavy scores — safety, amenities, wealth & income, quiet & nature and families — and see where Burgwal lands among every neighbourhood in the Netherlands. So it is not the mean of the five grades, but a place in the queue. All from open data published by CBS and the police.