International Imprisonment Rates
Worldwide, the United States of America had the highest imprisonment rate in 2019, at 655 prisoners per 100,000 people. Australia had an imprisonment rate of 169 prisoners per 100,000 people. As at 30 June 2018, Victoria had a rate of 119 prisoners per 100,000 people.
The graph shows the imprisonment rates for Group of Twenty Countries (G20) (excluding the European Union) and for Victoria.
Imprisonment rates per 100,000 people for Group of Twenty Countries and Victoria in 2019
Hover over a bar in the graph to display the imprisonment rate and global ranking for that jurisdiction.
| Jurisdiction | Imprisonment rate |
|---|---|
| United States of America | 655 |
| Russia | 381 |
| Brazil | 334 |
| Turkey | 318 |
| South Africa | 286 |
| Argentina | 207 |
| Saudi Arabia | 197 |
| Australia | 169 |
| Mexico | 163 |
| United Kingdom (England and Wales) | 139 |
| Victoria | 119 |
| China | 118 |
| South Korea | 109 |
| Canada | 107 |
| France | 104 |
| Italy | 100 |
| Indonesia | 96 |
| Germany | 77 |
| Japan | 41 |
| India | 33 |
Note: The data in the graph and table measures the rate of prisoners per 100,000 people of all ages. Data retrieved on 4 July 2019. Please refer to the World Prison Brief for the latest statistics.
Sources: Institute for Criminal Policy Research, World Prison Brief, Highest to Lowest - Prison Population Rate; Australian Bureau of Statistics, Australian Demographic Statistics, Dec 2018, Cat. No. 3101.0 (2019); Australian Bureau of Statistics, Prisoners in Australia, 2018, Cat. No. 4517.0 (2018).