Worldwide, the United States of America had the highest imprisonment rate in 2021, at 639 prisoners per 100,000 people. Australia had an imprisonment rate of 160 prisoners per 100,000 people. As at 30 June 2020, Victoria had a rate of 107 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
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 | 639 |
| Brazil | 357 |
| Turkey | 335 |
| Russia | 334 |
| South Africa | 259 |
| Argentina | 230 |
| Saudi Arabia | 197 |
| Mexico | 166 |
| Australia | 160 |
| England and Wales | 130 |
| China | 121 |
| Victoria | 107 |
| South Korea | 105 |
| Canada | 104 |
| Indonesia | 92 |
| France | 90 |
| Italy | 89 |
| Germany | 69 |
| Japan | 38 |
| India | 35 |
Note: The data in the graph and table measures the rate of prisoners per 100,000 people of all ages.
Sources: Institute for Criminal Policy Research, World Prison Brief, Highest to Lowest – Prison Population Rate (data retrieved 12 February 2021); Australian Bureau of Statistics, National, State and Territory Population, June 2020; Australian Bureau of Statistics, Prisoners in Australia, 2020, cat. no. 4517.0 (2020). Please refer to the World Prison Brief for the latest statistics.
