Section IV: Global Comparisons

Crime and incarceration around the world:

Incarceration

• Number of prisoners per 100,000 population in the United States574: 700
• Number of prisoners per 100,000 population in Russia575: 665
• Number of prisoners per 100,000 population in Mexico576: 150
• Number of prisoners per 100,000 population in Canada577: 105
• Number of prisoners per 100,000 population in Demark578: 60
• Number of prisoners per 100,000 population in Finland579: 50
• Number of prisoners per 100,000 population in Iceland580: 30
• Number of prisoners per 100,000 population in Norway581: 60
• Number of prisoners per 100,000 population in Sweden582: 65
• Number of prisoners per 100,000 population in England and Wales583: 125
• Number of prisoners per 100,000 population in Ireland584: 80
• Number of prisoners per 100,000 population in Italy585: 95
• Number of prisoners per 100,000 population in France586: 80
• Number of prisoners per 100,000 population in Germany587: 95
• Number of prisoners per 100,000 population in Portugal588: 130
• Number of prisoners per 100,000 population in Estonia589: 330
• Number of prisoners per 100,000 population in Latvia590: 355
• Number of prisoners per 100,000 population in Japan591: 45
• Number of prisoners per 100,000 population in Saudi Arabia592: 45
• Number of prisoners per 100,000 population in China593: 110
• Number of prisoners per 100,000 population in Australia594: 110

This page is an excerpt from The Prison Index: Taking the Pulse of the Crime Control Industry (2003) by Peter Wagner, published by the Western Prison Project and the Prison Policy Initiative. Footnotes for all facts are available in the print version.