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Pennsylvania has an incarceration rate of 589 per 100,000 people (including prisons, jails, immigration detention, and juvenile justice facilities), meaning that it locks up a higher percentage of its people than almost any democratic country on earth. Read on to learn more about who is incarcerated in Pennsylvania and why.

73,000 people from Pennsylvania are behind bars

Additionally, the number of people impacted by county and city jails in Pennsylvania is much larger than the graph above would suggest, because people cycle through local jails relatively quickly. Each year, at least 170,000 different people are booked into local jails in Pennsylvania.

Using 2020 census data, we looked at where people in Pennsylvania prisons come from. We found mass incarceration harms all corners of the state.

Rates of imprisonment have grown dramatically in the last 40 years

Also see these Pennsylvania graphs:

• total numbers rather than rates.
• Women’s prisons: Incarceration Rates | Total Population
• Men’s prisons: Incarceration Rates | Total Population

Today, Pennsylvania’s incarceration rates stand out internationally

In the U.S., incarceration extends beyond prisons and local jails to include other systems of confinement. The U.S. and state incarceration rates in this graph include people held by these other parts of the justice system, so they may be slightly higher than the commonly reported incarceration rates that only include prisons and jails. Details on the data are available in States of Incarceration: The Global Context. We also have a version of this graph focusing on the incarceration of women.

People of color are overrepresented in prisons and jails

Pennsylvania's criminal justice system is more than just its prisons and jails

See detailed data on incarceration and supervision numbers and rates by state.

Reports and briefings about Pennsylvania's criminal legal system:

Filter to show Most recent All Big picture Collateral consequences Communication Exploitation Health Jails & bail Parole and probation Policing Poverty Prison gerrymandering Racial justice Women, gender, & families

• Pennsylvania makes medications for opioid use disorder available in its prisons. Why is getting treatment for substance use disorders so difficult across the US carceral system?
• Despite reducing its prison population at the beginning of the pandemic, Pennsylvania's prison population increased nearly 5% between 2021 and 2023.
• Pennsylvania has been court-ordered to fix its prison healthcare system twice. Why is healthcare behind bars so bad, and what can be done to fix it?
• People on probation in Pennsylvania are saddled with onerous rules and conditions they must follow every day or risk incarceration.
• Prisons in Pennsylvania have tablets, but they may be being used to restrict incarcerated people’s access to books and sap them of the little money they have.
• With an incarceration rate of 589 per 100,000 residents, Pennsylvania locks up a higher percentage of its people than almost any democratic country on earth.
• During the 2020 redistricting cycle, Pennsylvania only reallocated about 60% of people in state prison back to their home communities, as part of its efforts to end prison gerrymandering. This low number was so low because the state excluded some incarcerated people from its reforms. It should change this during the 2030 redistricting process.
• Prisons in Pennsylvania force incarcerated people and their families — some of the most vulnerable members of society — to subsidize mass incarceration.
• 66% of people in Pennsylvania jails have not been convicted of a crime, meaning they're legally innocent. There are simple steps the state can take to reduce this number. Why isn't it?
• Pennsylvania releases roughly 176,201 men and 43,287 women from its prisons and jails each year. What is it doing to support them upon reentry?
• After implementing a restrictive mail-scanning policy purportedly to address drugs behind bars, the rate of positive drugs tests in Pennsylvania prisons is almost three times higher than before the policy was introduced.
• Pennsylvania allows parole officers to restrict whom their clients can be around — even loved ones who are trying to help them
• The parole board in Pennsylvania is releasing 46% fewer people and holding 34% fewer hearings since the pandemic started
• Black people in Pennsylvania are incarcerated at a rate 7.5 times higher than white people.
• Pennsylvania’s choice to criminalize “failure to appear” may be hurting public safety
• The cost of incarcerating older people is incredibly high, and their risk of reincarceration is incredibly low, yet 15% of people in Pennsylvania prisons are over the age of 55. Why is the state keeping so many older people locked up?
• Prisons in Northeastern states, like Pennsylvania, have seen the greatest increase in deaths during heatwaves.
• Data from Philadelphia and other jurisdictions shows: Releasing people pretrial doesn't harm public safety
• Pennsylvania makes it difficult or even risky for incarcerated journalists to tell their stories.
• Pennsylvania is one of 20 states that locks up some people convicted of sex offenses in shadowy "civil commitment" facilities, long after their sentences are over — and often indefinitely
• In Pennsylvania, 73,000 people are incarcerated and another 171,500 are on probation or parole.
• Pennsylvania charges up to 25¢ for an e-message to or from prison.
• Jails in Pennsylvania charge up to $3.15 for a 15-minute phone call, reaping profits for companies, while prisons charge up to 90¢ for a 15-minute phone call.
• Pennsylvania prisons are replacing incarcerated people's personal mail with scans, stifling family contact
• Bail companies in Pennsylvania have a track record of avoiding accountability, our report All Profit, No Risk and review of state-by-state evidence show
• Report: Where people in prison come from: The geography of mass incarceration in Pennsylvania
• Pennsylvania granted extremely few commutations to incarcerated people in recent years, including during COVID-19
• Some prisons in Pennsylvania are sited on uninhabitable, toxic wastelands
• Pennsylvania suspended many of its $5 medical copays in prisons at the beginning of the pandemic, it should eliminate them completely.
• If a person in Pennsylvania prisons has more than $10 in their commissary account they may not qualify for assistance to purchase essentials like hygiene items and postage.
• Pennsylvania prisons charge families up to a 10% fee to transfer money to an incarcerated loved one.
• We gave Pennsylvania a "D-" grade in September 2021 for its response to the coronavirus in prisons.
• In 2021, Pennsylvania became the first state to take steps to end prison gerrymandering through its redistricting commission.
• Pennsylvania hinders jury diversity by excluding people with felony records and some prior misdemeanors
• How many COVID-19 cases in Pennsylvania communities can be linked to outbreaks in correctional facilities? (data from our report Mass Incarceration, COVID-19, and Community Spread)
• We graded the parole release systems of all 50 states - Pennsylvania gets an F
• Pennsylvania incarcerates women at a rate of 129 per 100,000 residents — higher than almost any democratic country on earth.
• People in Pennsylvania prisons earn as little as 19¢ an hour for their work.

Other resources

• Research on Pennsylvania in our Research Library