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Tennessee has an incarceration rate of 817 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 any independent democratic country on earth. Read on to learn more about who is incarcerated in Tennessee and why.

55,000 people from Tennessee are behind bars

Additionally, the number of people impacted by county and city jails in Tennesee is much larger than the graph above would suggest, because people cycle through local jails relatively quickly. Each year, at least 117,000 different people are booked into local jails in Tennessee.

Rates of imprisonment have grown dramatically in the last 40 years

More than third of the people held in jails in Tennessee are held for federal or state agencies, primarily the state prison system. To avoid counting them twice, this population is not included in the yellow jails line. For annual counts of people in jails held for federal or state authorizes in Tennessee, see our table "Jail and prison incarcerated populations by state over time."

Also see these Tennessee graphs:

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

This graph excludes people held for state or federal authorities from the total count of people held in Tennessee jails. Because a significant proportion (33%) of the population in Tennessee's jails is held for the state prison system and the U.S. Marshals Service, this graph likely overstates the convicted population and understates the pre-trial population.

Today, Tennessee’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

Tennessee'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 Tennessee'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

• Tennessee prisons charge people $3.00 to see a healthcare provider.
• Tennessee makes medications for opioid use disorder available in some of 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, Tennessee's prison population increased 11% between 2021 and 2023.
• In Tennessee prisons, refusing to work is treated as a disciplinary offense on par with escape
• People on probation in Tennessee are saddled with onerous rules and conditions they must follow every day or risk incarceration.
• Prisons in Tennessee 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 817 per 100,000 residents, Tennessee locks up a higher percentage of its people than any independent democratic country on earth.
• After the Dobbs’ decision, striking down Roe v. Wade, Tennessee totally banned abortion, putting access to the service effectively out of reach for the 16,497 women on probation or parole in the state who also face travel restrictions.
• 53% of people in Tennessee 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?
• Tennessee releases roughly 298,822 men and 113,413 women from its prisons and jails each year. What is it doing to support them upon reentry?
• In Tennessee prisons, breaking even minor rules can come with monetary fines that put incarcerated people in debt to the state
• Tennessee is one of a handful of states reviving harsh "Truth In Sentencing"-style laws straight out of the '90s
• The parole board in Tennessee is releasing 37% fewer people and holding 20% fewer hearings since the pandemic started
• Black people in Tennessee are incarcerated at a rate 3.4 times higher than white people.
• Tennessee’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 11% of people in Tennessee prisons are over the age of 55. Why is the state keeping so many older people locked up?
• Tennessee makes it difficult or even risky for incarcerated journalists to tell their stories.
• Tennessee has one of nation's highest rates of HIV in prison and legally criminalizes people with HIV.
• In Tennessee, 55,000 people are incarcerated and another 67,000 are on probation or parole.
• Tennessee charges up to 40¢ for an e-message to or from prison; Among the highest rates in the nation.
• Tennessee passed a caregiver mitigation and diversion law that allows judges to determine when to divert rather than incarcerate primary caregivers.
• Jails in Tennessee charge up to $5.55 for a 15-minute phone call, reaping profits for companies, while prisons charge up to $1.65 for a 15-minute phone call.
• How the end of Roe v. Wade will impact the 18,183 women on probation and parole in Tennessee
• Tennessee’s policy on resources for the poorest people in prisons lacks important information.
• Tennessee prisons charge families up to a 20% fee to transfer money to an incarcerated loved one.
• For the first time ever, Tennessee counties can avoid prison gerrymandering, by Mike Wessler, November 4, 2021
• We gave Tennessee a failing grade in September 2021 for its response to the coronavirus in prisons
• Tennessee hurts jury diversity by excluding people with felony records
• How many COVID-19 cases in Tennessee 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 — Tennessee gets an F
• Tennessee incarcerates women at a rate of 209 per 100,000 residents — higher than any democratic country on earth.
• Findings from Knox County, Tenn.: Replacing in-person visits with video calling is bad policy
• Tennessee grows its prison population solely by incarcerating more women
• People in Tennessee prisons earn as little as 17¢ an hour for their work.
• Prison-based gerrymandering in Tennessee Counties, by Peter Wagner and Aleks Kajstura, September 26, 2011
• Phantom Constituents in Tennessee’s Boards of County Commissioners, by Peter Wagner and JooHye DellaRocco, February 21, 2008

Other resources

• Research on Tennessee in our Research Library