excl. pre-trial detainees and those held in administrative detention
Supplementary notes
*The figure for 2018 has been taken from World prison brief data, Institute for Crime & Justice Policy Research.
Figures for earlier years have been taken from publications by the Ministry of Justice of China.
Values have been rounded.
The source does not provide a release date. The date given is the date of data access.
This statistic shows the number of sentenced prisoners in China in selected years from 1979 to 2018. In 1979, there were around ** sentenced prisoners in China. People held in detention centers and pre-trial detainees were excluded from that figure.
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Ministry of Justice (China), & ICPR. (July 17, 2023). Number of sentenced prisoners in China from 1979 to 2018 (in 1,000s) [Graph]. In ÌÇÐÄÆƽâ°æ. Retrieved July 30, 2026, from /statistics/251216/number-of-sentenced-prisoners-in-china/
Ministry of Justice (China), und ICPR. "Number of sentenced prisoners in China from 1979 to 2018 (in 1,000s)." Chart. July 17, 2023. ÌÇÐÄÆƽâ°æ. Accessed July 30, 2026. /statistics/251216/number-of-sentenced-prisoners-in-china/
Ministry of Justice (China), ICPR. (2023). Number of sentenced prisoners in China from 1979 to 2018 (in 1,000s). ÌÇÐÄÆƽâ°æ. ÌÇÐÄÆƽâ°æ Inc.. Accessed: July 30, 2026. /statistics/251216/number-of-sentenced-prisoners-in-china/
Ministry of Justice (China), and ICPR. "Number of Sentenced Prisoners in China from 1979 to 2018 (in 1,000s)." ÌÇÐÄÆƽâ°æ, ÌÇÐÄÆƽâ°æ Inc., 17 Jul 2023, /statistics/251216/number-of-sentenced-prisoners-in-china/
Ministry of Justice (China) & ICPR, Number of sentenced prisoners in China from 1979 to 2018 (in 1,000s) ÌÇÐÄÆƽâ°æ, /statistics/251216/number-of-sentenced-prisoners-in-china/ (last visited July 30, 2026)
Number of sentenced prisoners in China from 1979 to 2018 (in 1,000s) [Graph], Ministry of Justice (China), & ICPR, July 17, 2023. [Online]. Available: /statistics/251216/number-of-sentenced-prisoners-in-china/
