State rankings
Prisons by State
Texas has the highest # of Prisons (313), followed by Florida (230) and Georgia (217). Delaware has the lowest (4).
50 of 51 states
# of Prisons
Darker means higher. Click a place to highlight it.
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All 50 ranked
Highest first.
Distribution Median and middle halfThe median is the middle value: half of places are above it, half below. The middle half is the range holding the central 50% of places.More in the glossary →
Each dot is one state; the lines mark the median and the middle half.
Median
77
Middle half 29 – 115
Average
81.52
50 states
Highest
313
Texas
Lowest
4
Delaware
Data
Click a column to sort, a row to highlight that place on the charts.
50 states · # = rank by # of Prisons
| # | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Texas | 313 | 218,000 | 746 | $226 |
| 2 | Florida | 230 | 150,500 | 582 | $207 |
| 3 | Georgia | 217 | 89,700 | 666 | $203 |
| 4 | North Carolina | 157 | 54,600 | 439 | $185 |
| 5 | California | 147 | 200,700 | 424 | $370 |
| 5 | Alabama | 147 | 40,400 | 626 | $150 |
| 7 | Missouri | 139 | 43,000 | 687 | $164 |
| 8 | Ohio | 133 | 70,500 | 567 | $181 |
| 9 | Tennessee | 123 | 49,300 | 553 | $171 |
| 10 | Illinois | 120 | 55,800 | 418 | $163 |
| 10 | Louisiana | 120 | 45,700 | 942 | $210 |
| 12 | Oklahoma | 117 | 38,500 | 931 | $185 |
| 13 | New York | 116 | 67,700 | 314 | $335 |
| 14 | Indiana | 110 | 46,300 | 509 | $159 |
| 15 | Michigan | 108 | 54,500 | 508 | $249 |
| 16 | Kansas | 106 | 18,000 | 439 | $186 |
| 17 | Iowa | 105 | 14,000 | 372 | $139 |
| 18 | Wisconsin | 100 | 36,700 | 501 | $263 |
| 19 | Pennsylvania | 97 | 77,900 | 473 | $289 |
| 19 | Virginia | 97 | 57,100 | 560 | $310 |
| 21 | Kentucky | 96 | 37,500 | 682 | $213 |
| 22 | Arkansas | 95 | 24,700 | 781 | $198 |
| 23 | Minnesota | 92 | 15,900 | 249 | $200 |
| 23 | Mississippi | 92 | 27,500 | 812 | $173 |
| 25 | Colorado | 81 | 32,700 | 452 | $243 |
| 26 | Nebraska | 73 | 9,300 | 362 | $257 |
| 27 | Washington | 71 | 30,900 | 336 | $234 |
| 27 | South Carolina | 71 | 30,300 | 494 | $156 |
| 29 | Oregon | 50 | 21,100 | 461 | $316 |
| 30 | Maryland | 49 | 27,600 | 407 | $317 |
| 31 | Idaho | 46 | 12,100 | 601 | $235 |
| 32 | Montana | 42 | 6,200 | 447 | $245 |
| 33 | New Mexico | 39 | 13,100 | 448 | $346 |
| 34 | Arizona | 36 | 54,600 | 740 | $236 |
| 34 | Nevada | 36 | 20,500 | 584 | $257 |
| 36 | Massachusetts | 35 | 17,600 | 150 | $139 |
| 37 | South Dakota | 32 | 6,100 | 601 | $209 |
| 38 | New Jersey | 28 | 28,700 | 278 | $227 |
| 38 | Utah | 28 | 12,500 | 292 | $180 |
| 38 | Wyoming | 28 | 4,000 | 560 | $318 |
| 41 | North Dakota | 27 | 3,100 | 295 | $300 |
| 41 | Alaska | 27 | 4,400 | 343 | $436 |
| 43 | West Virginia | 24 | 10,600 | 492 | $195 |
| 44 | Maine | 19 | 4,000 | 165 | $195 |
| 45 | New Hampshire | 16 | 4,100 | 253 | $168 |
| 46 | Connecticut | 14 | 13,700 | 338 | $173 |
| 47 | Hawaii | 8 | 5,400 | 305 | $160 |
| 47 | Vermont | 8 | 1,700 | 222 | $244 |
| 49 | Rhode Island | 7 | 2,800 | 212 | $209 |
| 50 | Delaware | 4 | 6,100 | 533 | $337 |
What correlates with # of Prisons?
Pearson r against 2,110 other state metrics sharing at least 30 states. Ranks are read by standing: a better rank counts as higher, whether rank 1 is the best place on a list or the worst. Correlation is not causation.
Higher together
Places that have a higher # of Prisons tend to score higher on these (or rank better)
Opposite directions
Places that have a higher # of Prisons tend to score lower on these (or rank worse)
Quick answers
- Which state has the highest # of Prisons?
- Texas has the highest # of Prisons, at 313, followed by Florida (230) and Georgia (217).
- Which state has the lowest # of Prisons?
- Delaware has the lowest # of Prisons, at 4.
- What is the median # of Prisons across US states?
- The median is 77 across the 50 US states with data.
- Where does this prisons by state data come from?
- Rankodex compiles it from World Population Review and the primary sources it cites: The US states with more places for incarceration than higher education - Studee; List of US states and territories by incarceration and correctional supervision rate - Wikipedia; Visualizing How Much Prisons Cost in Each State - How Much.

















































