World Prisons
All countries

Europe · Western Europe

France

High confidence
Verified 20 May 2026 · Data dated 1 Apr 2026
Fresh · 1mo ago

Persistent overcrowding in maisons d'arrêt (remand). ECtHR judgement J.M.B. v. France (2020) found systemic violations of Article 3.

Compare FranceWorld Prison Brief page

Data is aggregated from public sources and may be incomplete or out of date. Always verify with primary sources before acting on any figure. See data sources.

Prison population

88,145

Year: 2026

Rate per 100,000

129

Per 100,000 residents

Occupancy

139.1%

Above design capacity

Pre-trial / remand

31%

Share not yet sentenced

Female prisoners

3.4%

Foreign nationals

24.6%

Conditions risk — across 732 facilities

Average of our computed Conditions Risk Score across the country's facilities. Methodology · Browse highest-risk

12/100
national average
64 moderate94 low574 unknown
abolitionist on capital punishment since 1981. Last known execution: 1977.ICCPR-OP2 (death-penalty abolition protocol): signatory

Seeded from Amnesty International 2024 categorisation + Cornell Center on the Death Penalty Worldwide.

Source: Amnesty International + Cornell Death Penalty Worldwide.
169 documented human-rights cases →

How France compares

vs Europe (16) & global averages
Rate per 100,000this: 129 · region: 107 · global: 214
Occupancy ratethis: 139% · region: 94% · global: 125%
Pre-trial sharethis: 31% · region: 27% · global: 32%

The vertical ticks mark the global (grey) and regional (amber) means. Bars are clipped at the high end for readability.

Prison population over time

Annual figures, latest survey year
2000: 48,049+67.9% over 24y2024: 80,669

Source: World Prison Brief / unodc / eurostat / Council of Europe SPACE I

Reform in France

All reform →

Laws, programmes, and pilots changing how France incarcerates — plus relevant research.

Country reports

Prisons in France

Browse all 732 →

732 facilities in our database — showing the first 24.

Administration Penitentiaire

France

Type

—

Capacity

—

Held

—

administrative detention center Paris 1

France

Type

—

Capacity

—

Held

—

Agde concentration camp

France

Type

Concentration camp

Capacity

—

Held

—

Aincourt concentration camp

France

Type

Concentration camp

Capacity

—

Held

—

ancien tribunal et prison

France

Type

—

Capacity

—

Held

—

Ancienne maison centrale, Riom

France

Type

—

Capacity

—

Held

—

Ancienne maison d'arrêt (Fontainebleau)

France

Type

—

Capacity

—

Held

—

Ancienne Maison d'arrêt de Nantes

France

Type

—

Capacity

—

Held

—

ancienne maison d'arret de Rodez

France

Type

—

Capacity

—

Held

—

Ancienne prison

France

Type

—

Capacity

—

Held

—

Ancienne prison à Petit Canal

France

Type

—

Capacity

—

Held

—

Ancienne prison d'Artenay

France

Type

—

Capacity

—

Held

—

ancienne prison de Cayenne

France

Type

—

Capacity

—

Held

—

Ancienne prison de Cusset

France

Type

—

Capacity

—

Held

—

ancienne prison de Saint-Louis (Marie-Galante)

France

Type

—

Capacity

—

Held

—

Anciennes Prisons (Guingamp)

France

Type

—

Capacity

—

Held

—

Ao Er Liang Jian Yu

France

Type

—

Capacity

—

Held

—

Arc-et-Senans concentration camp

France

Type

Concentration camp

Capacity

—

Held

—

Argelès-sur-Mer concentration camp

France

Type

—

Capacity

—

Held

—

Argelèrs-sur-Mer concentration camp

France

Type

Concentration camp

Capacity

—

Held

—

Établissement pénitentiaire pour mineurs d'Orvault

France · Orvault

Medium

Type

EPM (mineurs)

Capacity

—

Held

—

Établissement pénitentiaire pour mineurs de Lavaur

France · Lavaur

Medium

Type

EPM (mineurs)

Capacity

59

Held

—

Établissement pénitentiaire pour mineurs de Meyzieu

France · Meyzieu

Medium

Type

EPM (mineurs)

Capacity

—

Held

—

Établissement pénitentiaire pour mineurs de Quiévrechain

France · Quiévrechain

Medium

Type

EPM (mineurs)

Capacity

—

Held

—

See all 732 prisons in France →

Data completeness

100%

Score based on how many fields are populated. We surface this so you know where the gaps are.

National population
68,430,0002026
Source-verified
20 May 2026
Source links
3 cited

Sources

Direct citations for the figures on this page.

ISO 3166-1 alpha-3
FRA