Australia's adult prison population reached 189.5 inmates per 100,000 people in 2023. Technology-enabled crimes reported to police in New South Wales alone exceeded 19,000 offences in 2024. This analysis presents the key statistics on violence, incarceration, and public safety.
Key Takeaways
- 32,978,000 population in Australia (2018 average), used as the denominator for UNODC’s homicide rate calculation for the Australia and New Zealand region
- 11.7% of Australians reported being a victim of some form of sexual harassment in the last 12 months (ABS, 2019 Personal Safety)
- 2024: 19,000+ offences reported to police as technology-enabled crime in NSW (NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research, annual crime statistics)
- Australia’s prison population per 100,000 population (adult) was 189.5 in 2023 (AIHW)
- 14% of all sentenced prisoners in Australia were imprisoned for acts intended to cause injury in 2022
- 30% of prisoners in Australia were Indigenous Australians (2022)
- Australia’s rate of sexual assault (serious) was 16.3 per 100,000 population in 2022 (OECD-crime victimisation indicator)
- In 2023, 27% of victims in domestic/family violence incidents were aged under 18 (AIHW domestic and family violence police data)
- In 2022-23, domestic and family violence was the main reason for homelessness assistance for 34% of clients (specialist homelessness services)
- In 2022-23, 26,500 people were provided with support due to domestic and family violence that included children (AIHW SHS domestic/family violence data)
- In 2022-23, legal assistance expenditure related to crime/legal services in Australia totaled AUD $1.2 billion (government expenditure category)
- Australia’s justice sector had 2.6 judges per 100,000 population in 2022 (OECD justice indicators)
Australia’s 2023 prison rates and family and technology enabled crime risks underscore how urgently violence prevention is needed.
Related reading
01 · Category
Prevalence & Rates4 stats
01
32,978,000 population in Australia (2018 average), used as the denominator for UNODC’s homicide rate calculation for the Australia and New Zealand regionhttps://dataunodc.un.org/dp-crime-un/summary-briefs.html?pid=1&cid=1
02
11.7% of Australians reported being a victim of some form of sexual harassment in the last 12 months (ABS, 2019 Personal Safety)https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/people/crime-and-justice/personal-safety-australia/latest-release
03
2024: 19,000+ offences reported to police as technology-enabled crime in NSW (NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research, annual crime statistics)https://www.bocsar.nsw.gov.au/Pages/bocsar_news/bocsar-crime-data.html
04
1,824 recorded homicide incidents in Australia in 2021 (ABS Recorded Crime—Victims of Crime)https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/people/crime-and-justice/recorded-crime-victims/2021
Interpretation
Prevalence & Rates Interpretation
Under the Prevalence & Rates lens, Australia’s crime burden is clearly measurable with 1,824 recorded homicide incidents in 2021, 11.7% of Australians reporting sexual harassment in the prior 12 months, and over 19,000 technology enabled offences reported to NSW police in 2024.
02 · Category
Incarceration Levels8 stats
01
Australia’s prison population per 100,000 population (adult) was 189.5 in 2023 (AIHW)https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/australias-health/prisoners-in-australia/contents/summary
02
14% of all sentenced prisoners in Australia were imprisoned for acts intended to cause injury in 2022https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/australias-health/prisoners-in-australia/contents/table-of-contents
03
30% of prisoners in Australia were Indigenous Australians (2022)https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/australias-health/prisoners-in-australia/contents/indigenous-prisoners
04
After accounting for age differences, Indigenous people were 13.3 times as likely as non-Indigenous people to be imprisoned (2021)https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/australias-health/prisoners-in-australia/contents/indigenous-imprisonment
05
4.9% of prisoners were in secure custody as their custody type at 30 June 2022 (AIHW prison custody-type breakdown)https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/australias-health/prisoners-in-australia/contents/custody-type
06
In 2022, 22% of prisoners were in prison for offences against good order/public order (custodial offence distribution)https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/australias-health/prisoners-in-australia/contents/offence-types
07
In 2022, 32% of prisoners had a non-parole period of less than 2 years (sentence length distribution)https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/australias-health/prisoners-in-australia/contents/sentence-length
08
In 2022, 18% of prisoners were on remand (awaiting finalisation of charges/appeals)https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/australias-health/prisoners-in-australia/contents/remand-prisoners
Interpretation
Incarceration Levels Interpretation
In Australia’s incarceration levels, the prison population was 189.5 per 100,000 adults in 2023 and Indigenous people made up 30% of prisoners in 2022, being 13.3 times as likely as non-Indigenous people to be imprisoned after accounting for age differences.
03 · Category
Homicide And Serious Violence1 stats
01
Australia’s rate of sexual assault (serious) was 16.3 per 100,000 population in 2022 (OECD-crime victimisation indicator)https://stats.oecd.org/Index.aspx?DataSetCode=CRIME_VICT
Interpretation
Homicide And Serious Violence Interpretation
In the homicide and serious violence category, Australia reported a sexual assault rate of 16.3 per 100,000 population in 2022, pointing to ongoing serious violence concerns even outside of lethal outcomes.
More related reading
04 · Category
Domestic And Family Violence6 stats
01
In 2023, 27% of victims in domestic/family violence incidents were aged under 18 (AIHW domestic and family violence police data)https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/domestic-violence-and-family-violence/domestic-and-family-violence/contents/domestic-and-family-violence-and-police
02
In 2022-23, domestic and family violence was the main reason for homelessness assistance for 34% of clients (specialist homelessness services)https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/homelessness-services/specialist-homelessness-services/summary
03
In 2022-23, 26,500 people were provided with support due to domestic and family violence that included children (AIHW SHS domestic/family violence data)https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/homelessness-services/specialist-homelessness-services/contents/specialist-homelessness-services-2022-23
04
In 2022-23, 63% of domestic and family violence related clients had experienced family violence before (AIHW SHS repeat homelessness indicators)https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/homelessness-services/specialist-homelessness-services/contents/repeat-homelessness
05
In 2023, there were 8,100 family violence-related apprehended violence order (AVO) applications (AIHW domestic violence indicators)https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/domestic-violence-and-family-violence/domestic-and-family-violence/contents/avower
06
In 2022, 16% of Australian women experienced partner abuse that included threats (national violence evidence synthesis)https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/domestic-violence-and-family-violence/sexual-violence/contents/partner-abuse
Interpretation
Domestic And Family Violence Interpretation
In Australia, domestic and family violence affects young people and has lasting effects, with 27% of 2023 victims under 18 and 63% of domestic and family violence related clients reporting they had experienced family violence before.
05 · Category
Public Safety And Justice System2 stats
01
In 2022-23, legal assistance expenditure related to crime/legal services in Australia totaled AUD $1.2 billion (government expenditure category)https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/australias-health/governments-expenditure-on-health-and-related-services/contents/figure-data-legal-services
02
Australia’s justice sector had 2.6 judges per 100,000 population in 2022 (OECD justice indicators)https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/governance/cepe-justice-indicators_5c6b5e3d-en
Interpretation
Public Safety And Justice System Interpretation
In 2022-23, Australia spent AUD $1.2 billion on crime and legal services, and with 2.6 judges per 100,000 people in 2022, the justice system’s resources appear to be geared toward maintaining public safety and timely legal support.
report visual · Key figures
Australia crime and justice snapshot
A mix of crime victimisation and criminal justice system indicators highlights the scale of selected harms and system responses.
11.7%
11.7% of Australians reported being a victim of some form of sexual harassment in the last 12 months (ABS, 2019 Personal
100,000
Australia’s rate of sexual assault (serious) was 16.3 per 100,000 population in 2022 (OECD-crime victimisation indicator
1,824
1,824 recorded homicide incidents in Australia in 2021 (ABS Recorded Crime—Victims of Crime)
30%
30% of prisoners in Australia were Indigenous Australians (2022)
18%
In 2022, 18% of prisoners were on remand (awaiting finalisation of charges/appeals)
source-verifiedabs.gov.au · stats.oecd.org · aihw.gov.au2022
Reference
Cite This Report
This report is designed to be cited. We maintain stable URLs and versioned verification dates. Copy the format appropriate for your publication below.
APA
Priyanka Sharma. (2026, February 13). Australia Crime Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/australia-crime-statistics
MLA
Priyanka Sharma. "Australia Crime Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/australia-crime-statistics.
Chicago
Priyanka Sharma. 2026. "Australia Crime Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/australia-crime-statistics.
Sources & references
21 datasets cited across this report
+15 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)