World Female Imprisonment List: Top 10 countries with women behind bars

Here we take a look at the top ten countries with the most women in prison, as per the World Female Imprisonment List's sixth edition, published in 2025.

The United States has the highest number of women in jail, exceeding 174,607, and ranks first.

China holds the second position, reporting 145,000 female inmates.

The third spot on the list is occupied by Thailand, which has 33,057 female prisoners.

With 50,441 female prisoners, Brazil is positioned fourth on the list.

Russia had 39,153 female prisoners and ranks fifth on the list.

With a figure of 23,772 female prisoners, India ranks sixth worldwide.

The Philippines holds the seventh position for the number of female inmates, totalling 17,121.

Turkey has the world's eighth-largest female prisoner population, with 16,581 prisoners.

Ninth on the list is Vietnam with 15,152 women prisoners.

With a female inmate population of 13,841, Mexico takes the tenth and final spot on the top ten list.