How many people were detained by ICE in 2023 in total?
Executive summary
The question “How many people were detained by ICE in 2023 in total?” depends on which metric is meant: a daily average, a snapshot at year‑end, or the cumulative count of unique individuals booked into ICE custody over the fiscal year; ICE’s own reporting highlights average custody of 28,289 and related operational numbers [1], independent trackers report 32,743 detained at the end of FY2023 [2], and immigrant‑rights advocates have published a far larger cumulative figure — “more than 260,000 people over the last year” — which counts individuals booked into detention across the year [3].
1. What the user is really asking: daily average, snapshot, or cumulative bookings?
“Detained in 2023” can mean different things: ICE often publishes average daily populations and end‑of‑year snapshots, while advocates and researchers sometimes report the total number of unique people who entered ICE custody during the year (a cumulative bookings figure), and each yields very different headline numbers [1] [2] [3].
2. ICE’s official operational figures: average custody and program context
ICE’s FY2023 reporting and public dashboards emphasize operational metrics such as an average daily population in ICE custody of 28,289 and details about detained and non‑detained dockets, with contextual notes about bed capacity and alternatives to detention [1] [4].
3. Snapshot and tracker figures: end‑of‑year detained population
Independent tracking organizations that compile ICE data point to a year‑end detained population of roughly 32,743 by the end of FY2023 — a common snapshot metric used to describe how many people were in ICE custody at that moment rather than over the full year [2].
4. Cumulative bookings: advocates’ much higher total for “people detained over the year”
Advocacy groups and some reports count every person booked into ICE custody across the year, which produces a much larger figure — a widely cited estimate from an immigrant‑rights report states ICE “detained more than 260,000 people over the last year alone,” a cumulative count that captures turnover and repeated bookings [3].
5. Why these numbers diverge — reporting scope and data gaps flagged by GAO and others
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has found that ICE’s public reporting understates the total number of people detained because ICE’s methodology excludes people initially booked into certain temporary facilities before transfer, and GAO’s recalculation adds “tens of thousands” of individuals to the totals; data architecture, transfers, and differing definitions (initial book‑ins vs. transfers vs. one‑day stays) drive much of the divergence among sources [5].
6. Bottom line — the direct answer framed as a range with the definitions attached
If the question seeks an “official” ICE operational snapshot for 2023, use ICE’s daily average (about 28,289 in custody) and independent year‑end snapshots (~32,743 detained at the end of FY2023) [1] [2]; if the question asks how many unique people were detained by ICE at any point during FY2023 (a cumulative bookings total), advocacy tallies indicate a number in the hundreds of thousands — often cited as “more than 260,000” — while GAO warns official ICE disclosures undercount by tens of thousands and recommends clearer methodology and fuller reporting [3] [5].