Four of every five thefts, frauds, robberies and deception offences solved last year were committed by or involved an offender with a prior criminal history.
Figures released this morning by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) also show that the vast majority of drug and public order offences, over 80%, were also linked to a re-offender.
One in five offenders had re-offended within a month.
Almost two thirds of all detected crimes last year were also linked to offenders with a prior criminal history, an increase on 2023.
The figures provide detail on how many of the crimes that are solved are committed by people who are or are suspected to be prior offenders.
They show that the vast majority of these crimes are committed by recidivist offenders or people with a link to previous crime, and that they are committing more crime year on year.
Theft, fraud, robbery and deception were the most common crimes committed by recidivist criminals last year, accounting for 84%.
Nine out of 10 burglars and trespass offenders were linked to a previous offence.
In total, 83% of public order offences and 80% of drug offences have also been linked to a re-offender, while the figure for all detected crimes committed by these criminals is 61%, an increase from 57% in 2023.
However, even the lowest figure, 56% in 2021, still shows the involvement of habitual criminals in over half of solved crime.
One in five of these crimes was committed by an offender who had been linked to another separate crime less than a month earlier. Another 18% reoffended within a year.
Dublin north central had the highest rate of recidivism on 78%, while Tipperary was lowest on 44%.
In total, 39% of solved crimes were committed by first-time offenders.
The figures do not include penalty point notices issued for traffic offences.
The CSO said they provide a new method of estimating re-offending rates which differ from prison and probation statistics as they are based on garda figures linked to offenders with a history of offending.
