Search: Police numbers Lib Dems
More than a third of police forces have cut officer numbers since 2005, the Liberal Democrats claimed.
Citing Home Office figures, the party said that 18 of the 43 forces in England and Wales had witnessed a decline between March 2005 and September 2009.
The Lib Dems published their findings as they set out plans to increase officer numbers by 3,000 - including 300 in Scotland - over the course of a parliament.
The cost would be covered by scrapping ID cards, which the party said would save £575 million.
Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg said: "The Liberal Democrats are the only party that wants to cut crime by putting more police on the street.
"When only one in a hundred crimes ends up with a conviction in court, it is time for things to change.
"Labour and the Conservatives may talk tough but they are unwilling to make the crucial decisions to cut crime."
The Lib Dems said the Tories controlled two-thirds of the police authorities that had seen officer numbers decline. Labour held the other third, they said.
Mr Clegg will be visiting a policing project in Durham, where numbers have declined by 11.1%, proportionately more than anywhere else.
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South Yorkshire has lost the most police - 308 - according to the figures.
