Nóirín O'Sullivan welcomed the fact that new police recruitment had begun, but said policing is a profession that constantly needs new people.
She said 300 new recruits would keep the gardaí at a standstill.
She said over 500 new recruits every year were needed to ensure the force could deal with emerging crime trends.
Ms O'Sullivan was speaking at the annual conference of the Garda Superintendents in County Kildare.
The superintendents say they are under serious pressure to ensure they have sufficient officers to police the country on a 24-hour basis.
The Irish government recently announced new recruitment, however, the general secretary of the Superintendents' Association Denis Ferry, said the gardaí needed at least double the level to maintain current levels of service.

The Senegal international, 26, joined for £9m from Lille in July 2015 and played 35 times as Villa were relegated from the Premier League last season.
Other interested clubs have until the end of July to make a bid for Gueye.
"If he wants to go, we are powerless," club chairman Dr Tony Xia posted on Twitter.
Gueye only missed three league games for Villa in 2015-16 and scored his only goal for the club in their FA Cup fourth round win against Wycombe in January.
It is believed the fee that has activated the departure clause is about £7m, with Villa bracing themselves for further offers.

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Newspaper reports have suggested the 33-year-old, whose deal at the Britannia Stadium expires at the end of the season, could join former Stoke boss Tony Pulis at The Hawthorns.
But Hughes said: "There's nothing in it. People are adding two and two together and making five.
"He's a big part of what we're doing here. His future is with us."
Crouch was signed by Pulis in September 2011, joining Stoke from Tottenham for £11m.
The striker - capped 42 times by England - has scored 29 goals in 117 Premier League games for the Potters and has attracted interest from elsewhere, most notably when linked with QPR in 2013.
Crouch has started all but one of Stoke's last six games and provided the header from which Ryan Shawcross scored the opening goal in the 1-1 draw against Manchester United on Thursday.
"You saw by his performance he wasn't bothered by any speculation," added Hughes.
Rather than offloading a forward in January, Stoke could be stretched by Mame Biram Diouf leaving to play for Senegal in the Africa Cup of Nations and Bojan's hamstring injury.
The former Barcelona man missed the draw with United, but Hughes is hopeful of a swift return.
"We have had Bojan checked," said Hughes. "He has a slight tear, grade one. It can be 10 days out or a couple of weeks. Hopefully he'll be back soon.
"We asked the Senegal FA about Diouf. They are within their rights to call him up on what I think is 5 January.
"We hoped to have him for the game at Arsenal, but they said no."
The commissioner of An Garda Síochána (Irish police) has said the force needs more than 500 new recruits a year to provide a proper service.
[NEXT_CONCEPT]
Aston Villa cannot stop midfielder Idrissa Gueye leaving the club after Everton triggered a release clause in the player's contract.
[NEXT_CONCEPT]
Stoke City manager Mark Hughes has dismissed speculation linking striker Peter Crouch with a move to West Brom.