Police officers

Detailed Occupation

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2021 Workforce

825k

Average Age

39.8

Average Salary

$74,586

Average Male Salary

$76,106

Average Female Salary

$65,424

About

Police officers are most often employed by the Justice, public order, & safety activities industry. The average yearly wage for Police officers was $74,586 in 2021.

The locations that employ the most Police officers are Ashburn, Washington Heights, Morgan Park & Beverly PUMA, IL, Socorro & Horizon Cities PUMA, TX, and Sierra Vista City PUMA, AZ. The locations with a relatively high concentration of Police officers are Ashburn, Washington Heights, Morgan Park & Beverly PUMA, IL, Carr 2 (Sur) PUMA, PR, and Webb County (North & East)Laredo City (Outer) PUMA, TX.

Photo by Highway Patrol Images

Service Occupations Protective service occupations

Employment and salary information for the Police officers workforce. Police officers workforce in 2021 was 824,824 people, of which 14.2% were women and 85.8% were men. Police officers are paid most in Chico City PUMA, CA but are relatively concentrated in Ashburn, Washington Heights, Morgan Park & Beverly PUMA, IL.

Employment Over Time

Metric

Grouping

707,469

Male Workforce

± 20.6k

117,355

Female Workforce

± 8.41k

The Police officers workforce in 2021 was 824,824 people (14.2% women and 85.8% men). This implies an average annual growth of 15.6% between 2014 (713,279) and 2021 (824,824).

Employment by Location

Level

Metric

This map shows the states in the United States shaded by average wage for Police officers.

During 2021, the states that concentrated the best average annual wage were California ($97,505), New Jersey ($96,779), and Massachusetts ($96,474).

Yearly Wage Ranking

$74,586

AVERAGE WAGE

#131 in the ranking (2021)

$59,596

NATIONAL AVERAGE WAGE

For all occupations across the US

In 2021, Police officers earned an average of $74,586, $14,991 more than the average national salary of $59,596

The graph shows the ranking of Police officers in relation to all Detailed Occupation in 2021.

Wage Distribution

Gender

0.287

WAGE GINI

In 2021, Police officers had a wage GINI coefficient of 0.287, which is lower than the national average of 0.478. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly for Police officers (shown in red) than for the overall labor force (shown in gray).

The graphic shows the distribution of average salaries by buckets for Police officers compared to the entire workforce in the country.

Industry

Information on the industries that employ Police officers and on wages for those in the field. Justice, public order, & safety activities is the industry that employs the most Police officers, both by share and by number, though the highest paid industry for Police officers, by average wage, is Public finance activities ($107,260).

Occupations by Industries

Metric

Value

825k

2021 Workforce

± 22,236

3.42%

1 YEAR GROWTH

± 3.72%

This graphic shows the share of Police officers employed by various industries. Justice, public order, & safety activities employs the largest share of Police officers at 93.9%, followed by National security & international affairs with 3.85% and Colleges, universities & professional schools, including junior colleges with 2.23%.

Diversity

Demographic information on Police officers in the US. The workforce of Police officers in 2021 was 824,824 people, with 14.2% woman, and 85.8% men. The average age of male Police officers in the workforce is 40 and of female Police officers is 38.6, and the most common race/ethnicity for Police officers is White.

Gender and Age

Metric

The workforce of Police officers in 2021 was 824,824 people, with 14.2% woman, and 85.8% men.

The age ranges that concentrated the largest workforce were 30 to 34 years (123,153 people), 35 to 39 years (121,618 people), and 25 to 29 years (121,326 people). Among them they concentrated 44.4% of the total workforce.

Ethnicity

Gender

In 2021, 15.7% of Police officers workers were Hispanic and 84.3% non-Hispanic.

The treemap shows the distribution of Hispanic workers according to their origin, highlighting Mexican (71.6%), Puerto Rican (21.9)%, and Cuban (6.51)%

You can review this information by gender using the selectors above.

Races

In 2021, 73.4% of the Police officers workforce were White, of which 11.8% were women and 88.2% men. Other races that concentrated a significant number of workers were Black (13.8%) and Two or More Races (6.19%).

Education & Skills

Data on higher education choices for Police officers from The Department of Education and Census Bureau. The most common major for Police officers is Protective Services but the most specialized major according to RCA in 2021 were Protective Services.

Majors

ACS PUMS data only shows the major for bachelor's degrees. However, we can filter the data based on highest degree obtained.

Type of Majors

Degree

The most common majors achieved by Police officers in 2021 (counting all academic degrees) were Protective Services (127,256 people), Business (43,192 people), and Social Sciences (37,071 people).

You can review this information for different academic grades by modifying the option selected in the selector above.

Education Levels

Metric

The main educational levels achieved by the Police officers workers were Bachelors Degree (262,615 people), Some college (251,424 people), and Associates Degree (138,073 people).

The graphic shows the Police officers workforce by gender and educational level.