National Salary Info » Police Officers

Highest Paying Industries for Police Officers

The top 39 highest paying industries for police officers (ranked by average annual salary) are listed in Table 1. The entry level salary (as measured by the salary of the lowest 10% paid earners) and the number of employment in those industries are also shown. As shown in the table, with an average annual salary of $71,950, colleges, universities, and professional schools - local government owned is the highest paying industry for police officers. It is followed by state government, excluding schools and hospitals (oes designation) industry (average annual salary $61,990). The salary and employment information is computed from data published by U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics in May 2015 [1]. For more information about salaries of police officers in a specific industry, use the links in the table.

Table 1. 39 Highest Paying Industries for Police Officers

Rank	Industry	Average Salary i	Entry Level Salary i	# of Empl. i
1	Colleges, universities, and professional schools - Local government owned	$71,950	$37,150	n/a
2	State Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OES Designation)	$61,990	$39,240	59,460
3	Rail Transportation	$60,330	$32,950	630
4	State government, including schools and hospitals	$59,780	$37,180	68,820
5	General Medical and Surgical Hospitals - Privately owned	$57,820	$42,720	910
6	Hospitals - Privately owned	$57,800	$42,810	920
7	Federal, State, and Local Government (OES Designation)	$57,200	$33,110	620,880
8	Federal, State, and Local Government	$57,200	$33,110	620,880
9	Public sector -- Federal, state, and local government, including government owned schools and hospit	$56,810	$33,030	636,190
10	Local Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OES Designation)	$56,770	$32,480	549,730
11	Local government, including schools and hospitals	$56,600	$32,470	555,210
12	Specialty (except Psychiatric and Substance Abuse) Hospitals	$56,040	$39,420	150
13	General Medical and Surgical Hospitals	$55,650	$36,810	1,120
14	Transportation and Warehousing	$55,550	$38,830	1,270
15	Postal Service (federal government)	$55,540	$54,300	460
16	Hospitals (including private, state, and local government hospitals)	$54,840	$35,270	1,390
17	Health Care and Social Assistance	$54,840	$35,270	1,390
18	Educational Services - Privately owned	$51,920	$31,950	4,270
19	Colleges, universities, and professional schools - Privately owned	$51,810	$31,910	4,220
20	Urban Transit Systems	$51,720	$21,660	120
21	Transit and Ground Passenger Transportation	$51,720	$21,660	120
22	Federal government, including USPS	$49,940	$37,960	12,160
23	Federal Executive Branch (OES Designation)	$49,340	$37,860	11,690
24	Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools	$48,780	$31,040	12,570
25	Educational Services	$47,270	$31,040	18,650
26	Colleges, universities, and professional schools - State government owned	$47,250	$30,540	8,260
27	Educational Services - State government owned	$46,810	$30,410	9,030
28	Junior colleges - Local government owned	$46,480	$30,990	1,990
29	Hospitals - State government owned	$46,050	$26,600	330
30	Junior Colleges (including private, state, and local government schools)	$45,670	$30,480	2,770
31	Educational Services - Local government owned	$45,350	$31,240	5,350
32	Elementary and Secondary Schools - Local government owned	$44,600	$31,270	3,270
33	Elementary and Secondary Schools	$44,550	$31,300	3,310
34	General Medical and Surgical Hospitals - Local government owned	$44,400	$32,650	130
35	Hospitals - Local government owned	$44,400	$32,650	130
36	Junior colleges - State government owned	$43,050	$29,020	740
37	Psychiatric and Substance Abuse Hospitals	$42,310	$26,820	120
38	Psychiatric and Substance Abuse Hospitals - State government owned	$42,140	$26,780	120
39	General Medical and Surgical Hospitals - State government owned	$34,500	$17,830	70