Average Police Officer Salary

Based upon where you are working as a policemen, his/her salary can be very different. Senior police officers, for instance, make much more than a rookie police officer who is enrolled in the law enforcement training academy.

Detectives on the other hand, ca often make more than patrol officers. If you are in a specialized team like  undercover, SWAT or other specialized units you’ll probably be amongst the highest paid employees in the department.

All and all the income of a police officer per week depends on several factors like…

• The size of the city/town/county (location)
• Size of the police department
• Average income of residents in the city/town/county
• Career advancement opportunities at that particular agency

These four things are closely linked to how much a police officer can make per year. However the base pay of a police officer on paper is not the end all be all as police officers have opportunities to supplement their income through off duty employment.

Job Description And Responsibilities Of a Policemen:

As you know the main responsibility of a police officer is to protect and serve the community in which they live in. They are there to investigate crime, respond to suspicious activity, and many more such as…

• Report timely to locations of criminal incidents. Conduct checking, collect proofs, arrest suspects based on specific legislation.
• Patrolling (on foot/car/bikes) to ensure no criminal activities are going on in localities.
• Assist public in response to requests regarding domestic violence, child abuse, theft, robbery and other criminal activities.
• Cooperate with traffic police in cases related to road accidents.
• Conducting arrests in regards to cases related to violation of human rights, security and peace of an area.
• Perform criminal backgrounds checks.
• Conduct awareness programs for community security and reducing crimes.
• Preparing crime reports and presenting progress of any case to senior officers.
• Attending and helping courts/lawyers in solving criminal matters.
• Interview alleged person who is supposed to be a culprit of any criminal activity.

How Much Money Does a Cop Make Per Year: Average Salary & Pay Scale

As I explained above the amount of money a police officer makes is based largely upon his or her experience, location, or whether or not he/she works in a specialized unit. On average, a typical cop can expect to make about $40,000 to $50,000 per year. The pay will increase after your first year, and keep increasing as you gain more experience.

If you interview for a specialized position or work your way into supervison like a sergeant and lieutant, your yearly earnings will peak to around $70,000 or higher in most cities.

Remember those numbers does not reflect every agency as it defers from department to department. Those recruits who are fresh out of the academy will make a little less than seasoned officers who have been on the job longer.