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Anchorage Police Department entry pay
What this agency pays a new officer to start, and how that compares with the rest of the country.
Entry pay onlyEvery salary here is what an officer is paid on day one, out of the academy — base pay on a 40-hour week, with no overtime, shift differential, specialty or education pay counted. Nobody stays on it.
Anchorage Police Department starts at $85,405 a year — about $41.06 an hour on a 2,080-hour year, before overtime. That is $17,015 above the median of the 1,681 agencies on this list, and $14,141 above the median for municipal agencies.
Cost of livingPrices in Anchorage, AK run about 5% above the national average, so this is worth roughly $81,014 somewhere at average prices — $4,391 less than the headline figure. Most of that is utilities, at 112 against a national average of 100, where goods are 107. Based on price levels for this metropolitan area, from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, 2024. The salary above is what the employer publishes; this line is our arithmetic on it, and nothing on this site is ranked on it.
How big the department isAnchorage Police Department reported 369 sworn officers and 169 civilian staff to the FBI for 2025. That is 1.3 officers per 1,000 residents, over a population of 287,385.A rate is only meaningful for a city department, where the population served is the city’s own. Reporting to the FBI is voluntary, so a count can reflect a partial return as easily as a small agency, and the FBI asks that agencies not be compared on staffing. Source: FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, Full-time Law Enforcement Employees, 2025.
About Anchorage
Anchorage Police Department states that its vision is to create an environment where everybody matters and its mission is to protect and serve the community in the most professional and compassionate manner possible. Its official values emphasize gratitude and the importance of employees, their support systems and the community. Department policies are framed around carrying out that mission while evolving with society and technology to best serve and protect Anchorage
Where the figure comes from
Checked 8 August 2026. Anchorage Police Department official recruiting site plus Municipality of Anchorage 2026 — open the source document
Current APD recruiting page lists entry-level starting pay at $41.06/hour. The municipal recruit posting states hires advance to sworn Police Officer after successful academy completion, while APD's step progression is based on hire date rather than academy graduation. Therefore the immediate post-academy base remains $41.06/hour = $85,404.80 annually
Entry-level base salary only. Overtime, bonuses, education incentives, shift
differentials, locality pay and lateral rates are excluded, so most officers earn more
than this.
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How this level compares
Where Anchorage sits is partly about the agency and partly about which level of policing it belongs to. The three levels do not pay the same.
| Level | Lowest | Median | Highest | Agencies |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Municipal | $35,006 | $71,287 | $163,619 | 1046 |
| County | $36,492 | $65,374 | $132,263 | 416 |
| Special jurisdiction | $31,200 | $60,195 | $107,954 | 69 |
| State | $33,994 | $64,998 | $102,692 | 143 |
| Federal | $70,477 | $73,502 | $86,530 | 5 |
| Territory | $16,640 | $28,236 | $43,354 | 9 |
Federal agencies pay the most to start
The middle federal agency starts at $73,502 — about $2,200 more than the middle municipal agency and about $8,100 more than the middle county agency and about $13,300 more than the middle special jurisdiction agency and about $8,500 more than the middle state agency and about $45,300 more than the middle territory agency. Anchorage starts at $85,405, so $14,118 above the municipal middle.
How it ranks
Common questions
How much does a Anchorage Police Department officer make?
Anchorage Police Department starts a new officer on $85,405 a year, about $41.06 an hour on a 2,080-hour year. That is base salary before overtime, bonuses, education incentives, shift differentials and locality pay, so most serving officers earn more. The figure comes from Anchorage Police Department official recruiting site plus Municipality of Anchorage 2026.
Is that good pay for a police officer in Alaska?
It ranks #3 of 11 agencies we have verified in Alaska — 8 pay less, 2 pay more in the state — and #284 of 1,681 nationally. Against the national median it is $17,015 above, and against other municipal agencies $14,141 above.
Compare with another department
Put Anchorage Police Department side by side with any other agency on the site — the two salaries, what each is worth once local prices are counted, and which comes out ahead.
The agencies either side of it
Other agencies in AK
| # | Agency | Level | Sworn # | Entry pay | Vs Anchorage | National |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alaska State Troopers | State | 363 | $97,365 | +$11,960 | #121 |
| 2 | North Slope Borough Police Department | County | 47 | $94,120 | +$8,715 | #153 |
| 4 | Juneau Police Department | Municipal | 41 | $84,490 | −$915 | #299 |
| 5 | Wasilla Police Department | Municipal | 29 | $80,558 | −$4,846 | #392 |
| 6 | Ketchikan Police Department | Municipal | 21 | $79,726 | −$5,678 | #415 |
| 7 | Kenai Police Department | Municipal | 17 | $79,414 | −$5,990 | #422 |
| 8 | Petersburg Borough Police Department | Municipal | — | $71,406 | −$13,998 | #701 |
| 9 | Bristol Bay Borough Police Department | County | 4 | $68,390 | −$17,015 | #841 |
| 10 | Haines Borough Police Department | Municipal | — | $66,768 | −$18,637 | #930 |
| 11 | Palmer Police Department | Municipal | 17 | $60,840 | −$24,565 | #1,202 |
Base pay is only part of the year
Whatever the figure above, the rotation is what decides your year — which weekends you lose, when the changeovers land, what you can plan around. Save yours once and BlueShifts shows it a year ahead, with the off-duty jobs you take and what each one paid.
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