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Arlington County 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.
Arlington County Police Department starts at $90,012 a year — about $43.27 an hour on a 2,080-hour year, before overtime. That is $21,622 above the median of the 1,681 agencies on this list, and $24,638 above the median for county agencies.
Cost of livingPrices in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV run about 9% above the national average, so this is worth roughly $82,668 somewhere at average prices — $7,344 less than the headline figure. Most of that is rent, at 151 against a national average of 100, where goods are 105. 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 isArlington County Police Department reported 299 sworn officers and 117 civilian staff to the FBI for 2025.No rate is shown: this agency does not police a single population the FBI publishes a figure for. 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.
What Arlington County says about itself
While a lot has changed in Arlington County since then, our dedication to providing high quality police services to the residents, visitors and businesses of Arlington County has not.
What Arlington County does
Arlington County Police Department was formed on 1 February 1940 with nine members, after the County Board passed a resolution creating it, and took its present name in 1963. It is the primary law enforcement agency across 26 square miles of northern Virginia directly opposite Washington DC, serving around 238,000 residents. Its structure runs through divisions each commanded by a deputy chief and sections each under a captain, with organisational charts published in its own directive manual. The county contains a large number of federal reservations, enclaves and special jurisdictions that maintain their own police agencies, so ACPD frequently works alongside them. The separate Arlington County Sheriff's Office runs the jail, courthouse security and civil process, and is not responsible for patrol or investigations.
Where the figure comes from
Checked 15 August 2026. Arlington County government — announcement of the police starting salary increase — open the source document
Their source is effective 1 July 2026.
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 Arlington County 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. Arlington County starts at $90,012, so $24,638 above the county middle.
How it ranks
Common questions
How much does a Arlington County Police Department officer make?
Arlington County Police Department starts a new officer on $90,012 a year, about $43.27 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 Arlington County government — announcement of the police starting salary increase.
Is that good pay for a police officer in Virginia?
It ranks #1 of 36 agencies we have verified in Virginia — the highest in the state in the state — and #215 of 1,681 nationally. Against the national median it is $21,622 above, and against other county agencies $24,638 above.
Compare with another department
Put Arlington County 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 VA
| # | Agency | Level | Sworn # | Entry pay | Vs Arlington | National |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Falls Church Police Department | Municipal | 32 | $76,400 | −$13,612 | #496 |
| 3 | Alexandria Police Department | Municipal | 264 | $75,000 | −$15,012 | #560 |
| 4 | Fairfax County Police Department | County | 1,390 | $74,035 | −$15,977 | #593 |
| 5 | Prince William County Police Department | County | 656 | $74,000 | −$16,012 | #595 |
| 6 | Loudoun County Sheriff's Office | County | 648 | $70,955 | −$19,057 | #727 |
| 7 | Leesburg Police Department | Municipal | 74 | $68,500 | −$21,512 | #834 |
| 8 | Prince William County Sheriff's Office | County | 656 | $66,596 | −$23,416 | #941 |
| 9 | Henrico County Police Division | County | 628 | $65,959 | −$24,053 | #968 |
| 10 | Fairfax County Sheriff's Office | County | 433 | $64,997 | −$25,015 | #1,025 |
| 11 | Richmond Police Department | Municipal | 608 | $63,360 | −$26,652 | #1,091 |
| 12 | Hanover County Sheriff's Office | County | 247 | $63,345 | −$26,667 | #1,093 |
| 13 | Chesterfield County Police Department | County | 499 | $62,751 | −$27,261 | #1,118 |
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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