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Atlantic Highlands 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.
Atlantic Highlands Police Department starts at $52,975 a year — about $25.47 an hour on a 2,080-hour year, before overtime. That is $15,415 below the median of the 1,681 agencies on this list, and $18,290 below the median for municipal agencies.
Cost of livingPrices in New Jersey run about 9% above the national average, so this is worth roughly $48,688 somewhere at average prices — $4,287 less than the headline figure. Most of that is rent, at 134 against a national average of 100, where goods are 107. Based on state-wide price levels, because this agency is not tied to a single metro 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 isAtlantic Highlands Police Department reported 15 sworn officers and 1 civilian staff to the FBI for 2025. That is 3.4 officers per 1,000 residents, over a population of 4,399.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 Atlantic Highlands
Atlantic Highlands Police Department says its mission is to enhance the quality of life in the Borough by working in partnership with the community and in accordance with constitutional rights to enforce the laws, preserve the peace and provide for a safe environment, and that it will accomplish that mission in keeping with its core values of Integrity, Respect, Service and Fairness.
Where the figure comes from
Checked 11 August 2026. Borough of Atlantic Highlands Ordinance 01-2025, Salary Ordinance - PBA collective bargaining unit schedule — open the source document
Ordinance fixing compensation for CALENDAR YEAR 2025, effective 1 January 2025, adopted 4 February 2025. The PBA schedule (agreement 7-1-2020 through 6-30-2025) lists Academy Step 39,926.77-44,394.95 and Patrolman 1st Step 47,642.83-52,974.51. THE MIN AND MAX ARE THE SAME SCHEDULE AT TWO POINTS IN TIME, NOT A BAND: every one of the thirteen ranks shows an identical 11.191% spread, so the maximum column is the final-year figure. A new officer attends the academy on Academy Step and moves to Patrolman 1st Step on completion, so $52,974.51 is the current post-academy entry rate. Longevity of $1,850 at five years is excluded from base pay.
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 Atlantic Highlands 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. Atlantic Highlands starts at $52,975, so $18,312 below the municipal middle.
How it ranks
Common questions
How much does a Atlantic Highlands Police Department officer make?
Atlantic Highlands Police Department starts a new officer on $52,975 a year, about $25.47 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 Borough of Atlantic Highlands Ordinance 01-2025, Salary Ordinance - PBA collective bargaining unit schedule.
Is that good pay for a police officer in New Jersey?
It ranks #11 of 15 agencies we have verified in New Jersey — 4 pay less, 10 pay more in the state — and #1,500 of 1,681 nationally. Against the national median it is $15,415 below, and against other municipal agencies $18,290 below.
Compare with another department
Put Atlantic Highlands 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 NJ
| # | Agency | Level | Sworn # | Entry pay | Vs Atlantic | National |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection — Fish & Wildlife Conservation Police | State | — | $74,153 | +$21,178 | #588 |
| 2 | New Jersey State Police | State | 3,351 | $64,956 | +$11,981 | #1,028 |
| 3 | Galloway Township Police Department | Municipal | 68 | $64,236 | +$11,261 | #1,054 |
| 4 | New Jersey State Parole Board | State | — | $63,268 | +$10,293 | #1,099 |
| 5 | North Plainfield Police Department | Municipal | 47 | $59,036 | +$6,061 | #1,282 |
| 6 | Ho-Ho-Kus Police Department | Municipal | 16 | $58,000 | +$5,025 | #1,322 |
| 7 | Toms River Township Police Department | Municipal | 145 | $56,792 | +$3,817 | #1,374 |
| 8 | South Brunswick Police Department | Municipal | — | $55,165 | +$2,190 | #1,421 |
| 9 | New Jersey Department of Corrections — Correctional Police | State | — | $55,081 | +$2,106 | #1,426 |
| 10 | Atlantic City Police Department | Municipal | 295 | $54,500 | +$1,525 | #1,453 |
| 12 | New Jersey State Park Police | State | 81 | $50,604 | −$2,370 | #1,546 |
| 13 | New Jersey State Human Services Police | State | — | $50,604 | −$2,370 | #1,547 |
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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