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Bentonville 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.
Bentonville Police Department starts at $55,950 a year — about $26.90 an hour on a 2,080-hour year, before overtime. That is $10,735 below the median of the 2,288 agencies on this list, and $12,190 below the median for municipal agencies.
Cost of livingPrices in Arkansas run about 13% below the national average, so this goes about as far as $64,357 would somewhere at average prices — $8,407 more than the headline figure. Most of that is rent, at 58 against a national average of 100, where goods are 94. 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 isBentonville Police Department reported 99 sworn officers and 43 civilian staff to the FBI for 2025. That is 1.6 officers per 1,000 residents, over a population of 63,670.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.
What Bentonville says about itself
The Bentonville Police Department is committed to safeguarding lives and property of the people we serve, providing exceptional service, and enhancing public safety by working in partnership with our community.
What Bentonville does
The Bentonville Police Department is the municipal police agency for Bentonville, the seat of Benton County in north-west Arkansas. It describes itself as committed to the philosophy of community-oriented policing and states it cannot deliver law-enforcement services without the trust of the citizens it serves. The department pays additional annual amounts for college qualifications and for each grade of Arkansas CLEST certificate, and for K-9, bomb squad, SWAT and hazmat assignments.
Where the figure comes from
Checked 7 September 2026. City of Bentonville official page — Pay and Benefits Summary, Police — open the source document
City's own police pay and benefits summary verified 7 September 2026; Uncertified Police Officer I is $55,950.00 a year, a figure the city states includes holiday pay. Certified Police Officer II is $59,454.00, reached after one year of service or taken as lateral entry pay, so the uncertified rate is the no-experience start. The department's own recruitment terms state that academy certification and prior experience are not required. CLEST certificate pay is paid on top: General $1,950, Intermediate $2,600, Advanced $3,900 and Senior $5,850 a year
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 Bentonville 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 | $33,280 | $68,140 | $163,619 | 1549 |
| County | $35,000 | $63,565 | $132,263 | 516 |
| Special jurisdiction | $31,200 | $60,204 | $107,954 | 71 |
| State | $33,994 | $65,166 | $110,916 | 145 |
| 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 $5,400 more than the middle municipal agency and about $9,900 more than the middle county agency and about $13,300 more than the middle special jurisdiction agency and about $8,300 more than the middle state agency and about $45,300 more than the middle territory agency. Bentonville starts at $55,950, so $12,190 below the municipal middle.
How it ranks
Common questions
How much does a Bentonville Police Department officer make?
Bentonville Police Department starts a new officer on $55,950 a year, about $26.90 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 City of Bentonville official page — Pay and Benefits Summary, Police.
Is that good pay for a police officer in Arkansas?
It ranks #5 of 17 agencies we have verified in Arkansas — 12 pay less, 4 pay more in the state — and #1,797 of 2,288 nationally. Against the national median it is $10,735 below, and against other municipal agencies $12,190 below.
Compare with another department
Put Bentonville 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 AR
| # | Agency | Level | Sworn # | Entry pay | Vs Bentonville | National |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arkansas State Police | State | — | $67,675 | +$11,725 | #1,080 |
| 2 | Rogers Police Department | Municipal | 140 | $61,363 | +$5,413 | #1,481 |
| 3 | Little Rock Police Department | Municipal | 535 | $57,928 | +$1,978 | #1,686 |
| 4 | Fayetteville Police Department | Municipal | 152 | $57,699 | +$1,749 | #1,713 |
| 6 | North Little Rock Police Department | Municipal | 175 | $55,068 | −$882 | #1,849 |
| 7 | Farmington Police Department | Municipal | 19 | $54,251 | −$1,699 | #1,898 |
| 8 | Jonesboro Police Department | Municipal | 163 | $51,501 | −$4,449 | #2,013 |
| 9 | Lowell Police Department | Municipal | 20 | $51,491 | −$4,459 | #2,014 |
| 10 | Benton Police Department | Municipal | 83 | $51,000 | −$4,950 | #2,032 |
| 11 | Conway Police Department | Municipal | 127 | $50,924 | −$5,026 | #2,037 |
| 12 | Pulaski County Sheriff's Office | County | 141 | $50,211 | −$5,739 | #2,068 |
| 13 | Fort Smith Police Department | Municipal | 155 | $50,003 | −$5,947 | #2,073 |
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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