Detroit Police Department entry pay

What Detroit says about itself

The Detroit Police Department's (DPD) mission is to encourage thoughtful decision-making and a strong sense of community responsibility through education, equity empathy, professionalism, transparency, and policing standards properly informed by community input and civic leadership.

What Detroit does

Detroit Police Department provides municipal patrol, investigative and public-safety law-enforcement services and trains entry-level officers through the Detroit Police Academy.

Where the figure comes from

Checked 20 September 2026. City of Detroit — Detroit Police Officers Association agreement announcement, "Police Officer Base Wage History" table: 7/1/26 $62,003 — open the source document
CORRECTED 20 September 2026, UP from $53,000, and the correction was on the City's own page the whole time. The row had been carrying the headline number from the announcement - starting pay rising from $43,000 to $53,000 on successful completion of the training academy - while the same page prints a POLICE OFFICER BASE WAGE HISTORY table giving the contract's dated steps: 7/1/23 $55,120, 7/1/24 $57,325, 7/1/25 $59,618, 7/1/26 $62,003, with the max-pay column beside it at $75,920, $78,957, $82,115 and $85,400. The agreement provided an increase of 4 per cent a year for four years, and the table is that agreement priced out. As of 20 September 2026 the 1 July 2026 step is the one in force, so $62,003 is the figure. THE ENTRY TEST IS IN THE CITY'S OWN WORDS: the figure is starting pay UPON SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION OF THE TRAINING ACADEMY, which is the post-academy rate and requires no prior service. The academy rate itself is separately and much lower - DPD's recruitment pages state starting pay under $21 an hour, about $3,200 gross a month, over a 26-week academy, with a raise on graduation - and is barred. The max-pay column is a ceiling. Excluded: the additional 2 per cent on base pay for applicants holding 60 or more college credits. WATCH: the four-year schedule ENDS at 7/1/26, so the next DPOA agreement is the document to find, and a $10,000 starting-pay increase has been reported as approved by City Council since - that report has NOT been used and is not in this figure.
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.

Entry pay, 2023–2026

Every point is the entry-class annual base printed in the agency’s own pay document. Base pay only — no shift differential, incentives or allowances.

In effect

How this level compares

Where Detroit sits is partly about the agency and partly about which level of policing it belongs to. The three levels do not pay the same.

How it ranks

Common questions

How much does a Detroit Police Department officer make?

Detroit Police Department starts a new officer on $62,003 a year, about $29.81 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 Detroit — Detroit Police Officers Association agreement announcement, "Police Officer Base Wage History" table: 7/1/26 $62,003.

Is that good pay for a police officer in Michigan?

It ranks #23 of 41 agencies we have verified in Michigan — 18 pay less, 22 pay more in the state — and #1,446 of 2,288 nationally. Against the national median it is $4,682 below, and against other municipal agencies $6,137 below.

The agencies either side of it