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Elizabethtown 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.

Elizabethtown Police Department starts at $57,200 a year — about $27.50 an hour on a 2,080-hour year, before overtime. That is $9,485 below the median of the 2,288 agencies on this list, and $10,940 below the median for municipal agencies.

Cost of livingPrices in Kentucky run about 10% below the national average, so this goes about as far as $63,443 would somewhere at average prices — $6,243 more than the headline figure. Most of that is rent, at 64 against a national average of 100, where goods are 96. 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 isElizabethtown Police Department reported 77 sworn officers and 23 civilian staff to the FBI for 2025. That is 2.2 officers per 1,000 residents, over a population of 35,407.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 Elizabethtown says about itself

The Elizabethtown Police Department is committed to protecting and serving the community through professionalism, integrity, and respect.

What Elizabethtown does

The Elizabethtown Police Department serves the City of Elizabethtown in Hardin County, Kentucky.

Where the figure comes from

Checked 20 September 2026. Elizabethtown Police Department salary and benefits sheet, starting pay for new uncertified officers — open the source document
No date in the document, read 20 September 2026. Base pay only: the $4,429 Kentucky state incentive is stated separately and excluded, as is the lateral credit that runs to $63,145.
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.

How this level compares

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

LevelLowestMedianHighestAgencies
Municipal$33,280$68,140$163,6191549
County$35,000$63,565$132,263516
Special jurisdiction$31,200$60,204$107,95471
State$33,994$65,166$110,916145
Federal$70,477$73,502$86,5305
Territory$16,640$28,236$43,3549
What this shows

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. Elizabethtown starts at $57,200, so $10,940 below the municipal middle.

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How it ranks

Nationally #1,745of 2,288 agencies Top 76% of everything we have verified
In KY #10of 15 agencies 5 pay less, 9 pay more
Hourly to start $28on a 2,080-hour year Base pay only, before overtime or any differential

Common questions

How much does a Elizabethtown Police Department officer make?

Elizabethtown Police Department starts a new officer on $57,200 a year, about $27.50 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 Elizabethtown Police Department salary and benefits sheet, starting pay for new uncertified officers.

Is that good pay for a police officer in Kentucky?

It ranks #10 of 15 agencies we have verified in Kentucky — 5 pay less, 9 pay more in the state — and #1,745 of 2,288 nationally. Against the national median it is $9,485 below, and against other municipal agencies $10,940 below.

Compare with another department

Put Elizabethtown 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.

Compare Elizabethtown

The agencies either side of it

Other agencies in KY

Go
#AgencyLevelSworn #Entry payVs ElizabethtownNational
1Kentucky State PoliceState1,078$71,000+$13,800#877
2Louisville Metro Police DepartmentMunicipal1,013$66,760+$9,560#1,138
3Paducah Police DepartmentMunicipal68$65,146+$7,946#1,246
4Lexington Police DepartmentMunicipal541 / 641$64,424+$7,224#1,293
5Richmond Police DepartmentMunicipal65$63,988+$6,788#1,320
6Bowling Green Police DepartmentMunicipal140$63,839+$6,639#1,329
7University of Kentucky Police DepartmentSpecial jurisdiction76 / 64$63,200+$6,000#1,371
8Owensboro Police DepartmentMunicipal101$62,254+$5,054#1,432
9Kenton County Police DepartmentMunicipal41$57,699+$499#1,715
11Georgetown Police DepartmentMunicipal75$55,345−$1,855#1,830
12Henderson Police DepartmentMunicipal58$51,778−$5,422#2,001
13Hopkinsville Police DepartmentMunicipal72$51,239−$5,961#2,025

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