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Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety 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.

Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety starts at $55,779 a year — about $26.82 an hour on a 2,080-hour year, before overtime. That is $12,611 below the median of the 1,681 agencies on this list, and $15,485 below the median for municipal agencies.

Cost of livingPrices in Kalamazoo-Portage, MI run about 5% below the national average, so this goes about as far as $58,814 would somewhere at average prices — $3,035 more than the headline figure. Most of that is rent, at 82 against a national average of 100, where goods are 94. 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 isKalamazoo Department of Public Safety reported 243 sworn officers and 28 civilian staff to the FBI for 2025. That is 3.3 officers per 1,000 residents, over a population of 73,244.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 Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety says about itself

In partnership with the community, the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety is dedicated to enhancing the quality of life for all by providing professional police, fire, and EMS services to the residents and visitors of Kalamazoo.

Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety, 2022 Annual Report, from their own page

What Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety does

Kalamazoo Public Safety Officers respond to police, fire and medical emergencies; police duties include patrol, traffic enforcement, criminal investigation and lawful arrests.

Where the figure comes from

Checked 10 August 2026. City of Kalamazoo NEOGOV Public Safety Officer posting/class information — open the source document
Their source is effective 1 January 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.

How this level compares

Where Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety 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$35,006$71,287$163,6191046
County$36,492$65,374$132,263416
Special jurisdiction$31,200$60,195$107,95469
State$33,994$64,998$102,692143
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 $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. Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety starts at $55,779, so $15,508 below the municipal middle.

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How it ranks

Nationally #1,400of 1,681 agencies Top 83% of everything we have verified
In MI #30of 38 agencies 8 pay less, 29 pay more
Hourly to start $27on a 2,080-hour year Base pay only, before overtime or any differential

Common questions

How much does a Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety officer make?

Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety starts a new officer on $55,779 a year, about $26.82 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 Kalamazoo NEOGOV Public Safety Officer posting/class information.

Is that good pay for a police officer in Michigan?

It ranks #30 of 38 agencies we have verified in Michigan — 8 pay less, 29 pay more in the state — and #1,400 of 1,681 nationally. Against the national median it is $12,611 below, and against other municipal agencies $15,485 below.

Compare with another department

Put Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety 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 Kalamazoo

The agencies either side of it

Other agencies in MI

Go
#AgencyLevelSworn #Entry payVs KalamazooNational
1Troy Police DepartmentMunicipal110$78,224+$22,445#452
2Grand Rapids Police DepartmentMunicipal299$77,467+$21,688#471
3Wyoming Police DepartmentMunicipal97$75,400+$19,621#539
4Sumpter Township Police DepartmentMunicipal18$71,732+$15,953#684
5Lincoln Charter Township Police DepartmentMunicipal$71,696+$15,917#686
6Macomb County Sheriff's OfficeCounty274$71,098+$15,319#718
7Muskegon Police DepartmentMunicipal70$69,888+$14,109#781
8Livonia Police DepartmentMunicipal117$69,784+$14,005#783
9Dearborn Police DepartmentMunicipal186$69,080+$13,301#810
10Plymouth Township Police DepartmentMunicipal33$68,140+$12,361#852
11Oscoda Township Police DepartmentMunicipal12$68,140+$12,361#853
12Northville Police DepartmentMunicipal12$65,956+$10,177#969

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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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