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Kirkland 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.
Kirkland Police Department starts at $101,218 a year — about $48.66 an hour on a 2,080-hour year, before overtime. That is $34,533 above the median of the 2,288 agencies on this list, and $33,078 above the median for municipal agencies.
Cost of livingPrices in Washington run about 7% above the national average, so this is worth roughly $94,584 somewhere at average prices — $6,633 less than the headline figure. Most of that is rent, at 126 against a national average of 100, where goods are 104. 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 isKirkland Police Department reported 108 sworn officers and 43 civilian staff to the FBI for 2025. That is 1.1 officers per 1,000 residents, over a population of 96,218.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 Kirkland says about itself
The mission of the Kirkland Police Department is to protect and serve our community with honour, integrity and courage, and its vision is to proactively reduce crime through partnerships and teamwork. Its three values are defined: honour - we live and die by our obligations to fulfil our duty and commitment to justice; integrity - we do the right thing for the right reason, even when no one is looking; and courage - we choose to face challenges or adversity even when others will not or cannot. The department has around 155 employees when fully staffed across three divisions, Operations, Professional Standards and Administrative, and runs its own detention center with round-the-clock coverage.
What Kirkland does
The Kirkland Police Department describes its mission around protecting life and property, preventing crime, enforcing laws, responding to emergencies, and partnering with the community. Its official materials emphasize professionalism, integrity, respect, accountability, service, community engagement, and building public trust
Where the figure comes from
Checked 8 August 2026. City of Kirkland official Police Office — open the source document
Current official entry Police Officer minimum verified 8 August 2026; $8,434.80/month = $101,217.60 annually. Lateral credit and premiums excluded
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 Kirkland 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. Kirkland starts at $101,218, so $33,078 above the municipal middle.
How it ranks
Common questions
How much does a Kirkland Police Department officer make?
Kirkland Police Department starts a new officer on $101,218 a year, about $48.66 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 Kirkland official Police Office.
Is that good pay for a police officer in Washington?
It ranks #7 of 92 agencies we have verified in Washington — 85 pay less, 6 pay more in the state — and #118 of 2,288 nationally. Against the national median it is $34,533 above, and against other municipal agencies $33,078 above.
Compare with another department
Put Kirkland 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 WA
| # | Agency | Level | Sworn # | Entry pay | Vs Kirkland | National |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Seattle Police Department | Municipal | 1,064 | $117,792 | +$16,574 | #38 |
| 2 | Redmond Police Department | Municipal | 81 | $110,435 | +$9,217 | #59 |
| 3 | Auburn Police Department | Municipal | 120 | $108,386 | +$7,169 | #68 |
| 4 | Lynnwood Police Department | Municipal | 71 | $106,371 | +$5,154 | #81 |
| 5 | Everett Police Department | Municipal | 207 | $102,516 | +$1,298 | #106 |
| 6 | Vancouver Police Department | Municipal | 226 | $101,832 | +$614 | #110 |
| 8 | Tukwila Police Department | Municipal | 76 | $101,064 | −$154 | #120 |
| 9 | Bothell Police Department | Municipal | 70 | $101,055 | −$163 | #121 |
| 10 | Mount Vernon Police Department | Municipal | 43 | $100,836 | −$382 | #125 |
| 11 | Kennewick Police Department | Municipal | 107 | $100,104 | −$1,114 | #128 |
| 12 | Edmonds Police Department | Municipal | 48 | $99,168 | −$2,050 | #140 |
| 13 | Tacoma Police Department | Municipal | 343 | $98,571 | −$2,646 | #144 |
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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