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La Mesa 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.
La Mesa Police Department starts at $112,154 a year — about $53.92 an hour on a 2,080-hour year, before overtime. That is $43,764 above the median of the 1,681 agencies on this list, and $40,889 above the median for municipal agencies.
Cost of livingPrices in California run about 11% above the national average, so this is worth roughly $101,295 somewhere at average prices — $10,859 less than the headline figure. Most of that is utilities, at 159 against a national average of 100, where goods are 106. 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 isLa Mesa Police Department reported 67 sworn officers and 32 civilian staff to the FBI for 2025. That is 1.1 officers per 1,000 residents, over a population of 60,686.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 La Mesa says about itself
We are dedicated to establishing connections and collaboration with our community and all those we interact with. Providing the best police services that we can all be proud of and treating others with respect is our top priority. We are committed to making La Mesa a safe place to live, work, or visit for all.
What La Mesa does
La Mesa Police Officer is the City's full-time municipal sworn classification, providing law enforcement and community public-safety service.
Where the figure comes from
Checked 13 August 2026. $53.92/hour / $112,153.60 annually minimum for FY2026-27 Police Officer. Official continuous Police — open the source document
$53.92/hour / $112,153.60 annually minimum for FY2026-27 Police Officer. Official continuous Police Officer Lateral/Academy Graduate recruitment explicitly accepts academy graduates; the City’s official 2026-27 salary page gives Police Officer minimum pay of $53.
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 La Mesa 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 | $35,006 | $71,287 | $163,619 | 1046 |
| County | $36,492 | $65,374 | $132,263 | 416 |
| Special jurisdiction | $31,200 | $60,195 | $107,954 | 69 |
| State | $33,994 | $64,998 | $102,692 | 143 |
| 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 $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. La Mesa starts at $112,154, so $40,867 above the municipal middle.
How it ranks
Common questions
How much does a La Mesa Police Department officer make?
La Mesa Police Department starts a new officer on $112,154 a year, about $53.92 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 $53.92/hour / $112,153.60 annually minimum for FY2026-27 Police Officer. Official continuous Police.
Is that good pay for a police officer in California?
It ranks #44 of 222 agencies we have verified in California — 178 pay less, 43 pay more in the state — and #45 of 1,681 nationally. Against the national median it is $43,764 above, and against other municipal agencies $40,889 above.
Compare with another department
Put La Mesa 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 CA
| # | Agency | Level | Sworn # | Entry pay | Vs La | National |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Santa Clara Police Department | Municipal | 141 | $163,619 | +$51,466 | #1 |
| 2 | Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety | Municipal | 227 | $149,443 | +$37,289 | #2 |
| 3 | Redwood City Police Department | Municipal | 83 | $147,942 | +$35,789 | #3 |
| 4 | San Jose Police Department | Municipal | 1,065 | $144,003 | +$31,850 | #4 |
| 5 | Mountain View Police Department | Municipal | 90 | $143,096 | +$30,942 | #5 |
| 6 | San Mateo Police Department | Municipal | 111 | $141,024 | +$28,870 | #6 |
| 7 | Los Altos Police Department | Municipal | 31 | $139,740 | +$27,586 | #7 |
| 8 | Hayward Police Department | Municipal | 171 | $138,965 | +$26,811 | #8 |
| 9 | Milpitas Police Department | Municipal | 84 | $138,261 | +$26,107 | #9 |
| 10 | Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office | County | 1,071 | $132,263 | +$20,109 | #10 |
| 11 | Menlo Park Police Department | Municipal | 43 | $132,036 | +$19,882 | #11 |
| 12 | Campbell Police Department | Municipal | 44 | $131,747 | +$19,594 | #12 |
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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