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Lake City 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.
Lake City Police Department starts at $45,355 a year — about $21.81 an hour on a 2,080-hour year, before overtime. That is $23,035 below the median of the 1,681 agencies on this list, and $25,909 below the median for municipal agencies.
Cost of livingPrices in Florida run about 3% above the national average, so this is worth roughly $43,858 somewhere at average prices — $1,497 less than the headline figure. Most of that is rent, at 122 against a national average of 100, where goods are 98. 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 isLake City Police Department reported 47 sworn officers and 11 civilian staff to the FBI for 2025. That is 3.6 officers per 1,000 residents, over a population of 12,895.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.
About Lake City
The City states that the Police Officer serves in the Police Department and must meet Florida statutory training standards and State certification requirements, and separately offers academy sponsorship for non-certified applicants.
Where the figure comes from
Checked 10 August 2026. City of Lake City official Police Officer posting 23-0001 — open the source document
Posting 23-0001, closed to applications but live at checking; minimum starting salary $45,354.91, identified expressly as the certified Law Enforcement Officer starting annual salary. Academy sponsorship pay of $15.00/hour is separate and excluded. The posting number indicates a 2023 vintage and it carries no other date.
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 Lake City 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. Lake City starts at $45,355, so $25,932 below the municipal middle.
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How it ranks
Common questions
How much does a Lake City Police Department officer make?
Lake City Police Department starts a new officer on $45,355 a year, about $21.81 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 Lake City official Police Officer posting 23-0001.
Is that good pay for a police officer in Florida?
It ranks #138 of 141 agencies we have verified in Florida — 3 pay less, 137 pay more in the state — and #1,626 of 1,681 nationally. Against the national median it is $23,035 below, and against other municipal agencies $25,909 below.
Compare with another department
Put Lake City 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 FL
| # | Agency | Level | Sworn # | Entry pay | Vs Lake | National |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Boca Raton Police Services Department | Municipal | 195 | $86,674 | +$41,319 | #270 |
| 2 | Fort Lauderdale Police Department | Municipal | 565 | $81,723 | +$36,368 | #354 |
| 3 | Plantation Police Department | Municipal | 164 | $81,000 | +$35,645 | #379 |
| 4 | Pinecrest Police Department | Municipal | 47 | $80,912 | +$35,557 | #383 |
| 5 | Sunny Isles Beach Police Department | Municipal | 65 | $80,000 | +$34,645 | #411 |
| 6 | Aventura Police Department | Municipal | 91 | $78,556 | +$33,201 | #441 |
| 7 | Coral Springs Police Department | Municipal | 222 | $77,516 | +$32,161 | #470 |
| 8 | Boynton Beach Police Department | Municipal | 173 | $76,650 | +$31,295 | #490 |
| 9 | North Palm Beach Police Department | Municipal | 37 | $76,378 | +$31,023 | #497 |
| 10 | Naples Police Department | Municipal | 74 | $76,320 | +$30,965 | #501 |
| 11 | West Palm Beach Police Department | Municipal | 295 | $75,921 | +$30,566 | #524 |
| 12 | Bay Harbor Islands Police Department | Municipal | 24 | $75,836 | +$30,481 | #528 |
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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