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Lakewood 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.

Lakewood Police Department starts at $89,066 a year — about $42.82 an hour on a 2,080-hour year, before overtime. That is $22,381 above the median of the 2,288 agencies on this list, and $20,926 above the median for municipal agencies.

Cost of livingPrices in Washington run about 7% above the national average, so this is worth roughly $83,229 somewhere at average prices — $5,837 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 isLakewood Police Department reported 94 sworn officers and 13 civilian staff to the FBI for 2025. That is 1.5 officers per 1,000 residents, over a population of 62,485.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 Lakewood says about itself

The Lakewood Police Department was formed in 2004 and is one of the largest police departments in Washington State.

What Lakewood does

The Lakewood Police Department serves the City of Lakewood in Pierce County, Washington.

Lakewood’s rotation, in BlueShifts

What the agency publishes

"The regular patrol work day shall be ten (10) hours and forty (40) minutes (10.67 hours), with Wednesday overlaps, with five (5) days on, four (4) days off, five (5) days on, four (4) days off, five (5) days on, and five (5) days off duty." Patrol runs on two squads, A and B.

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Every month, already filled in — no typing, however far ahead you look.

September 2026

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Five on, four off, five on, four off, five on, five off is a 28-day cycle, so your days off move across the week every block. BlueShifts takes the cycle once and draws every month ahead, so you can see which weekends are yours without counting.

Where the figure comes from

Checked 20 September 2026. City of Lakewood 2025 LPIG salary schedule, Police Officer Step 1 — open the source document
2025 rate under the 2023-2025 LPIG contract; $42.82/hr at Step 1 (the Entry column is n/a). The schedule notes 2026 salary is subject to negotiation.
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 Lakewood 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. Lakewood starts at $89,066, so $20,926 above the municipal middle.

How it ranks

Nationally #284of 2,288 agencies Top 12% of everything we have verified
In WA #42of 92 agencies 50 pay less, 41 pay more
Hourly to start $43on a 2,080-hour year Base pay only, before overtime or any differential

Common questions

How much does a Lakewood Police Department officer make?

Lakewood Police Department starts a new officer on $89,066 a year, about $42.82 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 Lakewood 2025 LPIG salary schedule, Police Officer Step 1.

Is that good pay for a police officer in Washington?

It ranks #42 of 92 agencies we have verified in Washington — 50 pay less, 41 pay more in the state — and #284 of 2,288 nationally. Against the national median it is $22,381 above, and against other municipal agencies $20,926 above.

What shifts do Lakewood Police Department officers work?

"The regular patrol work day shall be ten (10) hours and forty (40) minutes (10.67 hours), with Wednesday overlaps, with five (5) days on, four (4) days off, five (5) days on, four (4) days off, five (5) days on, and five (5) days off duty." Patrol runs on two squads, A and B. That is the agency's own published wording; the pattern is drawn on this page.

Compare with another department

Put Lakewood 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 Lakewood

The agencies either side of it

Other agencies in WA

Go
#AgencyLevelSworn #Entry payVs LakewoodNational
1Seattle Police DepartmentMunicipal1,064 / 1,200$117,792+$28,726#38
2Redmond Police DepartmentMunicipal81 / 82$110,435+$21,369#59
3Auburn Police DepartmentMunicipal120 / 128$108,386+$19,320#68
4Lynnwood Police DepartmentMunicipal71$106,371+$17,305#81
5Everett Police DepartmentMunicipal207 / 224$102,516+$13,450#106
6Vancouver Police DepartmentMunicipal226$101,832+$12,766#110
7Kirkland Police DepartmentMunicipal108 / 108$101,218+$12,152#118
8Tukwila Police DepartmentMunicipal76$101,064+$11,998#120
9Bothell Police DepartmentMunicipal70$101,055+$11,989#121
10Mount Vernon Police DepartmentMunicipal43$100,836+$11,770#125
11Kennewick Police DepartmentMunicipal107$100,104+$11,038#128
12Edmonds Police DepartmentMunicipal48$99,168+$10,102#140

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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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