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Los Angeles County Sheriff's 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.
Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department starts at $82,080 a year — about $39.46 an hour on a 2,080-hour year, before overtime. That is $13,690 above the median of the 1,681 agencies on this list, and $16,706 above the median for county agencies.
Cost of livingPrices in Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA run about 14% above the national average, so this is worth roughly $72,275 somewhere at average prices — $9,805 less than the headline figure. Most of that is rent, at 170 against a national average of 100, where goods are 107. 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 isLos Angeles County Sheriff's Department reported 8,715 sworn officers and 5,170 civilian staff to the FBI for 2025.No rate is shown: this agency does not police a single population the FBI publishes a figure for. 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 Los Angeles County
Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department describes itself as a public-safety agency serving contract cities, unincorporated communities, county courts and correctional facilities. Its responsibilities include patrol, investigations, custody, court services, transit policing and specialized operations, with official materials emphasizing service, integrity, accountability and community trust.
Where the figure comes from
Checked 10 August 2026. Los Angeles County official Deputy Sheriff class specification — open the source document
Los Angeles County defines Deputy Sheriff Trainee as a non-sworn academy class. The separate Deputy Sheriff class is a full-time sworn peace officer and currently starts at $6,840/month, or $82,080 annually. The published $94,435.20 is not the current bottom post-academy sworn rate.
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 Los Angeles County 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. Los Angeles County starts at $82,080, so $16,706 above the county middle.
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How it ranks
Common questions
How much does a Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department officer make?
Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department starts a new officer on $82,080 a year, about $39.46 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 Los Angeles County official Deputy Sheriff class specification.
Is that good pay for a police officer in California?
It ranks #175 of 222 agencies we have verified in California — 47 pay less, 174 pay more in the state — and #347 of 1,681 nationally. Against the national median it is $13,690 above, and against other county agencies $16,706 above.
Compare with another department
Put Los Angeles County Sheriff's 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 Los | National |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Santa Clara Police Department | Municipal | 141 | $163,619 | +$81,539 | #1 |
| 2 | Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety | Municipal | 227 | $149,443 | +$67,363 | #2 |
| 3 | Redwood City Police Department | Municipal | 83 | $147,942 | +$65,862 | #3 |
| 4 | San Jose Police Department | Municipal | 1,065 | $144,003 | +$61,923 | #4 |
| 5 | Mountain View Police Department | Municipal | 90 | $143,096 | +$61,016 | #5 |
| 6 | San Mateo Police Department | Municipal | 111 | $141,024 | +$58,944 | #6 |
| 7 | Los Altos Police Department | Municipal | 31 | $139,740 | +$57,660 | #7 |
| 8 | Hayward Police Department | Municipal | 171 | $138,965 | +$56,885 | #8 |
| 9 | Milpitas Police Department | Municipal | 84 | $138,261 | +$56,181 | #9 |
| 10 | Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office | County | 1,071 | $132,263 | +$50,183 | #10 |
| 11 | Menlo Park Police Department | Municipal | 43 | $132,036 | +$49,956 | #11 |
| 12 | Campbell Police Department | Municipal | 44 | $131,747 | +$49,667 | #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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