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Macon County Sheriff's Office 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.
Macon County Sheriff's Office starts at $64,233 a year — about $30.88 an hour on a 2,080-hour year, before overtime. That is $4,157 below the median of the 1,681 agencies on this list, and $1,142 below the median for county agencies.
Cost of livingPrices in Decatur, IL run about 12% below the national average, so this goes about as far as $72,643 would somewhere at average prices — $8,411 more than the headline figure. Most of that is rent, at 56 against a national average of 100, where goods are 94. 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.
What Macon County says about itself
The Macon County Sheriff's Office is a progressive department located in Decatur, Illinois. The department is responsible for providing law enforcement services for the unincorporated areas of Macon County along with providing full time services for the towns of Argenta, Forsyth and Macon and part time services for the Village of Long Creek.
What Macon County does
Macon County Sheriff's Office Deputy Sheriffs protect life and property, deter criminal activity, serve legal process, provide courtroom and jail support and execute arrests while enforcing state and local law.
Where the figure comes from
Checked 8 August 2026. Macon County Sheriff's Office — Depu | 14 Aug 2026: COMPLETED THE 8 AUG TRUNCATION - the row ended '/about-us/career-' and the full path is '/about-us/career-opportunities/deputy-sheriff/'. **THE FIGURE IS CONFIRMED TO THE CENT BY THE SHERIFF'S OWN JOB POSTING PDF**, which states 'Starting Wage: Year 1 as of 12/01/24 $61,466.77.. Beginning December 1, 2025, wages increase to $64,232.77', covered by the collective bargaining agreement with structured salary step increases. **THE STEP DATE MATTERS FOR THE RECHECK LIST: this figure took effect 1 Dec 2025 and the CBA implies another step around 1 Dec 2026** - a dated, predictable increase, unlike most rows. Refused indeed's $55,585 estimate and the illinoisanswers payroll database, neither being the employer. — open the source document
2026 eligibility-list process opened 27 April 2026 and closed 15 May 2026; official Deputy Sheriff starting salary $64,232.77
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 Macon 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. Macon County starts at $64,233, so $1,141 below the county middle.
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How it ranks
Common questions
How much does a Macon County Sheriff's Office officer make?
Macon County Sheriff's Office starts a new officer on $64,233 a year, about $30.88 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 Macon County Sheriff's Office — Depu | 14 Aug 2026: COMPLETED THE 8 AUG TRUNCATION - the row ended '/about-us/career-' and the full path is '/about-us/career-opportunities/deputy-sheriff/'. **THE FIGURE IS CONFIRMED TO THE CENT BY THE SHERIFF'S OWN JOB POSTING PDF**, which states 'Starting Wage: Year 1 as of 12/01/24 $61,466.77.. Beginning December 1, 2025, wages increase to $64,232.77', covered by the collective bargaining agreement with structured salary step increases. **THE STEP DATE MATTERS FOR THE RECHECK LIST: this figure took effect 1 Dec 2025 and the CBA implies another step around 1 Dec 2026** - a dated, predictable increase, unlike most rows. Refused indeed's $55,585 estimate and the illinoisanswers payroll database, neither being the employer..
Is that good pay for a police officer in Illinois?
It ranks #31 of 35 agencies we have verified in Illinois — 4 pay less, 30 pay more in the state — and #1,055 of 1,681 nationally. Against the national median it is $4,157 below, and against other county agencies $1,142 below.
Compare with another department
Put Macon County Sheriff's Office 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 IL
| # | Agency | Level | Sworn # | Entry pay | Vs Macon | National |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vernon Hills Police Department | Municipal | 44 | $94,460 | +$30,227 | #151 |
| 2 | Wilmette Police Department | Municipal | 45 | $93,156 | +$28,923 | #165 |
| 3 | Aurora Police Department | Municipal | 328 | $92,248 | +$28,015 | #176 |
| 4 | Des Plaines Police Department | Municipal | 97 | $91,440 | +$27,207 | #186 |
| 5 | Highland Park Police Department | Municipal | 60 | $91,158 | +$26,925 | #191 |
| 6 | Illinois State Police | State | 1,821 | $90,828 | +$26,595 | #199 |
| 7 | River Forest Police Department | Municipal | 26 | $90,106 | +$25,873 | #213 |
| 8 | Elgin Police Department | Municipal | 203 | $88,274 | +$24,041 | #245 |
| 9 | Lake County Sheriff's Office | County | 113 | $87,297 | +$23,064 | #259 |
| 10 | Woodridge Police Department | Municipal | 47 | $84,781 | +$20,548 | #294 |
| 11 | DeKalb Police Department | Municipal | 72 | $83,449 | +$19,216 | #326 |
| 12 | Rolling Meadows Police Department | Municipal | 49 | $81,439 | +$17,206 | #362 |
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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