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Paso Robles 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.
Paso Robles Police Department starts at $96,009 a year — about $46.16 an hour on a 2,080-hour year, before overtime. That is $27,619 above the median of the 1,681 agencies on this list, and $24,745 above the median for municipal agencies.
Cost of livingPrices in California run about 11% above the national average, so this is worth roughly $86,713 somewhere at average prices — $9,296 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 isPaso Robles Police Department reported 52 sworn officers and 21 civilian staff to the FBI for 2025. That is 1.6 officers per 1,000 residents, over a population of 31,588.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 Paso Robles
Paso Robles Police states that its mission is to provide the highest level of service while working with the community to solve crime and social-disorder problems, ensure safety and improve quality of life.
Where the figure comes from
Checked 14 August 2026. City of Paso Robles — Police Officer — POA P110 Step 1 — open the source document
City-wide pay schedule adopted 16 June 2026 | Class: Police Officer — POA P110 Step 1 | Post-academy: yes — official wage schedule separately prices Police Officer Recruit and Police Officer | Official City wage schedule publishes Police Officer Step 1 at $46.16/hour / $96,009.16 annually and Police Officer Recruit at $38.63/hour / $80,350.40.
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 Paso Robles 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. Paso Robles starts at $96,009, so $24,722 above the municipal middle.
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How it ranks
Common questions
How much does a Paso Robles Police Department officer make?
Paso Robles Police Department starts a new officer on $96,009 a year, about $46.16 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 Paso Robles — Police Officer — POA P110 Step 1.
Is that good pay for a police officer in California?
It ranks #116 of 222 agencies we have verified in California — 106 pay less, 115 pay more in the state — and #136 of 1,681 nationally. Against the national median it is $27,619 above, and against other municipal agencies $24,745 above.
Compare with another department
Put Paso Robles 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 Paso | National |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Santa Clara Police Department | Municipal | 141 | $163,619 | +$67,610 | #1 |
| 2 | Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety | Municipal | 227 | $149,443 | +$53,434 | #2 |
| 3 | Redwood City Police Department | Municipal | 83 | $147,942 | +$51,933 | #3 |
| 4 | San Jose Police Department | Municipal | 1,065 | $144,003 | +$47,994 | #4 |
| 5 | Mountain View Police Department | Municipal | 90 | $143,096 | +$47,087 | #5 |
| 6 | San Mateo Police Department | Municipal | 111 | $141,024 | +$45,015 | #6 |
| 7 | Los Altos Police Department | Municipal | 31 | $139,740 | +$43,731 | #7 |
| 8 | Hayward Police Department | Municipal | 171 | $138,965 | +$42,956 | #8 |
| 9 | Milpitas Police Department | Municipal | 84 | $138,261 | +$42,252 | #9 |
| 10 | Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office | County | 1,071 | $132,263 | +$36,254 | #10 |
| 11 | Menlo Park Police Department | Municipal | 43 | $132,036 | +$36,027 | #11 |
| 12 | Campbell Police Department | Municipal | 44 | $131,747 | +$35,738 | #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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