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Pennsylvania State Police 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.
Pennsylvania State Police starts at $73,087 a year — about $35.14 an hour on a 2,080-hour year, before overtime. That is $4,697 above the median of the 1,681 agencies on this list, and $8,089 above the median for state agencies.
Cost of livingPrices in Pennsylvania run about 2% below the national average, so this goes about as far as $74,906 would somewhere at average prices — $1,819 more than the headline figure. That average hides a wide spread: rent at 85, where goods are 99. 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 isPennsylvania State Police reported 4,634 sworn officers 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 Pennsylvania State
The Pennsylvania State Police is the tenth-largest police agency in the United States, with a statewide workforce of roughly 6,500 enlisted and civilian employees, including about 4,841 troopers, on a $1.5 billion budget. Formed in 1905, it works out of 16 troops and also runs the Executive Services Office protecting the Governor and Lieutenant Governor.
Where the figure comes from
Checked 15 August 2026. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania — State Police Pay Schedule (pay scale type SP) — open the source document
State Police Pay Schedule effective 1 July 2026: Trooper, step S, longevity range A — $73,087 a year ($35.03 an hour). This is the Commonwealth's own published schedule, not a job posting.
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 Pennsylvania State 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. Pennsylvania State starts at $73,087, so $8,089 above the state middle.
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How it ranks
Common questions
How much does a Pennsylvania State Police officer make?
Pennsylvania State Police starts a new officer on $73,087 a year, about $35.14 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 Commonwealth of Pennsylvania — State Police Pay Schedule (pay scale type SP).
Is that good pay for a police officer in Pennsylvania?
It ranks #3 of 23 agencies we have verified in Pennsylvania — 20 pay less, 2 pay more in the state — and #624 of 1,681 nationally. Against the national median it is $4,697 above, and against other state agencies $8,089 above.
Compare with another department
Put Pennsylvania State Police 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 PA
| # | Agency | Level | Sworn # | Entry pay | Vs Pennsylvania | National |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Abington Township Police Department | Municipal | — | $103,421 | +$30,334 | #71 |
| 2 | Lower Merion Township Police Department | Municipal | 118 | $90,162 | +$17,075 | #212 |
| 4 | Philadelphia Police Department | Municipal | 5,065 | $72,651 | −$436 | #643 |
| 5 | Allentown Police Department | Municipal | 215 | $72,607 | −$480 | #645 |
| 6 | Manheim Township Police Department | Municipal | 63 | $72,334 | −$753 | #651 |
| 7 | Pittsburgh Bureau of Police | Municipal | — | $68,952 | −$4,135 | #817 |
| 8 | Gettysburg Borough Police Department | Municipal | — | $63,232 | −$9,855 | #1,101 |
| 9 | Northampton County Sheriff's Department | County | 59 | $60,606 | −$12,481 | #1,209 |
| 10 | York County Sheriff's Office | County | 107 | $58,344 | −$14,743 | #1,303 |
| 11 | Harrisburg Bureau of Police | Municipal | — | $58,100 | −$14,987 | #1,316 |
| 12 | Lancaster County Sheriff's Office | County | 55 | $57,803 | −$15,284 | #1,338 |
| 13 | Chester County Sheriff's Office | County | 59 | $57,720 | −$15,367 | #1,344 |
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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