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St. Louis County 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.
St. Louis County Police Department starts at $63,003 a year — about $30.29 an hour on a 2,080-hour year, before overtime. That is $5,387 below the median of the 1,681 agencies on this list, and $2,371 below the median for county agencies.
Cost of livingPrices in St. Louis, MO-IL run about 5% below the national average, so this goes about as far as $66,258 would somewhere at average prices — $3,255 more than the headline figure. Most of that is utilities, at 70 against a national average of 100, where goods are 100. 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 isSt. Louis County Police Department reported 843 sworn officers and 362 civilian staff to the FBI for 2025. That is 3.1 officers per 1,000 residents, over a population of 274,819.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 St. Louis County says about itself
The mission of the St. Louis County Police Department is to work cooperatively with the public, and within the framework of the Constitution, to enforce the laws, preserve the peace, reduce fear, and provide a safe environment in our neighborhoods. We are committed to maintaining the highest standards of excellence in all aspects of policing.
What St. Louis County does
St. Louis County Police Department provides uniform patrol across 370 square miles of unincorporated St. Louis County and describes itself as Missouri's largest provider of contracted law-enforcement services. The department emphasizes Neighborhood Policing and employs both commissioned officers and professional staff.
Where the figure comes from
Checked 10 August 2026. employer-controlled NEOGOV Academy Recruit or Experienced Officer posting with 2026 commissioned pay matrix — open the source document
Their source is effective 27 January 2018.
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 St. Louis 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. St. Louis County starts at $63,003, so $2,371 below the county middle.
How it ranks
Common questions
How much does a St. Louis County Police Department officer make?
St. Louis County Police Department starts a new officer on $63,003 a year, about $30.29 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 employer-controlled NEOGOV Academy Recruit or Experienced Officer posting with 2026 commissioned pay matrix.
Is that good pay for a police officer in Missouri?
It ranks #12 of 27 agencies we have verified in Missouri — 15 pay less, 11 pay more in the state — and #1,110 of 1,681 nationally. Against the national median it is $5,387 below, and against other county agencies $2,371 below.
Compare with another department
Put St. Louis County 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 MO
| # | Agency | Level | Sworn # | Entry pay | Vs St. | National |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Creve Coeur Police Department | Municipal | 47 | $71,329 | +$8,326 | #707 |
| 2 | Liberty Police Department | Municipal | 47 | $70,000 | +$6,997 | #772 |
| 3 | Kansas City Missouri Police Department | Municipal | 1,119 | $68,928 | +$5,925 | #819 |
| 4 | O'Fallon Police Department | Municipal | 118 | $67,454 | +$4,451 | #898 |
| 5 | Brentwood Police Department | Municipal | 31 | $67,418 | +$4,415 | #900 |
| 6 | St. Charles County Police Department | County | 35 | $66,060 | +$3,057 | #962 |
| 7 | Missouri State Highway Patrol | State | 1,134 | $65,400 | +$2,397 | #998 |
| 8 | Riverside Police Department | Municipal | 25 | $65,000 | +$1,997 | #1,022 |
| 9 | Ferguson Police Department | Municipal | 47 | $64,316 | +$1,313 | #1,052 |
| 10 | Gladstone Police Department | Municipal | 31 | $63,560 | +$557 | #1,077 |
| 11 | Ballwin Police Department | Municipal | 45 | $63,508 | +$505 | #1,081 |
| 13 | Columbia Police Department | Municipal | 164 | $60,611 | −$2,392 | #1,208 |
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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