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Top 25 Cities for Police Officers
Photo: Franco Folini | CreativeCommons
Kevin Powers, PoliceLink.com
Not every U.S. city is created equal, and so when it comes time for a police officer to choose a department, there can be a lot to consider.
Understanding the overall health and standard of living in a city can make a big difference during one's career. A high starting salary can be a major reason for signing on, but will it be worth if if rent dries up most of your pay, unemployment is rising and it takes you two hours to get to the station every morning?
Everything from department funding to the job market for your non-LEO spouse can have an impact on your life, and consequently a review of each prospective new home should be looked at with a wide lens.
So, which cities currently offer the most overall value?
We've adapted this list, which takes into account various economic and quality of life metrics, to provide anyone with an interest or opportunity to compare what these cities have to offer.
The Criteria
We looked at cities' growth rates, average salaries and costs of living.
We factored in average commute time — which, according to experts, has a colossal impact on your overall happiness.
We looked not only at unemployment figures, but also at the rate that unemployment has actually increased since February 2008.
Whether you are just finishing up a degree and looking for a department, or are a seasoned LEO and are simply curious to see where your hometown ranks, read on to see which cities made the list.
The List: City #25 >>
president9
6 months ago
2 Comments
Don't leave your agency to come to Columbus PD anytime soon-- The City's admin./Mayor is threatening to lay off 200 officers if a tax increase doesn't pass on Aug. 4th-- including 26 that were just rehired with COPS GRANT funding that brought the President to this great city as an example of where the COPS GRANT dollars were being used to retain or hire back cops---- the Mayor will look real great by sending the money back to the White House and laying them off with some 170 Plus other officers hu????
Mantis
6 months ago
166 Comments
The fourth largest city in the US, and one of the most dangerous (Houston) needs to get its head out of the sand, didn't even rank in the top 25, and two Texas cities take the top two seats. How pathetic
cubano
6 months ago
24 Comments
way to go boston P.D,77,000 its good.
kmgibbs
6 months ago
6 Comments
what about Omaha? population of ~450,000, third highest salary for cops when accounting for cost of living, in general, a low cost of living, commute time is ridiculously low, there has been steady increase in hires of police since a massive retirement push a few years ago, and Nebraska is the only state with declining unemployment! What gives?
pfsdaugherty
6 months ago
2 Comments
Well....Columbus is about to get some layoffs for police and fire if the levy doesnt pass
liljenjen
6 months ago
176 Comments
I thought this article was very enlightening,and thank you to chucky for his input as to the difficulties in California.
chucky
6 months ago
464 Comments
I do not know who wrote this article, but the author is way misinformed. We are the lowest compensated department in CA. We are the most understaffed largest city in the nation, cover may literally be 20 minutes away if not longer. Because the Mayor of the city is upset with the SDPOA, he has imposed 13.5 % percent in deductions of Salary/ Benefits, which is forcing about 150 officers to retire early before July 1, 2009. We are loosing over 40% of our new hires because they can not make it past training.
I do love working for this department because we operate with officer safety number one always. If there is no cover unit, calls hold for officer safety reasons. It is a fun department to work for, it is the mayor and city council that will never let this department grow to its great potential.