Interactive US wage atlas · 51 states & 161 cities
Where security pays, state by state and city by city.
US median$18.28/hr
US average$20.42/hr
Top 25%$22.21+/hr
Supervisors$26.90/hr
US Median: $18.28/hr
$13.85$30.87/hr
50th percentile hourly pay (BLS 33-9032) · Click any state to zoom in or any glowing diamond for city payData source & BLS methodology
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES), 2025 annual estimates (bls.gov), retrieved 2026-10-16, paired with U.S. Census Bureau CBSA Gazetteer coordinates. BLS reports all security officers under SOC 33-9032 without separating armed and unarmed posts.
Personal pay estimator (by state, role & experience)Compare your paycheck against Unarmed, Armed, and Supervisor BLS bands for your experience levelCalculator · 51 states
Pick your state to see your range. For reference, the national median for security guards is $18.28/hr across 1,283,470 guards.
Top-paying metropolitan marketsHighest-paying U.S. cities ranked by BLS median hourly wage, with mean pay and employed guard headcountTop 18 cities
#1Idaho Falls, ID$37.83/hr
Avg $32.82/hr75th $37.83/hr570 guards
#2Fairbanks, AK$29.04/hr
Avg $28.90/hr75th $36.24/hr130 guards
#3Burlington, VT$24.60/hr
Avg $26.61/hr75th $34.92/hr410 guards
#4Kahului, HI$23.41/hr
Avg $24.45/hr75th $27.56/hr780 guards
#5Rochester, MN$22.98/hr
Avg $22.62/hr75th $26.91/hr520 guards
#6Seattle, WA$22.83/hr
Avg $24.71/hr75th $27.88/hr17,030 guards
#7Washington, DC$22.52/hr
Avg $26.17/hr75th $34.15/hr40,950 guards
#8Portland, OR$22.51/hr
Avg $23.06/hr75th $23.59/hr9,110 guards
#9Anchorage, AK$22.46/hr
Avg $26.22/hr75th $33.62/hr1,090 guards
#10San Jose, CA$22.23/hr
Avg $24.53/hr75th $26.19/hr11,800 guards
#11Salem, OR$22.19/hr
Avg $22.82/hr75th $26.66/hr1,030 guards
#12San Francisco, CA$21.99/hr
Avg $24.17/hr75th $26.36/hr26,830 guards
#13Denver, CO$21.84/hr
Avg $22.53/hr75th $22.86/hr10,910 guards
#14Syracuse, NY$21.66/hr
Avg $23.04/hr75th $25/hr1,770 guards
#15Boston, MA$21.63/hr
Avg $21.94/hr75th $22.32/hr19,250 guards
#16Lexington Park, MD$21.58/hr
Avg $25.42/hr75th $37.11/hr380 guards
#17Albuquerque, NM$21.53/hr
Avg $22.42/hr75th $26.34/hr4,440 guards
#18Manchester, NH$21.40/hr
Avg $21.99/hr75th $24.57/hr810 guards
All 51 state pay tables (A to Z)Jump directly to any state's full percentile breakdown, city wage table, and open security jobs50 states & DC
- Alabama (3 cities)$16.21 avg $16.67
- Alaska (2 cities)$22.83 avg $26.03
- Arizona (3 cities)$18.41 avg $19.69
- Arkansas (4 cities)$17.20 avg $18.41
- California (10 cities)$20.79 avg $21.60
- Colorado (3 cities)$21.71 avg $22.05
- Connecticut (3 cities)$19.19 avg $21.72
- Delaware (2 cities)$17.48 avg $21.04
- District of Columbia (1 city)$30.87 avg $29.19
- Florida (6 cities)$17.26 avg $18.08
- Georgia (4 cities)$16.82 avg $18.22
- Hawaii (2 cities)$20.59 avg $20.90
- Idaho (3 cities)$18.41 avg $21.20
- Illinois (5 cities)$18.98 avg $21.27
- Indiana (6 cities)$17.54 avg $19.55
- Iowa (4 cities)$17.83 avg $20.30
- Kansas (4 cities)$17.83 avg $19.40
- Kentucky (5 cities)$17.03 avg $18.53
- Louisiana (3 cities)$15.50 avg $17.35
- Maine (3 cities)$18.80 avg $19.90
- Maryland (5 cities)$18.37 avg $21.41
- Massachusetts (4 cities)$21.48 avg $21.52
- Michigan (4 cities)$17.83 avg $19.54
- Minnesota (6 cities)$20.86 avg $21.86
- Mississippi (4 cities)$14.03 avg $15.26
- Missouri (3 cities)$19.42 avg $21.68
- Montana (3 cities)$18.50 avg $20.32
- Nebraska (3 cities)$19.15 avg $21.63
- Nevada (3 cities)$17.94 avg $19.12
- New Hampshire (2 cities)$21.73 avg $23.01
- New Jersey (6 cities)$18.69 avg $20.92
- New Mexico (3 cities)$20.83 avg $22.26
- New York (6 cities)$21.27 avg $22.33
- North Carolina (4 cities)$16.83 avg $18.79
- North Dakota (3 cities)$18.90 avg $20.74
- Ohio (7 cities)$17.20 avg $19.21
- Oklahoma (4 cities)$17.44 avg $19.02
- Oregon (3 cities)$21.88 avg $22.32
- Pennsylvania (5 cities)$17.81 avg $19.32
- Rhode Island (1 city)$17.76 avg $19.39
- South Carolina (5 cities)$17.05 avg $17.82
- South Dakota (2 cities)$17.86 avg $19.35
- Tennessee (4 cities)$17.31 avg $18.51
- Texas (6 cities)$17.30 avg $18.54
- Utah (3 cities)$20.53 avg $20.70
- Vermont (1 city)$21.90 avg $24.41
- Virginia (4 cities)$20.98 avg $22.63
- Washington (4 cities)$22.64 avg $24.41
- West Virginia (5 cities)$13.85 avg $15.06
- Wisconsin (5 cities)$18 avg $19.90
- Wyoming (2 cities)$18.85 avg $20.51