Best states for a correction officer

Q: What is the best state for correction officers?

The best state to be a correction officer is Nevada based on correction officer salaries and job opportunities.

Q: What is the highest paying state for correction officers?

The highest paying state for correction officers is Arkansas based on Zippia’s salary database.

Q: What is the worst state for correction officers?

The worst state for correction officers is Montana, due to a combination of low salaries and few job opportunities.

Rank 1 - 10
11 - 20
21 - 30
31 - 40
41 - 51

Job opportunities vary from state to state, and protective service careers are no different. Because we know how difficult it can be to know which states are the best when it comes to correction officer jobs, we decided to crunch some numbers to bring you the best states for correction officers.This way, if you are newly entering the job market, or you are looking to change jobs, you know which places are the best for correction officer jobs.

To do that, we looked at the most recent data we have available for the following criteria -- average annual wages, and availability of jobs for correction officers.Nevada is the best state, and Waipahu is the city with the highest pay for correction officers.

10 best states for correction officers in 2025

1. Nevada
Total correction officer jobs: 348
Average annual salary: $49,301
Lowest 10 percent earn: $33,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $72,000
Location Quotient:
1.22
Correction officer jobs in Nevada
2. Hawaii
Total correction officer jobs: 130
Average annual salary: $59,246
Lowest 10 percent earn: $50,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $69,000
Location Quotient:
1.13
Correction officer jobs in Hawaii
3. Washington
Total correction officer jobs: 1,079
Average annual salary: $51,191
Lowest 10 percent earn: $36,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $72,000
Location Quotient:
1.08
Correction officer jobs in Washington
4. New York
Total correction officer jobs: 1,799
Average annual salary: $52,522
Lowest 10 percent earn: $36,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $76,000
Location Quotient:
1.02
Correction officer jobs in New York
5. Connecticut
Total correction officer jobs: 440
Average annual salary: $50,721
Lowest 10 percent earn: $35,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $73,000
Location Quotient:
0.97
Correction officer jobs in Connecticut
6. Pennsylvania
Total correction officer jobs: 1,745
Average annual salary: $44,329
Lowest 10 percent earn: $30,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $64,000
Location Quotient:
1.1
Correction officer jobs in Pennsylvania
7. Oregon
Total correction officer jobs: 588
Average annual salary: $48,252
Lowest 10 percent earn: $33,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $69,000
Location Quotient:
1.04
Correction officer jobs in Oregon
8. Colorado
Total correction officer jobs: 943
Average annual salary: $46,222
Lowest 10 percent earn: $33,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $63,000
Location Quotient:
1.16
Correction officer jobs in Colorado
9. California
Total correction officer jobs: 4,164
Average annual salary: $50,335
Lowest 10 percent earn: $33,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $74,000
Location Quotient:
1.04
Correction officer jobs in California
10. New Hampshire
Total correction officer jobs: 205
Average annual salary: $47,867
Lowest 10 percent earn: $34,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $66,000
Location Quotient:
0.86
Correction officer jobs in New Hampshire

Correction officer jobsNear Columbus, OH

How Zippia determines the best states to be a correction officer

You can read about how the best state rankings are calculated here.

Detailed list of the best states for a correction officer

Rank	State	Average salary	Lowest 10% earn	Population	Job count
1	Nevada	$49,301	$33,000	2,998,039	348
2	Hawaii	$59,246	$50,000	1,427,538	130
3	Washington	$51,191	$36,000	7,405,743	1,079
4	New York	$52,522	$36,000	19,849,399	1,799
5	Connecticut	$50,721	$35,000	3,588,184	440
6	Pennsylvania	$44,329	$30,000	12,805,537	1,745
7	Oregon	$48,252	$33,000	4,142,776	588
8	Colorado	$46,222	$33,000	5,607,154	943
9	California	$50,335	$33,000	39,536,653	4,164
10	New Hampshire	$47,867	$34,000	1,342,795	205
11	New Jersey	$48,350	$33,000	9,005,644	1,019
12	Illinois	$48,164	$35,000	12,802,023	1,377
13	Ohio	$40,569	$28,000	11,658,609	1,560
14	Vermont	$43,576	$31,000	623,657	103
15	Minnesota	$43,804	$31,000	5,576,606	852
16	Maryland	$44,438	$30,000	6,052,177	938
17	Wisconsin	$38,818	$27,000	5,795,483	848
18	Michigan	$41,194	$29,000	9,962,311	979
19	Alaska	$43,886	$34,000	739,795	103
20	Rhode Island	$40,613	$28,000	1,059,639	169
21	Massachusetts	$44,907	$31,000	6,859,819	1,071
22	Delaware	$40,822	$27,000	961,939	165
23	Iowa	$40,246	$29,000	3,145,711	412
24	Arizona	$36,624	$24,000	7,016,270	984
25	Alabama	$37,269	$27,000	4,874,747	587
26	Idaho	$35,119	$24,000	1,716,943	331
27	Maine	$38,946	$28,000	1,335,907	166
28	North Dakota	$36,413	$26,000	755,393	125
29	Virginia	$35,422	$24,000	8,470,020	1,695
30	Nebraska	$34,120	$24,000	1,920,076	381
31	West Virginia	$36,440	$25,000	1,815,857	180
32	New Mexico	$36,166	$25,000	2,088,070	259
33	Utah	$37,730	$26,000	3,101,833	367
34	Oklahoma	$33,858	$24,000	3,930,864	460
35	District of Columbia	$39,664	$27,000	693,972	190
36	Kansas	$36,517	$26,000	2,913,123	272
37	Florida	$31,273	$22,000	20,984,400	2,813
38	Kentucky	$28,841	$21,000	4,454,189	711
39	Wyoming	$35,731	$25,000	579,315	37
40	Louisiana	$34,273	$24,000	4,684,333	356
41	Missouri	$28,949	$21,000	6,113,532	938
42	South Dakota	$33,516	$24,000	869,666	114
43	Mississippi	$29,079	$21,000	2,984,100	304
44	Indiana	$32,637	$23,000	6,666,818	744
45	Texas	$33,252	$23,000	28,304,596	2,221
46	Tennessee	$31,406	$23,000	6,715,984	608
47	Arkansas	$27,584	$20,000	3,004,279	373
48	North Carolina	$31,387	$23,000	10,273,419	944
49	South Carolina	$30,205	$22,000	5,024,369	520
50	Georgia	$28,977	$21,000	10,429,379	1,295
51	Montana	$29,322	$21,000	1,050,493	93

Highest paying states for correction officers

Rank	State	Avg. Correction Officer Salary
1	Nevada	$49,301
2	Hawaii	$59,246
3	Washington	$51,191
4	New York	$52,522
5	Connecticut	$50,721
6	Pennsylvania	$44,329
7	Oregon	$48,252
8	Colorado	$46,222
9	California	$50,335
10	New Hampshire	$47,867
11	New Jersey	$48,350
12	Illinois	$48,164
13	Ohio	$40,569
14	Vermont	$43,576
15	Minnesota	$43,804
16	Maryland	$44,438
17	Wisconsin	$38,818
18	Michigan	$41,194
19	Alaska	$43,886
20	Rhode Island	$40,613
21	Massachusetts	$44,907
22	Delaware	$40,822
23	Iowa	$40,246
24	Arizona	$36,624
25	Alabama	$37,269
26	Idaho	$35,119
27	Maine	$38,946
28	North Dakota	$36,413
29	Virginia	$35,422
30	Nebraska	$34,120
31	West Virginia	$36,440
32	New Mexico	$36,166
33	Utah	$37,730
34	Oklahoma	$33,858
35	District of Columbia	$39,664
36	Kansas	$36,517
37	Florida	$31,273
38	Kentucky	$28,841
39	Wyoming	$35,731
40	Louisiana	$34,273
41	Missouri	$28,949
42	South Dakota	$33,516
43	Mississippi	$29,079
44	Indiana	$32,637
45	Texas	$33,252
46	Tennessee	$31,406
47	Arkansas	$27,584
48	North Carolina	$31,387
49	South Carolina	$30,205
50	Georgia	$28,977
51	Montana	$29,322

Best states for a correction officer

10 best states for correction officers in 2025

1. Nevada

2. Hawaii

3. Washington

4. New York

5. Connecticut

6. Pennsylvania

7. Oregon

8. Colorado

9. California

10. New Hampshire

Correction officer jobsNear Columbus, OH

How Zippia determines the best states to be a correction officer

Detailed list of the best states for a correction officer

Highest paying states for correction officers

Correction officer best states FAQs

What is the best state for correction officers?

What is the highest paying state for correction officers?

What is the worst state for correction officers?

Search for correction officer jobs

Total correction officer jobs:	348
Average annual salary:	$49,301
Lowest 10 percent earn:	$33,000
Highest 10 percent earn:	$72,000
Location Quotient:	1.22