Fire chief vs station captain

The differences between fire chiefs and station captains can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-8 years to become both a fire chief and a station captain. Additionally, a fire chief has an average salary of $69,961, which is higher than the $55,314 average annual salary of a station captain.

The top three skills for a fire chief include fire protection, emergency response and public safety. The most important skills for a station captain are emergency response, occupational safety, and firefighting.

Fire chief vs station captain overview

	Fire Chief	Station Captain
Yearly salary	$69,961	$55,314
Hourly rate	$33.64	$26.59
Growth rate	6%	-
Number of jobs	16,088	3,487
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 37%	Associate Degree, 45%
Average age	49	49
Years of experience	8	8

Fire chief vs station captain salary

Fire chiefs and station captains have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Fire Chief	Station Captain
Average salary	$69,961	$55,314
Salary range	Between $40,000 And $121,000	Between $38,000 And $80,000
Highest paying City	Sacramento, CA	-
Highest paying state	California	-
Best paying company	CVR Energy	-
Best paying industry	Government	-

Differences between fire chief and station captain education

There are a few differences between a fire chief and a station captain in terms of educational background:

	Fire Chief	Station Captain
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 37%	Associate Degree, 45%
Most common major	Fire Science And Protection	Fire Science And Protection
Most common college	California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo	Stanford University

Fire chief vs station captain demographics

Here are the differences between fire chiefs' and station captains' demographics:

	Fire Chief	Station Captain
Average age	49	49
Gender ratio	Male, 94.2% Female, 5.8%	Male, 92.1% Female, 7.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 5.8% Unknown, 5.9% Hispanic or Latino, 8.2% Asian, 2.3% White, 76.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%	Black or African American, 5.8% Unknown, 5.9% Hispanic or Latino, 8.2% Asian, 2.3% White, 76.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between fire chief and station captain duties and responsibilities

Fire chief example responsibilities.

Manage the combat logistics operations center's daily operations and ensure efficient information flow between internal and external organizations.
Determine appropriate control techniques and direct firefighting teams during numerous fire, hazardous material releases and medical emergencies.
Respond to fires, medical, HAZMAT, bombs and threat calls.
Maintain and inspect the SCBA equipment.
Conduct departmental assessments in accordance with DoD, standards.
Provide emergency medical care including first-aid and CPR to victims.

Station captain example responsibilities.

Manage the combat logistics operations center's daily operations and ensure efficient information flow between internal and external organizations.
Provide advance firefighting management techniques and supervise rescue operations.
Participate and host audits from customers and the FAA.
Respond to exercises, structural/crash emergencies, Haz-Mat incidents and wild land incidents both on and off base.
Demonstrate firefighting skills with effective presentation and demonstration skills.
Coordinate training with grind combat elements enablers in support of battalion operations.

Fire chief vs station captain skills

Common fire chief skills

Fire Protection, 10%
Emergency Response, 8%
Public Safety, 8%
Fire Service, 5%
Fire Suppression, 5%
Emergency Services, 4%

Common station captain skills

Emergency Response, 14%
Occupational Safety, 12%
Firefighting, 7%
Incident Command, 7%
Fire Protection, 6%
Haz-mat, 5%

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Updated January 8, 2025

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