Narcotics agent vs federal investigator

The differences between narcotics agents and federal investigators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a narcotics agent and a federal investigator. Additionally, a narcotics agent has an average salary of $65,852, which is higher than the $50,277 average annual salary of a federal investigator.

The top three skills for a narcotics agent include patrol, criminal investigations and crime scenes. The most important skills for a federal investigator are background investigations, law enforcement agencies, and litigation.

Narcotics agent vs federal investigator overview

	Narcotics Agent	Federal Investigator
Yearly salary	$65,852	$50,277
Hourly rate	$31.66	$24.17
Growth rate	3%	3%
Number of jobs	25,101	5,213
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 40%	Bachelor's Degree, 64%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	2	2

Narcotics agent vs federal investigator salary

Narcotics agents and federal investigators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Narcotics Agent	Federal Investigator
Average salary	$65,852	$50,277
Salary range	Between $44,000 And $97,000	Between $33,000 And $76,000
Highest paying City	-	-
Highest paying state	-	-
Best paying company	-	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between narcotics agent and federal investigator education

There are a few differences between a narcotics agent and a federal investigator in terms of educational background:

	Narcotics Agent	Federal Investigator
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 40%	Bachelor's Degree, 64%
Most common major	Criminal Justice	Criminal Justice
Most common college	-	-

Narcotics agent vs federal investigator demographics

Here are the differences between narcotics agents' and federal investigators' demographics:

	Narcotics Agent	Federal Investigator
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 88.1% Female, 11.9%	Male, 56.9% Female, 43.1%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 11.9% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 17.0% Asian, 2.8% White, 62.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 12.1% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 17.2% Asian, 2.8% White, 62.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between narcotics agent and federal investigator duties and responsibilities

Narcotics agent example responsibilities.

Conduct joint planning and manage AFOSI's criminal investigations and counterintelligence operations in northern Italy.
Conduct searches of all Latin American and Caribbean AA flights inbound and outbound for illegal narcotics and firearms.
Review all complete DEA integrity/misconduct investigations, shooting investigations, accidents with government vehicles and property loss or damage negligence/liability reports.
Conduct joint planning and manage AFOSI's criminal investigations and counterintelligence operations in northern Italy.

Federal investigator example responsibilities.

Investigate and open cases on customers and non-customers who have potentially engage in activity which goes against federally mandate BSA/AML regulations.
Handle and safeguard sensitive and confidential information, including personal identifiable information (PII).

Narcotics agent vs federal investigator skills

Common narcotics agent skills

Patrol, 17%
Criminal Investigations, 14%
Crime Scenes, 11%
Law Enforcement Agencies, 10%
Electronic Surveillance, 9%
Subpoenas, 5%

Common federal investigator skills

Background Investigations, 10%
Law Enforcement Agencies, 9%
Litigation, 8%
Federal Agencies, 8%
Security Clearance, 6%
Subpoenas, 6%

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Narcotics Agent
Narcotics Agent vs Federal Investigator

Updated January 8, 2025

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