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The differences between officers and lieutenants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, an officer has an average salary of $52,506, which is higher than the $47,781 average annual salary of a lieutenant.
The top three skills for an officer include patrol, customer service and public safety. The most important skills for a lieutenant are public safety, patrol, and direct supervision.
| Officer | Lieutenant | |
| Yearly salary | $52,506 | $47,781 |
| Hourly rate | $25.24 | $22.97 |
| Growth rate | 3% | - |
| Number of jobs | 114,267 | 79,272 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 56% | Bachelor's Degree, 60% |
| Average age | 43 | 46 |
| Years of experience | - | - |
An officer is responsible for managing the daily operations of the assigned area, ensuring its peace and security by monitoring and reporting unusual and suspicious activities. Officers are the ones enforcing strict safety protocols and procedures to maintain the order within the premises. They also coordinate with law enforcement agencies in conducting appropriate investigations for any violating cases. An officer must be highly-knowledgeable of the law policies, as well as possessing excellent leadership skills to manage the members under the officer's patrol.
A lieutenant is responsible for overseeing operations in police departments, evaluating departmental cases, cooperating in law enforcement investigations, monitoring internal activities, and ensuring the safety and security of the premises. Lieutenants also enforce rules and regulations for everyone's strict compliance, inspect police department facilities, and identify serious offenses. They also confiscate violating items, document any evidence for further investigation. A lieutenant must have excellent leadership skills, as well as extensive knowledge of the law regulations to maintain the credibility and integrity of the police operations.
Officers and lieutenants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Officer | Lieutenant | |
| Average salary | $52,506 | $47,781 |
| Salary range | Between $26,000 And $103,000 | Between $41,000 And $55,000 |
| Highest paying City | New York, NY | Denver, CO |
| Highest paying state | New York | Colorado |
| Best paying company | Meta | Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory |
| Best paying industry | - | Technology |
There are a few differences between an officer and a lieutenant in terms of educational background:
| Officer | Lieutenant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 56% | Bachelor's Degree, 60% |
| Most common major | Business | Criminal Justice |
| Most common college | - | Pennsylvania State University |
Here are the differences between officers' and lieutenants' demographics:
| Officer | Lieutenant | |
| Average age | 43 | 46 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 63.9% Female, 36.1% | Male, 83.6% Female, 16.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 15.2% Unknown, 5.7% Hispanic or Latino, 18.6% Asian, 6.6% White, 51.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.9% | Black or African American, 11.2% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 15.0% Asian, 1.8% White, 66.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 11% |