Peace officer vs sheriff

The differences between peace officers and sheriffs can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a sheriff has an average salary of $46,053, which is higher than the $37,631 average annual salary of a peace officer.

The top three skills for a peace officer include patrol, public safety and motor vehicle. The most important skills for a sheriff are patrol, public safety, and emergency calls.

Peace officer vs sheriff overview

	Peace Officer	Sheriff
Yearly salary	$37,631	$46,053
Hourly rate	$18.09	$22.14
Growth rate	3%	3%
Number of jobs	118,690	347
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 38%	Bachelor's Degree, 36%
Average age	40	40
Years of experience	-	-

Peace officer vs sheriff salary

Peace officers and sheriffs have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Peace Officer	Sheriff
Average salary	$37,631	$46,053
Salary range	Between $30,000 And $45,000	Between $30,000 And $69,000
Highest paying City	-	Santa Rosa, CA
Highest paying state	-	New York
Best paying company	-	Apple
Best paying industry	-	Government

Differences between peace officer and sheriff education

There are a few differences between a peace officer and a sheriff in terms of educational background:

	Peace Officer	Sheriff
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 38%	Bachelor's Degree, 36%
Most common major	Criminal Justice	Criminal Justice
Most common college	California State University - Bakersfield	Pennsylvania State University

Peace officer vs sheriff demographics

Here are the differences between peace officers' and sheriffs' demographics:

	Peace Officer	Sheriff
Average age	40	40
Gender ratio	Male, 77.4% Female, 22.6%	Male, 64.7% Female, 35.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 12.0% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 21.6% Asian, 2.9% White, 58.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%	Black or African American, 10.6% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 21.2% Asian, 2.9% White, 59.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between peace officer and sheriff duties and responsibilities

Peace officer example responsibilities.

Lead process improvement committee for officers to communicate with senior leadership desire changes for patrol division.
Conduct complex criminal investigations in correctional, patrol and investigative unit settings.
Administer CPR and first aid.
Train in CPR and other immediate care for self and others.
Monitor security systems, including CCTV, fire systems, and sensitive content alarms.
Experience in command central where CCTV cameras are monitored, and general information is relayed to the public and co-workers.

Sheriff example responsibilities.

Evaluate all investigative and patrol functions to assure public safety and security needs are met.
Check visitors for warrants via NCIC and CIB.
Provide mentor and leadership guidance a to numerous personnel within the sheriffs office.
Create directed patrol for gang intervention, and enhance community policing.
Participate in developing and implementing safety policy for firearms range operations.
Assist in driver education training at local high schools with an emphasis on DUI prevention.

Peace officer vs sheriff skills

Common peace officer skills

Patrol, 26%
Public Safety, 12%
Motor Vehicle, 7%
Law Enforcement Agencies, 7%
Emergency Situations, 7%
Incident Reports, 4%

Common sheriff skills

Patrol, 31%
Public Safety, 7%
Emergency Calls, 6%
Booking, 5%
Phone Calls, 5%
Data Entry, 5%