Police investigator vs criminal investigator

The differences between police investigators and criminal investigators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a criminal investigator has an average salary of $54,520, which is higher than the $47,796 average annual salary of a police investigator.

The top three skills for a police investigator include conduct interviews, patrol and law enforcement agencies. The most important skills for a criminal investigator are investigative reports, resourcefulness, and firearms.

Police investigator vs criminal investigator overview

	Police Investigator	Criminal Investigator
Yearly salary	$47,796	$54,520
Hourly rate	$22.98	$26.21
Growth rate	3%	3%
Number of jobs	6,597	5,131
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 62%	Bachelor's Degree, 59%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	-	-

Police investigator vs criminal investigator salary

Police investigators and criminal investigators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Police Investigator	Criminal Investigator
Average salary	$47,796	$54,520
Salary range	Between $36,000 And $61,000	Between $34,000 And $85,000
Highest paying City	-	Washington, DC
Highest paying state	-	California
Best paying company	-	National Railroad Passenger Corporation
Best paying industry	-	Government

Differences between police investigator and criminal investigator education

There are a few differences between a police investigator and a criminal investigator in terms of educational background:

	Police Investigator	Criminal Investigator
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 62%	Bachelor's Degree, 59%
Most common major	Criminal Justice	Criminal Justice
Most common college	California State University - Bakersfield	-

Police investigator vs criminal investigator demographics

Here are the differences between police investigators' and criminal investigators' demographics:

	Police Investigator	Criminal Investigator
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 73.5% Female, 26.5%	Male, 79.7% Female, 20.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 12.5% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 16.8% Asian, 2.9% White, 62.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 11.8% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 16.9% Asian, 2.8% White, 62.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between police investigator and criminal investigator duties and responsibilities

Police investigator example responsibilities.

Receive multiple letters of commendation for effective investigations that lead to successful prosecutions.
Analyze high risk transaction activity and provide final approval of investigative case analyses utilize for SAR preparation and filing.
Evaluate impressions for AFIS (automate fingerprint identification system) potential.

Criminal investigator example responsibilities.

Conduct joint planning and manage AFOSI's criminal investigations and counterintelligence operations in northern Italy.
Close accounts and file SAR's with FinCEN as warranted.
Write suspicious activity reports (SAR).
Follow up on sub reviews and documentation require information for FinCEN reporting.
Coordinate and conduct firearms training.
Examine discovery, prepare subpoenas, and review pertinent documents.

Police investigator vs criminal investigator skills

Common police investigator skills

Conduct Interviews, 24%
Patrol, 17%
Law Enforcement Agencies, 15%
Criminal Justice, 7%
Crime Scene Processing, 5%
Subpoenas, 3%

Common criminal investigator skills

Investigative Reports, 13%
Resourcefulness, 11%
Firearms, 11%
Treasury, 9%
Investigative Techniques, 8%
IRS, 6%

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Police Investigator
Police Investigator vs Criminal Investigator

Updated January 8, 2025

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