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The differences between police officers and detectives can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a detective has an average salary of $57,984, which is higher than the $52,638 average annual salary of a police officer.
The top three skills for a police officer include patrol, public safety and law enforcement agencies. The most important skills for a detective are physical evidence, patrol, and law enforcement agencies.
| Police Officer | Detective | |
| Yearly salary | $52,638 | $57,984 |
| Hourly rate | $25.31 | $27.88 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 116,287 | 56,521 |
| Job satisfaction | 2 | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 49% | Bachelor's Degree, 54% |
| Average age | 40 | 44 |
| Years of experience | - | - |
Police officers are responsible for keeping peace and security in a community. They uphold and enforce the law. They ensure that people in their assigned community follow the law. They also ensure that proper sanctions are given out to anyone who does not follow. Some police officers are assigned in the field, meaning they work outside of police stations. Those assigned to police stations are responsible for maintaining administrative matters as well, aside from maintaining peace and order. Police officers are expected to be trustworthy, to work with honor, and to keep their integrity intact.
A detective is responsible for conducting in-depth investigations for criminal activities, potential threats, and other law-violating incidents, coordinating closely with law-enforcement agencies and crime intelligence analysts. Detectives often work on the field, gathering data and related evidence to support claims and connect the timeline of events. They keep an organized record of their findings for further validation before reporting it to the authority. A detective must have excellent investigative and critical-thinking skills, especially on solving puzzles and security solutions.
Police officers and detectives have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Police Officer | Detective | |
| Average salary | $52,638 | $57,984 |
| Salary range | Between $38,000 And $71,000 | Between $35,000 And $95,000 |
| Highest paying City | Anchorage, AK | - |
| Highest paying state | Alaska | - |
| Best paying company | Icma-rc | - |
| Best paying industry | Government | - |
There are a few differences between a police officer and a detective in terms of educational background:
| Police Officer | Detective | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 49% | Bachelor's Degree, 54% |
| Most common major | Criminal Justice | Criminal Justice |
| Most common college | Pennsylvania State University | University of Arizona |
Here are the differences between police officers' and detectives' demographics:
| Police Officer | Detective | |
| Average age | 40 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 83.2% Female, 16.8% | Male, 82.7% Female, 17.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 12.9% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 18.2% Asian, 3.3% White, 60.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0% | Black or African American, 11.8% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 16.7% Asian, 2.8% White, 63.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 9% |