Prison guard vs detention officer

The differences between prison guards and detention officers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a prison guard has an average salary of $41,596, which is higher than the $40,087 average annual salary of a detention officer.

The top three skills for a prison guard include security procedures, emergency situations and incident reports. The most important skills for a detention officer are detention facility, direct supervision, and booking.

Prison guard vs detention officer overview

	Prison Guard	Detention Officer
Yearly salary	$41,596	$40,087
Hourly rate	$20.00	$19.27
Growth rate	-10%	-10%
Number of jobs	16,205	116,529
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 47%	Bachelor's Degree, 37%
Average age	40	40
Years of experience	-	-

Prison guard vs detention officer salary

Prison guards and detention officers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Prison Guard	Detention Officer
Average salary	$41,596	$40,087
Salary range	Between $30,000 And $56,000	Between $29,000 And $54,000
Highest paying City	-	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	-	Hawaii
Best paying company	-	Bering Straits
Best paying industry	-	Insurance

Differences between prison guard and detention officer education

There are a few differences between a prison guard and a detention officer in terms of educational background:

	Prison Guard	Detention Officer
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 47%	Bachelor's Degree, 37%
Most common major	Criminal Justice	Criminal Justice
Most common college	-	-

Prison guard vs detention officer demographics

Here are the differences between prison guards' and detention officers' demographics:

	Prison Guard	Detention Officer
Average age	40	40
Gender ratio	Male, 73.0% Female, 27.0%	Male, 61.0% Female, 39.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 15.0% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 19.2% Asian, 2.0% White, 57.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%	Black or African American, 15.8% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 19.4% Asian, 2.0% White, 56.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between prison guard and detention officer duties and responsibilities

Prison guard example responsibilities.

Carry and operate various types of firearms as necessary and under authorization outside the facility.
Perform basic first aid procedures and cardiopulmonary resuscitation which involves kneeling and bending.

Detention officer example responsibilities.

Train and manage officers of booking, procedures and computer knowledge skills and achieve significant improvements in their productivity.
Manage booking area and process all non-English speaking detainees; streamline process and reduce confrontational situations through effective communication and leadership.
Maintain certification in CPR, gun qualification, and any specialize training offer.
Ensure that all require KYC documentation is on file before accounts are open.
Review and analyze KYC information on potential clients, brokerage counterparties, etc.
Perform CPR when necessary, and provide the transportation of inmates to the medical facility.

Prison guard vs detention officer skills

Common prison guard skills

Security Procedures, 28%
Emergency Situations, 18%
Incident Reports, 9%
Security Checks, 9%
Correctional Facility, 7%
CPR, 6%

Common detention officer skills

Detention Facility, 14%
Direct Supervision, 13%
Booking, 11%
Law Enforcement, 10%
CPR, 5%
Security Checks, 4%

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Protective Service Industry
Prison Guard
Prison Guard vs Detention Officer

Updated January 8, 2025

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