Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between surveillance officers and surveillance investigators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a surveillance investigator has an average salary of $45,807, which is higher than the $32,554 average annual salary of a surveillance officer.
The top three skills for a surveillance officer include CCTV, internal controls and casino floor. The most important skills for a surveillance investigator are surveillance video, video evidence, and insurance claims.
| Surveillance Officer | Surveillance Investigator | |
| Yearly salary | $32,554 | $45,807 |
| Hourly rate | $15.65 | $22.02 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 71,379 | 4,912 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 42% | Bachelor's Degree, 64% |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Years of experience | - | - |
Surveillance Officers are often called security guards, and their works are somehow corresponding to each other. They generally patrol and protect property outside and inside the office. They endeavor to save our property from being vandalized and theft.
A surveillance investigator specializes in gathering credible information related to the subject of an investigation. Typically working for private companies or independently, a surveillance investigator's responsibilities revolve around arranging surveillance systems such as cameras and microphones, conducting background checks, interviewing potential witnesses, and looking into illegal activities. It is also vital to gather evidence and upload them into a secured database. Furthermore, there are instances when a surveillance investigator must produce reports about the progress of cases, analyze pieces of evidence, and present findings.
Surveillance officers and surveillance investigators have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Surveillance Officer | Surveillance Investigator | |
| Average salary | $32,554 | $45,807 |
| Salary range | Between $22,000 And $46,000 | Between $31,000 And $67,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | - |
| Highest paying state | - | - |
| Best paying company | - | - |
| Best paying industry | - | - |
There are a few differences between a surveillance officer and a surveillance investigator in terms of educational background:
| Surveillance Officer | Surveillance Investigator | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 42% | Bachelor's Degree, 64% |
| Most common major | Criminal Justice | Criminal Justice |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between surveillance officers' and surveillance investigators' demographics:
| Surveillance Officer | Surveillance Investigator | |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 66.9% Female, 33.1% | Male, 74.0% Female, 26.0% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.9% Unknown, 5.5% Hispanic or Latino, 18.4% Asian, 5.3% White, 57.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.7% | Black or African American, 12.0% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 24.6% Asian, 5.0% White, 51.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.6% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |