How much does a Police Officer make in Georgia?

BLS reports a median annual wage of $56,350 for Police Officers in Georgia as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $48,290 and the 75th-percentile is $64,470.

What is the real (cost-adjusted) Police Officer salary in Georgia?

After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 96.5 for Georgia), the real-wage equivalent is $58,397 — what the $56,350 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $50,045 to $66,812.

How are Georgia Police Officer salaries calculated on this page?

Nominal wages come from BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES) — annual employer surveys, May 2026 reference period. Real-wage figures use BEA Regional Price Parities (2023 vintage) to adjust for state-level cost of living. No self-report or jobs-board data is mixed in.

What does the top of the Police Officer pay scale look like in Georgia?

The 90th percentile lands at $77,750. That tier typically reflects senior roles, specialty certifications, high-cost-of-living metros within the state, or union-negotiated rate cards. Below that, the P75 quartile is $64,470.

Where does Georgia rank for Police Officer pay?

On nominal BLS wages alone, Georgia ranks among the 51 states and DC by median pay. After the BEA cost-of-living adjustment the ordering changes — high-cost states fall, low-cost states rise. Both rankings are shown in the data table on this page.

What are the limits of these Police Officer salary numbers?

BLS OES is an employer survey of W-2 wages — it excludes contractor pay, bonuses outside the base wage definition, equity compensation, and tip income. Self-employed practitioners and gig workers are not represented. For occupations with significant non-W-2 income, the BLS figure is a floor, not a complete picture.

Federal vs state trooper vs city / county pay in Georgia?

BLS aggregates city PD, county sheriff, and state troopers under SOC 33-3051 (federal officers are separately classified under 33-3052 and not reflected in this page). In Georgia, state troopers typically lead on starting base, big-city PDs lead on overtime opportunity and detail income, and sheriff's deputies usually trail on base but lead on assignment flexibility. Federal LE (FBI, USMS, ATF, DEA, ICE, Border Patrol) pays under the GS scale plus LEAP availability pay (25%) and locality, putting federal LE pay above most Georgia state and local positions at the senior level.

Police Officer Pay in Georgia: $56K Median + Purchasing Power (2026)

TL;DR

Georgia pays Police Officers a BLS median of $56,350 — the more useful number is $58,397, what that paycheck buys after rent and services.
Cost adjustment is small — neither an arbitrage state nor a high-cost penalty.
Wage envelope: $42,180 (P10) to $77,750 (P90), with quartiles at $48,290 and $64,470.
On a real-wage basis, this state sits at #48 of 51; nominal rank is #46.

Wage breakdown — Georgia

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$42,180	$43,713
P25 (lower quartile)	$48,290	$50,045
P50 (median)	$56,350	$58,397
P75 (upper quartile)	$64,470	$66,812
P90 (top tier)	$77,750	$80,575
Mean	$57,970	$60,076
Employment	21,540 Police Officers in Georgia

Cost of living — BEA Regional Price Parity

Component	Georgia index (US = 100)
All-items RPP	96.5
Goods	97.7
Services	92.3
Rents	88.3

Georgia's overall RPP (96.5) is close to the national 100 baseline; nominal and real wage move roughly together.

After-tax take-home — Georgia (2024 BLS · 2024 tax year, single filer)

Layer-by-layer take-home math at the BLS median

Layer	Amount	Note
Gross BLS P50 (Police Officer)	$56,350	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$4,624	8.2% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	−$2,302	5.19% flat (2026)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$4,311	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$45,113	80.1% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$46,753	÷ (96.5 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

What the Georgia state-tax burden means for Police Officer take-home

Mid-band state-tax burden at 4.1% effective. Combined with federal and FICA, take-home is $45,113 (80.1% of gross). After the 96.5 RPP, real take-home is $46,753.

Computed from 2026 IRS federal brackets (Rev. Proc. 2025-32), 2026 state DOR brackets, and 2026 FICA rates. Single filer, standard deduction, no other adjustments. See methodology · tax for limitations (married filers, ITM/SALT itemizers, retirement deferrals, HSA, dependent credits, etc.).

National context

Across the United States, BLS reports a national median of $76,290 for Police Officers with mean pay of $79,320 and total employment of 666,990. Georgia sits at #46 on nominal pay and #48 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, Georgia falls 2 positions — the cost premium eats into the headline wage.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a Police Officer make in Georgia?: BLS reports a median annual wage of $56,350 for Police Officers in Georgia as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $48,290 and the 75th-percentile is $64,470.
What is the real (cost-adjusted) Police Officer salary in Georgia?: After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 96.5 for Georgia), the real-wage equivalent is $58,397 — what the $56,350 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $50,045 to $66,812.
How are Georgia Police Officer salaries calculated on this page?: Nominal wages come from BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES) — annual employer surveys, May 2026 reference period. Real-wage figures use BEA Regional Price Parities (2023 vintage) to adjust for state-level cost of living. No self-report or jobs-board data is mixed in.
What does the top of the Police Officer pay scale look like in Georgia?: The 90th percentile lands at $77,750. That tier typically reflects senior roles, specialty certifications, high-cost-of-living metros within the state, or union-negotiated rate cards. Below that, the P75 quartile is $64,470.
Where does Georgia rank for Police Officer pay?: On nominal BLS wages alone, Georgia ranks among the 51 states and DC by median pay. After the BEA cost-of-living adjustment the ordering changes — high-cost states fall, low-cost states rise. Both rankings are shown in the data table on this page.
What are the limits of these Police Officer salary numbers?: BLS OES is an employer survey of W-2 wages — it excludes contractor pay, bonuses outside the base wage definition, equity compensation, and tip income. Self-employed practitioners and gig workers are not represented. For occupations with significant non-W-2 income, the BLS figure is a floor, not a complete picture.
Federal vs state trooper vs city / county pay in Georgia?: BLS aggregates city PD, county sheriff, and state troopers under SOC 33-3051 (federal officers are separately classified under 33-3052 and not reflected in this page). In Georgia, state troopers typically lead on starting base, big-city PDs lead on overtime opportunity and detail income, and sheriff's deputies usually trail on base but lead on assignment flexibility. Federal LE (FBI, USMS, ATF, DEA, ICE, Border Patrol) pays under the GS scale plus LEAP availability pay (25%) and locality, putting federal LE pay above most Georgia state and local positions at the senior level.

Sources & methodology

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES), SOC 33-3051, 2024 reference period.
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis — Regional Price Parities, 2023 vintage (all-items, goods, services, rents).
Real-wage figures = nominal BLS wage ÷ (state RPP / 100).
See the methodology page for full computation details and limitations.

By Marcus Liang · Founder & Editor · Last synced 2026-05-05.

Cross-comparison: see how Georgia Police Officer pay ranks against the other 254 state × occupation pages on the Real Wage Atlas → — four-way ranking by real wage, after-tax take-home, state-tax savings, and cost-of-living arbitrage.