High paying security and protective service jobs in Maryland

Every security and protective service occupation below is ranked by its median annual wage in Maryland. Read the percentile range, not just the median: the gap between the 10th and 90th inside a single security and protective service job is usually wider than the gap between two different ones, so where you land in a field matters more than which field you pick.

Cost of living: prices in Maryland run 5.0% above the national average (2024), so a Maryland salary is worth about 0.95× its face value in national terms. That scales every wage here by the same factor — it changes what the numbers mean, not their order. To see where a job pays a real premium, use jobs that pay more in Maryland.

Wages: BLS OEWS, May 2025 · Cost of living: BEA regional price parities, 2024

Find security jobs in Maryland

OccupationMedian, Maryland · Employed

1Detectives and Criminal Investigators$126,730
High school diploma or equivalent
$71,200 – $188,7001,010
2First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives$120,700
High school diploma or equivalent
$78,720 – $160,5906,700
3First-Line Supervisors of Firefighting and Prevention Workers$120,530
Postsecondary nondegree award
$80,460 – $141,8702,380
4First-Line Supervisors of Correctional Officers$79,150
High school diploma or equivalent
$67,210 – $117,1902,010
5Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers$77,970
High school diploma or equivalent
$58,580 – $113,7009,720
6Firefighters$73,810
Postsecondary nondegree award
$48,030 – $98,7705,340
7Correctional Officers and Jailers$64,250
High school diploma or equivalent
$53,100 – $82,2806,060
8First-Line Supervisors of Security Workers$63,690
High school diploma or equivalent
$37,840 – $105,1901,640
9Protective Service Workers, All Other$52,780
High school diploma or equivalent
$31,200 – $88,570930
10School Bus Monitors$38,750
High school diploma or equivalent
$32,480 – $47,5502,370
11Security Guards$38,220
High school diploma or equivalent
$33,700 – $64,32027,670
12Crossing Guards and Flaggers$35,850
No formal educational credential
$31,200 – $58,7503,420
13Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers$34,520
No formal educational credential
$31,200 – $40,5504,160

Bars run from the 10th to the 90th percentile; the middle half is shaded darker, and the tick is the median.

#	Occupation	MedianMaryland	10th–90th percentilemiddle half shaded darker	Employed
1	Detectives and Criminal InvestigatorsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$126,730	$71,200 – $188,700	1,010
2	First-Line Supervisors of Police and DetectivesHigh school diploma or equivalent	$120,700	$78,720 – $160,590	6,700
3	First-Line Supervisors of Firefighting and Prevention WorkersPostsecondary nondegree award	$120,530	$80,460 – $141,870	2,380
4	First-Line Supervisors of Correctional OfficersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$79,150	$67,210 – $117,190	2,010
5	Police and Sheriff's Patrol OfficersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$77,970	$58,580 – $113,700	9,720
6	FirefightersPostsecondary nondegree award	$73,810	$48,030 – $98,770	5,340
7	Correctional Officers and JailersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$64,250	$53,100 – $82,280	6,060
8	First-Line Supervisors of Security WorkersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$63,690	$37,840 – $105,190	1,640
9	Protective Service Workers, All OtherHigh school diploma or equivalent	$52,780	$31,200 – $88,570	930
10	School Bus MonitorsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$38,750	$32,480 – $47,550	2,370
11	Security GuardsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$38,220	$33,700 – $64,320	27,670
12	Crossing Guards and FlaggersNo formal educational credential	$35,850	$31,200 – $58,750	3,420
13	Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service WorkersNo formal educational credential	$34,520	$31,200 – $40,550	4,160

Ranked among the occupations common enough to employ roughly one in every three thousand workers in Maryland. The rarer ones are real jobs — but a 1,190-person occupation at the top of a list answers a different question than the one most readers are asking.

More for Maryland

Metro areas in Maryland

Pay varies more between metros than between states — the spread inside one state is often wider than the gap between two.

By field in Maryland

Without a degree

The same fields, narrowed to what you can enter without one. Fields missing here have too few such occupations in Maryland to rank honestly.

High paying security and protective service jobs in Maryland

More for Maryland

Metro areas in Maryland

By field in Maryland

Without a degree

High paying security and protective service jobs in each state