High paying security and protective service jobs in New York

Every security and protective service occupation below is ranked by its median annual wage in New York. 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 New York run 7.9% above the national average (2024), so a New York salary is worth about 0.93× 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 New York.

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

Find security jobs in New York

OccupationMedian, New York · Employed

1First-Line Supervisors of Firefighting and Prevention Workers$132,520
Postsecondary nondegree award
$87,670 – $158,5104,100
2First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives$124,080
High school diploma or equivalent
$94,100 – $189,55012,750
3First-Line Supervisors of Correctional Officers$103,320
High school diploma or equivalent
$79,770 – $126,5103,380
4Detectives and Criminal Investigators$101,240
High school diploma or equivalent
$62,130 – $166,8009,600
5Firefighters$100,960
Postsecondary nondegree award
$56,390 – $106,44012,950
6Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers$92,790
High school diploma or equivalent
$53,000 – $118,25053,470
7Bailiffs$77,540
High school diploma or equivalent
$56,400 – $96,7703,830
8Correctional Officers and Jailers$76,820
High school diploma or equivalent
$58,940 – $93,22027,770
9Transportation Security Screeners$72,010
High school diploma or equivalent
$42,630 – $79,2104,240
10First-Line Supervisors of Security Workers$59,890
High school diploma or equivalent
$44,750 – $96,6107,050
11Crossing Guards and Flaggers$44,730
No formal educational credential
$35,300 – $62,43010,430
12Security Guards$44,240
High school diploma or equivalent
$35,650 – $60,580134,700
13School Bus Monitors$36,910
High school diploma or equivalent
$33,060 – $42,81019,090
14Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers$36,590
No formal educational credential
$32,240 – $45,1908,740

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

#	Occupation	MedianNew York	10th–90th percentilemiddle half shaded darker	Employed
1	First-Line Supervisors of Firefighting and Prevention WorkersPostsecondary nondegree award	$132,520	$87,670 – $158,510	4,100
2	First-Line Supervisors of Police and DetectivesHigh school diploma or equivalent	$124,080	$94,100 – $189,550	12,750
3	First-Line Supervisors of Correctional OfficersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$103,320	$79,770 – $126,510	3,380
4	Detectives and Criminal InvestigatorsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$101,240	$62,130 – $166,800	9,600
5	FirefightersPostsecondary nondegree award	$100,960	$56,390 – $106,440	12,950
6	Police and Sheriff's Patrol OfficersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$92,790	$53,000 – $118,250	53,470
7	BailiffsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$77,540	$56,400 – $96,770	3,830
8	Correctional Officers and JailersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$76,820	$58,940 – $93,220	27,770
9	Transportation Security ScreenersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$72,010	$42,630 – $79,210	4,240
10	First-Line Supervisors of Security WorkersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$59,890	$44,750 – $96,610	7,050
11	Crossing Guards and FlaggersNo formal educational credential	$44,730	$35,300 – $62,430	10,430
12	Security GuardsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$44,240	$35,650 – $60,580	134,700
13	School Bus MonitorsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$36,910	$33,060 – $42,810	19,090
14	Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service WorkersNo formal educational credential	$36,590	$32,240 – $45,190	8,740

Ranked among the occupations common enough to employ roughly one in every three thousand workers in New York. 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 New York

Metro areas in New York

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

By field in New York

Without a degree

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

High paying security and protective service jobs in New York

More for New York

Metro areas in New York

By field in New York

Without a degree

High paying security and protective service jobs in each state