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Police & Sheriff's Patrol Officers salary in Bakersfield, CA

Median pay for police & sheriff's patrol officers in Bakersfield, CA: $84,220/yr

Typical range (10th–90th percentile): $50,460 – $118,050 · about 1,700 employed locally

Above the typical metro median ($69,845) by +$14,375 (+21%).

What it's really worth in Bakersfield

With Bakersfield's cost of living at 102 (US=100), that $84,220 has the buying power of about $82,255 in an average-cost US metro.

Local context: median household income $63,883 · median home $364,264 · median rent $1,788/mo.

Full Bakersfield cost of living & taxes →

How Bakersfield ranks for this job

On raw pay, Bakersfield, CA is 47th of the 186 metros we hold police & sheriff's patrol officers wages for. Once Bakersfield's cost of living is applied, it ranks 69th.

The headline number flatters Bakersfield. Once housing and everyday costs are taken into account, police & sheriff's patrol officers here keep less of what they earn than the raw salary implies.

What that salary buys in Bakersfield

A median home in Bakersfield, CA costs $364,264 — about 4.3× this salary, against a typical US metro figure of 4.7×. Buying is more attainable here than in the average metro on this income.

Median rent of $1,788/mo works out at 25% of gross pay — inside the conventional 30% affordability ceiling.

Where police & sheriff's patrol officers earn more

Pay on its own is only half the picture, so each row shows what rent costs there relative to Bakersfield.

MetroMedian payvs BakersfieldRent vs Bakersfield
San Jose, CA $145,340 +73%
San Francisco, CA $134,860 +60% 1.8×
Vallejo, CA $125,130 +49% 1.3×
Santa Maria, CA $118,140 +40% 1.9×

Same job elsewhere in CA

MetroMedian payvs BakersfieldRent vs Bakersfield
San Jose, CA $145,340 +73%
San Francisco, CA $134,860 +60% 1.8×
Vallejo, CA $125,130 +49% 1.3×
Santa Maria, CA $118,140 +40% 1.9×

Staying in CA keeps state income tax and licensing the same, which makes these the most directly comparable moves.

Other jobs in Bakersfield

Source: US BLS OEWS (May 2023) median annual wage; cost of living from BEA; home price and rent from Zillow; household income from US Census ACS. Rankings are across the 186 metros we hold wage data for in this occupation. Estimates for guidance only. See methodology.