Gambling Surveillance Officers and Gambling Investigators
Median $43,370
Occupation · SOC 33-9032
Security Guards: pay and where the jobs are
What security guards earn in the U.S., how pay varies across workers and states, and tools to plan around it.
National pay, May 2025
$38,020 median annual wage
- Mean (average) annual wage
- $42,470
- Median hourly wage
- $18.28
- Mean hourly wage
- $20.42
- Employment
- 1,283,470
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 33-9032.
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How much do security guards make?
The median annual wage for security guards was $38,020 in May 2025, so half of workers earned more and half earned less. The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $30,210 and the highest-paid 10% more than $58,840. As an hourly rate, the median is $18.28. About 1,283,470 people work in this occupation nationwide. The highest state medians are in District of Columbia ($64,210), Alaska ($47,480) and Washington ($47,100). District of Columbia also comes out on top after taxes and local prices.
Pay ladder
What each step of the pay range for security guards looks like per month. Take-home here includes federal tax, Social Security and Medicare for a single filer; add your state in the paycheck calculator.
| Step | Annual | Hourly | Monthly gross | Monthly after federal tax & FICA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $30,210 | $14.52 | $2,518 | $2,204 |
| 25th percentile | $35,210 | $16.93 | $2,934 | $2,539 |
| Median | $38,020 | $18.28 | $3,168 | $2,727 |
| 75th percentile | $46,200 | $22.21 | $3,850 | $3,275 |
| 90th percentile | $58,840 | $28.29 | $4,903 | $4,121 |
Security Guards: pay by state
54 states and territories have a published median, sorted from highest to lowest. The last two columns are our estimates: the median after 2026 federal and state taxes, and that take-home restated in national-average prices.
1
$46,447 take-home in national prices
2
$39,169 take-home in national prices
3
$39,140 take-home in national prices
Where a median security guard paycheck goes furthest after 2026 taxes and BEA price levels.
| State | Employment | Median | 10th pct. | 90th pct. | Median after tax* | In national prices† |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| District of Columbia | 15,880 | $64,210 | $36,600 | $78,910 | $51,046 | $46,447 |
| Alaska | 2,100 | $47,480 | $36,520 | $76,350 | $40,093 | $39,169 |
| Washington | 25,800 | $47,100 | $37,720 | $68,390 | $39,371 | $36,791 |
| Vermont | 930 | $45,550 | $36,040 | $72,620 | $37,687 | $38,473 |
| Oregon | 12,200 | $45,500 | $36,500 | $58,510 | $35,609 | $34,451 |
| New Hampshire | 2,450 | $45,200 | $36,500 | $62,400 | $38,498 | $36,959 |
| Colorado | 16,890 | $45,150 | $36,160 | $57,360 | $36,981 | $35,886 |
| Massachusetts | 23,930 | $44,670 | $34,830 | $55,800 | $35,853 | $33,902 |
| New York | 134,700 | $44,240 | $35,650 | $60,580 | $35,713 | $33,091 |
| Virginia | 34,870 | $43,640 | $30,990 | $73,060 | $35,550 | $35,161 |
| Minnesota | 14,440 | $43,380 | $33,760 | $65,090 | $35,343 | $35,837 |
| New Mexico | 8,410 | $43,320 | $30,220 | $64,840 | $36,092 | $39,140 |
| California | 199,480 | $43,240 | $36,010 | $57,880 | $35,649 | $32,197 |
| Hawaii | 10,160 | $42,820 | $35,140 | $58,840 | $34,855 | $31,700 |
| Utah | 7,310 | $42,700 | $31,270 | $56,620 | $35,237 | $35,642 |
| Missouri | 18,630 | $40,390 | $31,040 | $68,860 | $33,672 | $37,077 |
| Connecticut | 12,100 | $39,920 | $34,950 | $59,220 | $32,735 | $31,594 |
| Nebraska | 4,700 | $39,840 | $34,020 | $70,310 | $33,258 | $36,911 |
| Illinois | 53,830 | $39,490 | $35,520 | $63,950 | $32,100 | $32,114 |
| North Dakota | 1,310 | $39,310 | $31,150 | $64,390 | $33,766 | $37,956 |
| Wyoming | 1,130 | $39,200 | $30,350 | $67,680 | $33,677 | $36,333 |
| Maine | 1,930 | $39,100 | $31,470 | $51,530 | $32,352 | $33,335 |
| New Jersey | 41,540 | $38,880 | $32,230 | $60,420 | $32,448 | $29,822 |
| Montana | 1,610 | $38,480 | $28,800 | $57,310 | $32,047 | $33,860 |
| Idaho | 3,750 | $38,300 | $32,030 | $78,680 | $32,032 | $33,544 |
| Arizona | 29,820 | $38,290 | $31,910 | $52,450 | $32,383 | $32,165 |
| Maryland | 27,670 | $38,220 | $33,700 | $64,320 | $31,440 | $29,955 |
| Wisconsin | 12,030 | $37,440 | $30,410 | $54,680 | $31,305 | $33,270 |
| Nevada | 26,680 | $37,310 | $29,140 | $48,340 | $32,159 | $32,165 |
| South Dakota | 1,460 | $37,150 | $30,060 | $59,840 | $32,030 | $36,157 |
| Iowa | 6,890 | $37,080 | $30,350 | $59,290 | $31,217 | $35,570 |
| Kansas | 7,150 | $37,080 | $29,590 | $51,890 | $30,704 | $34,090 |
| Michigan | 25,240 | $37,080 | $29,790 | $54,770 | $30,649 | $31,854 |
| Pennsylvania | 43,610 | $37,050 | $30,050 | $54,830 | $30,786 | $31,552 |
| Rhode Island | 3,160 | $36,940 | $31,200 | $48,520 | $30,687 | $30,003 |
| Indiana | 19,930 | $36,490 | $29,850 | $59,990 | $30,453 | $32,629 |
| Delaware | 3,430 | $36,360 | $32,450 | $73,390 | $29,909 | $29,966 |
| Oklahoma | 12,210 | $36,270 | $26,940 | $56,080 | $30,236 | $34,421 |
| Tennessee | 27,690 | $36,000 | $29,310 | $51,680 | $31,106 | $33,859 |
| Texas | 106,210 | $35,980 | $26,950 | $50,740 | $31,090 | $32,033 |
| Florida | 95,370 | $35,900 | $29,470 | $46,090 | $31,026 | $30,001 |
| Arkansas | 6,390 | $35,770 | $28,870 | $57,410 | $30,085 | $34,606 |
| Ohio | 34,450 | $35,770 | $29,030 | $55,440 | $30,388 | $32,755 |
| South Carolina | 16,610 | $35,460 | $27,420 | $48,850 | $30,265 | $32,283 |
| Kentucky | 13,580 | $35,420 | $28,450 | $50,800 | $29,518 | $32,740 |
| North Carolina | 29,830 | $35,010 | $29,260 | $56,020 | $29,422 | $31,192 |
| Georgia | 36,210 | $34,980 | $29,060 | $48,590 | $29,289 | $30,417 |
| Alabama | 15,210 | $33,720 | $23,110 | $45,640 | $27,926 | $31,440 |
| Louisiana | 17,210 | $32,240 | $23,660 | $49,040 | $27,504 | $31,181 |
| Virgin Islands | 1,030 | $31,990 | $22,750 | $44,720 | — | — |
| Mississippi | 10,160 | $29,180 | $21,690 | $42,580 | $25,191 | $28,971 |
| West Virginia | 5,200 | $28,800 | $20,800 | $47,370 | $24,631 | $27,522 |
| Guam | 800 | $22,090 | $19,560 | $38,280 | — | — |
| Puerto Rico | 26,100 | $21,840 | $21,840 | $22,890 | — | — |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 33-9032. *Our estimate for a single filer paid biweekly with no pre-tax deductions or local tax, 2026 federal and state rules. †Take-home ÷ BEA Regional Price Parity × 100 (2024 price levels).
Sources
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25nat.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25st.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.