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Detectives and Criminal Investigators · SOC 33-3021

Detectives and Criminal Investigators Salary in the San Jose Metro Area

Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA metro area

Figures describe the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA metropolitan statistical area as defined by BLS/OMB — the whole multi-county metro region, not San Jose city limits.

Median annual wage$158,640
Median hourly wage$76.27

Detectives and Criminal Investigators in the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA metro area earned a median of $158,640 per year ($76.27 per hour) as of the May 2025 BLS OEWS estimates. Pay ranged from $100,510 at the 10th percentile to $188,120 at the 90th. BLS estimates 280 people work in this occupation in the area.

Pay distribution

Half of Detectives and Criminal Investigators in the San Jose metro area earn more than $158,640 per year, half earn less; the middle half earn between $117,770 and $158,640.

Wage percentiles (BLS OEWS)
Wage10th25thMedian75th90th
Annual$100,510$117,770$158,640$158,640$188,120
Hourly$48.32$56.62$76.27$76.27$90.44

A percentile is a cut point: 25% of workers in this occupation and area earn less than the 25th-percentile wage. The median is the 50th percentile — half earn less, half earn more.

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How this area compares

  • San Jose metro areathis metro area
    $158,640
  • Californiastate (CA)
    $124,840
  • United Statesnational
    $93,790

Bars span the 25th–75th percentile (the middle half of workers); the tick marks the median.

The median here is +27% vs California overall and +69% vs the U.S. median for this occupation.

Compare with other areas

Where this metro sits nationally

$47,480$84,533$121,587$158,640Albuquerque, NM — $47,480Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux, LA — $48,270Joplin, MO-KS — $49,200Columbus, GA-AL — $50,080Daphne-Fairhope-Foley, AL — $50,700Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT — $52,540Florence, SC — $55,320Valdosta, GA — $55,520Texarkana, TX-AR — $55,950Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR — $56,270Terre Haute, IN — $56,320Sumter, SC — $56,500Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH — $56,710Jefferson City, MO — $56,870Gulfport-Biloxi, MS — $57,060Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC — $57,220Hattiesburg, MS — $57,420Topeka, KS — $57,700Victoria, TX — $58,030Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, FL — $58,090Lake Charles, LA — $58,240Sebastian-Vero Beach-West Vero Corridor, FL — $58,410Tallahassee, FL — $58,410Naples-Marco Island, FL — $58,610Athens-Clarke County, GA — $58,850Homosassa Springs, FL — $59,240Goldsboro, NC — $59,390Hammond, LA — $59,400Sebring, FL — $59,890Abilene, TX — $59,980Michigan City-La Porte, IN — $60,100Hinesville, GA — $60,150Ocala, FL — $60,470Lafayette, LA — $60,820Anniston-Oxford, AL — $61,140Columbia, MO — $61,170Greensboro-High Point, NC — $61,210Greenville, NC — $61,220Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR — $61,300Spartanburg, SC — $61,920Alexandria, LA — $62,030Winston-Salem, NC — $62,260New Orleans-Metairie, LA — $62,430Asheville, NC — $62,460Gainesville, GA — $62,520Wilmington, NC — $62,580Greenville-Anderson-Greer, SC — $62,700Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL — $63,130Baton Rouge, LA — $63,760Burlington, NC — $63,780San Juan-Bayamon-Caguas, PR — $63,910Springfield, MO — $63,920Longview, TX — $63,950Tuscaloosa, AL — $64,140North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, FL — $64,320Fayetteville, NC — $64,590Bismarck, ND — $64,640Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC — $64,980Monroe, LA — $65,010Panama City-Panama City Beach, FL — $65,040Coeur d'Alene, ID — $65,980Columbia, SC — $66,340Gainesville, FL — $66,350Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, FL — $67,750Rocky Mount, NC — $67,970St. Cloud, MN — $68,490Jackson, MS — $68,520Macon-Bibb County, GA — $68,520Pocatello, ID — $68,720Durham-Chapel Hill, NC — $68,790Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL — $69,450Farmington, NM — $69,640Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA — $69,900Killeen-Temple, TX — $70,590Montgomery, AL — $70,710Sherman-Denison, TX — $70,740Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX — $70,760Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL — $70,760Albany, GA — $70,930Waco, TX — $70,990Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC — $71,460Pensacola-Ferry Pass-Brent, FL — $71,680Myrtle Beach-Conway-North Myrtle Beach, SC — $72,060Twin Falls, ID — $72,150Auburn-Opelika, AL — $72,420Savannah, GA — $72,460Clarksville, TN-KY — $72,800Lubbock, TX — $72,820Billings, MT — $72,880Traverse City, MI — $73,050Champaign-Urbana, IL — $73,430Shreveport-Bossier City, LA — $73,520Peoria, IL — $73,700Helena, MT — $73,950Johnson City, TN — $74,020Warner Robins, GA — $74,250Jacksonville, FL — $74,580Chattanooga, TN-GA — $74,600Fort Wayne, IN — $74,820Amarillo, TX — $74,980Slidell-Mandeville-Covington, LA — $74,990Rochester, MN — $75,100Port St. Lucie, FL — $75,420Jackson, TN — $75,610Toledo, OH — $75,610Elkhart-Goshen, IN — $75,850Akron, OH — $76,230Santa Fe, NM — $76,230Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL — $76,310College Station-Bryan, TX — $76,320Indianapolis-Carmel-Greenwood, IN — $76,730Raleigh-Cary, NC — $77,210Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Radford, VA — $77,250Duluth, MN-WI — $77,330Youngstown-Warren, OH — $77,410Flagstaff, AZ — $77,680Rapid City, SD — $77,730Lafayette-West Lafayette, IN — $77,960South Bend-Mishawaka, IN-MI — $78,200Eau Claire, WI — $78,310Charleston-North Charleston, SC — $78,410Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN — $78,460Knoxville, TN — $78,600Prescott Valley-Prescott, AZ — $78,610Evansville, IN — $78,890Lawton, OK — $78,920Memphis, TN-MS-AR — $78,920Midland, TX — $78,920Minot, ND — $78,920Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX — $78,970Columbus, OH — $79,000Portland-South Portland, ME — $79,030Bowling Green, KY — $79,360Birmingham, AL — $79,560Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA — $79,560Glens Falls, NY — $79,560Tyler, TX — $79,710Saginaw, MI — $80,140Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL — $80,180Battle Creek, MI — $80,680Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA — $80,770St. Louis, MO-IL — $80,930Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, PA — $81,500Salt Lake City-Murray, UT — $81,660Oklahoma City, OK — $81,720Tulsa, OK — $82,420Boise City, ID — $83,050Dayton-Kettering-Beavercreek, OH — $83,620Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN — $83,620San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX — $83,830Green Bay, WI — $84,190Janesville-Beloit, WI — $84,520Kingsport-Bristol, TN-VA — $84,660Kalamazoo-Portage, MI — $84,800Lexington-Fayette, KY — $84,900Fargo, ND-MN — $85,300Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI — $85,300Visalia, CA — $85,740Colorado Springs, CO — $85,750Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX — $86,110Grand Forks, ND-MN — $86,110Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX — $86,390Norwich-New London-Willimantic, CT — $86,440Lansing-East Lansing, MI — $86,510Wichita, KS — $87,280Kingston, NY — $87,990Ogden, UT — $88,270Providence-Warwick, RI-MA — $88,450Bangor, ME — $88,710Wausau, WI — $88,780Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA — $88,790Springfield, IL — $88,790Racine-Mount Pleasant, WI — $89,210Worcester, MA — $89,270Cleveland, OH — $89,300Corpus Christi, TX — $89,970State College, PA — $90,250Utica-Rome, NY — $90,430Richmond, VA — $91,080Huntsville, AL — $91,230Binghamton, NY — $91,470Kansas City, MO-KS — $91,490Eagle Pass, TX — $91,560Kenosha, WI — $91,820Appleton, WI — $92,030Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN — $92,110Charleston, WV — $92,410Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI — $92,410Jacksonville, NC — $92,410Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL — $92,420Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI — $92,910Lawrence, KS — $93,020Charlottesville, VA — $93,160Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC — $93,790Redding, CA — $94,280Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas, NV — $94,470Waterbury-Shelton, CT — $94,470Yuma, AZ — $94,520Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ — $94,800Pittsburgh, PA — $95,120Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY — $95,150Reading, PA — $95,190Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI — $95,820York-Hanover, PA — $96,070Lynchburg, VA — $96,430Erie, PA — $96,470Flint, MI — $96,740Bakersfield-Delano, CA — $96,760New Haven, CT — $96,790Lancaster, PA — $97,190Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD — $97,580Salem, OR — $97,750Laredo, TX — $98,180Mobile, AL — $98,310Greeley, CO — $98,370Syracuse, NY — $98,390Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT — $98,620Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT — $98,690Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV — $98,700Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ — $98,860Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY — $99,010Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL — $99,080Missoula, MT — $99,560Lincoln, NE — $99,760Atlantic City-Hammonton, NJ — $99,860Barnstable Town, MA — $100,680Manchester-Nashua, NH — $101,500Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN — $102,260Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA — $102,710Madison, WI — $102,780Vineland, NJ — $102,980Bend, OR — $103,000Fort Collins-Loveland, CO — $103,140Boulder, CO — $103,360McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX — $103,380Kennewick-Richland, WA — $103,780Modesto, CA — $104,000Rockford, IL — $104,150Omaha, NE-IA — $105,310Tucson, AZ — $105,350Ann Arbor, MI — $105,780Salinas, CA — $105,990Pueblo, CO — $106,000Watertown-Fort Drum, NY — $106,110Grand Junction, CO — $106,270Las Cruces, NM — $106,330New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ — $106,440San Angelo, TX — $106,580Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA — $107,350Reno, NV — $107,470Rochester, NY — $107,660Sierra Vista-Douglas, AZ — $108,350Vallejo, CA — $108,430Yakima, WA — $108,890Brownsville-Harlingen, TX — $109,300El Paso, TX — $109,300Sandusky, OH — $109,300Eugene-Springfield, OR — $109,460Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA — $109,500Springfield, MA — $109,510Fresno, CA — $109,720Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH — $110,150Trenton-Princeton, NJ — $110,750Sioux Falls, SD-MN — $110,760Burlington-South Burlington, VT — $111,530Kiryas Joel-Poughkeepsie-Newburgh, NY — $111,860Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO — $113,340Stockton-Lodi, CA — $113,360Roanoke, VA — $114,050Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA — $119,350Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard, WA — $121,100Bellingham, WA — $122,840Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA — $123,820El Centro, CA — $123,970San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA — $124,840Anchorage, AK — $125,240San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA — $126,700Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA — $127,420Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA — $127,890Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD — $128,440Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA — $130,810Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA — $133,100Great Falls, MT — $136,120Urban Honolulu, HI — $140,750Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA — $153,570Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV — $156,750Brunswick-St. Simons, GA — $158,060San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA — $158,640

Each dot is one metro area with a published median — hover any dot for the name and figure. Metros without published estimates are not drawn.

The San Jose metro area has the 1st-highest published median for this occupation among the 288 metro areas where BLS publishes it. Higher medians often track higher living costs — this is a pay comparison, not a ranking of where the job is “best”.

Other metro areas in California

Metro areas in the same state with published May 2025 medians for detectives and criminal investigators, highest first. Areas without published estimates are not listed.

  • San Jose metro areathis page
    $158,640
  • Oxnard metro area
    $153,570
  • Santa Rosa metro area
    $133,100
  • Santa Maria metro area
    $130,810
  • Los Angeles metro area
    $127,890
  • Riverside metro area
    $127,420
  • San Francisco metro area
    $126,700

Bars span the 25th–75th percentile (the middle half of workers); the tick marks the median.

Keep exploring

Other occupations in the same SOC group with published medians here, largest employment first:

Security Guards$46,250Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers$136,140Firefighters$152,100Correctional Officers and Jailers$132,670Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers$42,460Protective Service Workers, All Other$56,240

Highest-paying metro areas for detectives and criminal investigatorss · Highest-paying occupations in San Jose Metro

About this estimate

These figures are survey estimates from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program — modeled from employer reports collected over three years and benchmarked to May 2025. They describe what employers in this area currently pay across all industries, not what any individual worker will be offered.

Employment counts wage-and-salary jobs in the occupation (self-employed workers are excluded). Estimates carry sampling error; percentile wages are rounded by BLS. Some values are suppressed by BLS for confidentiality or quality — suppressed values appear here as “not published”, never as zero. Read the full methodology.

About this data. Estimates are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program, May 2025 release, retrieved from bls.gov/oes/tables.htm on July 24, 2026. OEWS estimates describe metropolitan/nonmetropolitan areas and states — not city limits — and are not designed for year-over-year comparisons. See BLS methodology, our plain-English methodology, and sources. CitySalaryData is independent and not affiliated with BLS.