Detectives & criminal investigators

About

Detectives & criminal investigators are most often employed by the Justice, public order, & safety activities industry. The average yearly wage for Detectives & criminal investigators was $90,230 in 2021.

The locations that employ the most Detectives & criminal investigators are George Washington Regional Commission (North) PUMA, VA, Arlington County (South) PUMA, VA, and Buckhall & Sudley PUMA, VA. The locations with a relatively high concentration of Detectives & criminal investigators are Buckhall & Sudley PUMA, VA, Arlington County (South) PUMA, VA, and Carr 2 (Norte) PUMA, PR.

Photo by Osajus Photography

Service Occupations Protective service occupations

Employment

Employment and salary information for the Detectives & criminal investigators workforce. Detectives & criminal investigators workforce in 2021 was 142,274 people, of which 26.6% were women and 73.4% were men. Detectives & criminal investigators are paid most in Bristol, Southington & Burlington Towns PUMA, CT but are relatively concentrated in Buckhall & Sudley PUMA, VA.

Employment Over Time

Metric

Grouping

104,462

Male Workforce

± 7.93k

37,812

Female Workforce

± 4.77k

The Detectives & criminal investigators workforce in 2021 was 142,274 people (26.6% women and 73.4% men). This implies an average annual growth of 10.8% between 2014 (128,393) and 2021 (142,274).

Employment by Location

Level

Metric

This map shows the states in the United States shaded by average wage for Detectives & criminal investigators.

During 2021, the states that concentrated the best average annual wage were District of Columbia ($117,570), Connecticut ($117,476), and Virginia ($112,704).

Yearly Wage Ranking

$90,230

AVERAGE WAGE

#81 in the ranking (2021)

$59,596

NATIONAL AVERAGE WAGE

For all occupations across the US

In 2021, Detectives & criminal investigators earned an average of $90,230, $30,634 more than the average national salary of $59,596

The graph shows the ranking of Detectives & criminal investigators in relation to all Detailed Occupation in 2021.

Wage Distribution

Gender

0.276

WAGE GINI

In 2021, Detectives & criminal investigators had a wage GINI coefficient of 0.276, which is lower than the national average of 0.478. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly for Detectives & criminal investigators (shown in red) than for the overall labor force (shown in gray).

The graphic shows the distribution of average salaries by buckets for Detectives & criminal investigators compared to the entire workforce in the country.

Industry

Information on the industries that employ Detectives & criminal investigators and on wages for those in the field. Justice, public order, & safety activities is the industry that employs the most Detectives & criminal investigators, both by share and by number, though the highest paid industry for Detectives & criminal investigators, by average wage, is Securities, commodities, funds, trusts & other financial investments ($163,162).

Occupations by Industries

Metric

Value

142k

2021 Workforce

± 9,256

3.84%

1 YEAR GROWTH

± 8.95%

This graphic shows the share of Detectives & criminal investigators employed by various industries. Justice, public order, & safety activities employs the largest share of Detectives & criminal investigators at 84.5%, followed by National security & international affairs with 11.8% and Administration of human resource programs with 3.7%.

Diversity

Demographic information on Detectives & criminal investigators in the US. The workforce of Detectives & criminal investigators in 2021 was 142,274 people, with 26.6% woman, and 73.4% men. The average age of male Detectives & criminal investigators in the workforce is 44.1 and of female Detectives & criminal investigators is 41.9, and the most common race/ethnicity for Detectives & criminal investigators is White.

Gender and Age

Metric

The workforce of Detectives & criminal investigators in 2021 was 142,274 people, with 26.6% woman, and 73.4% men.

The age ranges that concentrated the largest workforce were 45 to 49 years (24,811 people), 40 to 44 years (24,119 people), and 35 to 39 years (22,157 people). Among them they concentrated 50.1% of the total workforce.

Ethnicity

Gender

In 2021, 15.2% of Detectives & criminal investigators workers were Hispanic and 84.8% non-Hispanic.

The treemap shows the distribution of Hispanic workers according to their origin, highlighting Mexican (68.7%), Puerto Rican (24.4)%, and Cuban (6.91)%

You can review this information by gender using the selectors above.

Races

In 2021, 75.8% of the Detectives & criminal investigators workforce were White, of which 24.3% were women and 75.7% men. Other races that concentrated a significant number of workers were Black (11.2%) and Two or More Races (6.91%).

Education & Skills

Data on higher education choices for Detectives & criminal investigators from The Department of Education and Census Bureau. The most common major for Detectives & criminal investigators is Protective Services but the most specialized major according to RCA in 2021 were Protective Services.

Among the necessary skills for Detectives & criminal investigators, Reading Comprehension stands, but the revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Detectives & criminal investigators need more than the average amount of Programming.

Majors

ACS PUMS data only shows the major for bachelor's degrees. However, we can filter the data based on highest degree obtained.

Type of Majors

Degree

The most common majors achieved by Detectives & criminal investigators in 2021 (counting all academic degrees) were Protective Services (27,525 people), Social Sciences (13,030 people), and Business (12,998 people).

You can review this information for different academic grades by modifying the option selected in the selector above.

Education Levels

Metric

The main educational levels achieved by the Detectives & criminal investigators workers were Bachelors Degree (60,320 people), Some college (28,254 people), and Graduate Degree (26,293 people).

The graphic shows the Detectives & criminal investigators workforce by gender and educational level.

Skills

Chart

Value

Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for Detectives & criminal investigators from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Detectives & criminal investigators need many skills, but most especially Reading Comprehension, Critical Thinking, Active Listening.

Projections

Projections on job growth for Detectives and Criminal Investigators from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The 10-year national workforce is projected to grow 3.71%, but Detectives and Criminal Investigators are expected to see a growth of 1.06% over the same period. This occupation is expected to grow less than the national average.

Job Growth

For growth projections, the closest comparible industry reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics is Detectives and Criminal Investigators.

1.06%

Estimated Job Growth

10-year Projection

3.71%

National Growth

10-year Projection

This line chart shows the projected 10-year growth in the number of jobs for Detectives & criminal investigators. This profession is expected to grow less than than 3.71%, the average rate of national job growth.

Detectives & criminal investigators

briefcaseEmployment

rigIndustry

geosearchDiversity

learningEducation & Skills

timeline-line-chartProjections

Keep Exploring

Employment

Industry

Diversity

Education & Skills

Projections