US Fire Service Wages: What Firefighters Earn Nationwide (2026)
Fire service wages in the United States vary more than almost any other public-safety occupation. Across the 82 departments in this dataset, entry-level base pay runs from $39,000 at Jackson Fire Department to $98,000 at San Francisco Fire — a spread of 2.5×.
That gap comes from three things: the local tax base, the strength of the union contract, and regional cost of living. The third factor is so large that comparing nominal salaries alone misleads — a high salary in an expensive metro can leave a firefighter with less spending power than a lower salary in a cheap one.
This page summarizes US fire service wages using the same public collective bargaining agreement and municipal pay-scale data that powers the rest of this site. The figures below are educational averages across our dataset, not official wage statistics.
Average Firefighter Pay by Rank
National averages for each rank, computed by applying the standard rank multipliers to the average entry-level base salary of $56,719. Step progressions typically add 8% to 10% per promotion, and considerably more for chief officer ranks.
| Rank | National average base pay |
|---|---|
| Probationary Firefighter | $52,181 |
| Firefighter / EMT | $56,719 |
| Firefighter / Paramedic | $61,257 |
| Lieutenant | $76,571 |
| Captain | $87,914 |
| Battalion Chief | $104,930 |
Highest-Paying Departments
Ranked by entry-level base salary, before overtime and stipends. Every metro on this list carries a cost-of-living index well above the national average of 100 — which is why the ranking below matters just as much.
- 1San Francisco Fire$98,000
- 2Seattle Fire Department$86,000
- 3Oakland Fire Department$82,000
- 4Los Angeles Fire (LAFD)$79,000
- 5Tacoma Fire Department$78,000
Where Firefighter Wages Go Furthest
Entry-level base pay adjusted for local prices, with the national average set at 100. This is the number that reflects actual spending power: a department can pay less nominally and still leave a firefighter better off.
- 1Spokane Fire Department$67,460
- 2Bakersfield Fire Dept$67,460
- 3Fresno Fire Department$66,986
- 4Tacoma Fire Department$65,767
- 5Kansas City Fire Dept$63,146
Municipal vs. Federal Fire Service Pay
Nearly every department in this dataset is municipal: pay is set by a local collective bargaining agreement, and retirement comes from a city or state pension system. Federal firefighters — those working for the Department of Defense or another agency at installations such as Fort Jackson, South Carolina — are paid differently.
Federal fire protection employees in the GS-0081 series earn base pay by General Schedule grade and step with locality adjustments, and they retire under FERS rather than a municipal tier: 1.7% of high-three average salary for each of the first 20 years of covered service, then 1% per year after that. Their pay generally sits in a similar range to nearby municipal departments, but grades and steps replace rank steps, longevity schedules, and stipends.
Compare a Department Directly
National averages hide the details that matter most — shift schedules, overtime rules, stipends, and pension multipliers. Use the tools below to compare any two departments side by side.
- Firefighter pay calculator — compare two departments' take-home pay and purchasing power.
- Department directory — salary and pension scales for every department in the dataset.
- FLSA 207(k) guide — the rules that govern firefighter overtime nationwide.