Law enforcement is a career that is always in the public eye, whether for heroic reasons or scandal. Currently, our nation’s 800,000 law enforcement officers have even more of a spotlight than usual, as they balance enforcing coronavirus lockdowns with performing their normal duties. Officers also have a much higher risk of coming into contact with COVID-19 than the general population – one in six New York City police officers is out sick or in quarantine, for example.
Even when the U.S. isn’t in the middle of a pandemic, being a police officer is significantly more dangerous than many other occupations. Because of such risks, law-enforcement agencies must offer enough incentives to attract and retain officers. To start, there’s a $65,170 mean annual wage and typically a generous benefits package which can include retirement-contribution matches, tuition assistance, ample leave time, a take-home vehicle, and access to health and fitness facilities.
How well officers are compensated varies from place to place, though, as does the quality of their work environment. Officers are more likely to be attracted to police departments that steer clear of scandal and corruption and that are transparent with their communities.
In order to determine the best states in which to pursue a law-enforcement career, WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across 28 key indicators of police-friendliness. Our data set ranges from the median income for law-enforcement officers to police deaths per 1,000 officers to state and local police-protection expenses per capita. Read on for our findings, commentary from a panel of researchers and full description of our methodology.
Main Findings
Best States to Be a Cop
Overall Rank | State | Total Score | ‘Opportunity & Competition’ Rank | ‘Job Hazards & Protections’ Rank | ‘Quality of Life’ Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Connecticut | 58.64 | 21 | 1 | 7 |
| 2 | North Dakota | 58.43 | 29 | 3 | 1 |
| 3 | New York | 57.15 | 4 | 24 | 10 |
| 4 | New Jersey | 56.32 | 2 | 9 | 31 |
| 5 | Minnesota | 56.06 | 10 | 4 | 25 |
| 6 | Maryland | 55.02 | 15 | 12 | 4 |
| 7 | District of Columbia | 54.66 | 1 | 47 | 35 |
| 8 | Washington | 54.21 | 9 | 8 | 36 |
| 9 | Massachusetts | 53.95 | 8 | 5 | 43 |
| 10 | Illinois | 53.75 | 16 | 11 | 9 |
| 11 | Rhode Island | 53.64 | 18 | 7 | 23 |
| 12 | Michigan | 53.42 | 5 | 31 | 22 |
| 13 | Hawaii | 53.05 | 7 | 35 | 15 |
| 14 | Maine | 52.79 | 33 | 6 | 17 |
| 15 | California | 52.77 | 6 | 23 | 33 |
| 16 | Ohio | 51.54 | 13 | 10 | 27 |
| 17 | Texas | 50.99 | 17 | 15 | 20 |
| 18 | Colorado | 50.32 | 3 | 37 | 34 |
| 19 | Pennsylvania | 49.62 | 11 | 25 | 29 |
| 20 | New Hampshire | 49.56 | 48 | 19 | 2 |
| 21 | Florida | 48.39 | 45 | 16 | 8 |
| 22 | Indiana | 48.26 | 39 | 13 | 19 |
| 23 | South Dakota | 48.10 | 46 | 17 | 6 |
| 24 | Delaware | 47.71 | 19 | 36 | 18 |
| 25 | Vermont | 46.93 | 44 | 2 | 41 |
| 26 | Kansas | 46.77 | 32 | 41 | 3 |
| 27 | Wisconsin | 46.61 | 28 | 20 | 26 |
| 28 | Oregon | 46.44 | 23 | 29 | 28 |
| 29 | Utah | 46.19 | 49 | 14 | 14 |
| 30 | Nebraska | 46.04 | 22 | 26 | 37 |
| 31 | Iowa | 45.94 | 30 | 22 | 24 |
| 32 | Nevada | 45.93 | 20 | 45 | 11 |
| 33 | Oklahoma | 45.91 | 34 | 33 | 12 |
| 34 | Alabama | 45.49 | 27 | 39 | 16 |
| 35 | Missouri | 44.02 | 12 | 40 | 38 |
| 36 | West Virginia | 43.88 | 51 | 32 | 5 |
| 37 | Virginia | 43.53 | 24 | 21 | 46 |
| 38 | Georgia | 42.88 | 26 | 18 | 49 |
| 39 | Arizona | 41.81 | 25 | 42 | 30 |
| 40 | Kentucky | 41.52 | 42 | 27 | 40 |
| 41 | Mississippi | 41.40 | 40 | 49 | 13 |
| 42 | New Mexico | 40.96 | 14 | 43 | 44 |
| 43 | North Carolina | 40.78 | 37 | 30 | 45 |
| 44 | Tennessee | 40.72 | 36 | 28 | 48 |
| 45 | South Carolina | 40.59 | 31 | 38 | 39 |
| 46 | Idaho | 39.05 | 35 | 34 | 47 |
| 47 | Montana | 38.68 | 38 | 50 | 21 |
| 48 | Wyoming | 36.80 | 41 | 44 | 42 |
| 49 | Alaska | 34.67 | 47 | 51 | 32 |
| 50 | Louisiana | 33.87 | 43 | 48 | 50 |
| 51 | Arkansas | 31.44 | 50 | 46 | 51 |
Ask the Experts
The future of law enforcement rests in the hands of policy, the availability of resources, and the relationship between cops and the residents they vow to serve and protect. To advance the discussion, we asked a panel of experts for their insight on the following key questions:
- Police forces across the country are being devastated by the coronavirus outbreak. What measures can be taken in order to keep a functioning police force during the current crisis?
- What is the long-term outlook for the law-enforcement field?
- Do you think police departments should invest more in technology and equipment or focus more on developing soft skills for use in community policing?
- What measures should police undertake to improve relationships with the community, especially in minority communities?
- What strategies have proven effective in diversifying the police force so that it is more representative of the community?
Ask the Experts
- Liam J. Leonard
Ph.D. – Senior Editor of the Advances in Criminology Book Series with IGI Global & Professor of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Northern Arizona University
Read More
- Diane Birnholz
Lecturer in Law, UCLA School of Law, Former Federal Prosecutor
Read More
- Lynn A. Tovar
Ed.D. – Professor, Lewis University
Read More
Methodology
In order to determine the best and worst states for police officers, WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across three key dimensions: 1) Opportunity & Competition, 2) Job Hazards & Protections and 3) Quality of Life.
We evaluated those dimensions using 28 relevant metrics, which are listed below with their corresponding weights. Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing the most favorable conditions for police officers.
We then determined each state and the District’s weighted average across all metrics to calculate its overall score and used the resulting scores to rank-order our sample.
Opportunity & Competition – Total Points: 40
- Law-Enforcement Officers per Capita: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)
Note: “Law-enforcement officers” includes police and sheriff’s patrol officers, detectives and criminal investigators. - Average Starting Salary of Police Officers: Double Weight (~10.00 Points)
- Median Income for Law-Enforcement Officers: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)
Note: “Law-enforcement officers” includes police and sheriff’s patrol officers, detectives and criminal investigators. This metric was adjusted for the cost of living. - Median Income Growth for Law-Enforcement Officers: Double Weight (~10.00 Points)
Note: “Law-enforcement officers” includes police and sheriff’s patrol officers, detectives and criminal investigators. This metric measures the growth of income over time (2019 vs. 2018). - Salary Growth Potential of Law-Enforcement Officers: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)
Note: “Law-enforcement officers” includes police and sheriff’s patrol officers, detectives and criminal investigators. This metric highlights the income growth (Percentile 90 / Percentile 10) that a police officer could obtain during his or her career. - Projected Law-Enforcement Officers per Capita by 2026: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)
Note: “Law-enforcement officers” includes police and sheriff’s patrol officers, detectives and criminal investigators.
Job Hazards & Protections – Total Points: 40
- States Offering the Most Coronavirus Support Score: Quadruple Weight (~6.04 Points)
Note: Note: This metric is based on WalletHub’s “States Offering the Most Coronavirus Support” score. - Police-Misconduct Confidentiality Law: Double Weight (~3.02 Points)
Note: This metric measures whether police officers’ disciplinary records are confidential, have limited public availability or are completely public. - Police Body-Worn Camera Legislation: Full Weight (~1.51 Points)
- Share of Law Enforcement Departments Carrying Naloxone: Half Weight (~0.75 Points)
- States with Laws Requiring Officers to Be Trained to Respond to Mental Health, Substance Use and Behavioral Disorder Issues: Half Weight (~0.75 Points)
Note: This binary metric takes into consideration whether a state has or doesn’t have some form of law requiring officers to be trained to respond to mental health, substance use and behavioral disorder issues. - Degree of Lethal Force Allowed for Police Use: Half Weight (~0.75 Points)
- Presence of “Red Flag” Laws: Full Weight (~1.51 Points)
Note: This binary metric considers the presence or absence of “Red flag laws” in a state. “Red flag laws” allow the seizure of guns before people can commit acts of violence. - Requirement of De-escalation Training: Full Weight (~1.51 Points)
Note: This binary metric considers the presence or absence of “De-escalation training” in a state. De-escalation training teaches officers to slow down, create space, and use communication techniques to defuse a potentially dangerous situation. De-escalation training provides officers with strategies to calmly deal with people who are experiencing mental and emotional crises. - Presence of “Blue Alerts”: Full Weight (~1.51 Points)
Note: This metric considers the presence or absence of “Blue Alerts” in a state. The Blue Alert provides the means to speed the apprehension of violent criminals who kill or seriously injure local, state, or federal law enforcement officers. - Police Deaths per 1,000 Officers: Double Weight (~3.02 Points)
- Persons Killed by Police per Capita: Double Weight (~3.02 Points)
- Share of Law Enforcement Officers Assaulted: Double Weight (~3.02 Points)
- Pursuit-Related Fatalities per 100,000 Residents: Full Weight (~1.51 Points)
Notes: This metric includes occupants of the police vehicle, occupants of the chased vehicle, occupants of other vehicles and nonoccupants. - Violent-Crime Rate: Full Weight (~1.51 Points)
- Property-Crime Rate: Full Weight (~1.51 Points)
- Road Safety: Full Weight (~1.51 Points)
Note: This metric measures the number of fatal accidents per 100 million vehicle miles driven. - Share of Homicide Cases Solved: Triple Weight (~4.53 Points)
- 9-1-1 Calls Delivered to Local & Regional Answering Points per Capita: Double Weight (~3.02 Points)
Note: This metric is based on the 2019 National 911 Progress Report and measures the number of 9-1-1 calls delivered from the national 911 control office to primary PSAPs (Public Safety Answering Points), regardless of whether they were answered or dispatch occurred, aggregated at the state level.
Quality of Life – Total Points: 20
- State & Local Police-Protection Expenses per Capita: Half Weight (~2.22 Points)
- Housing Affordability: Full Weight (~4.44 Points)
Note: This metric was calculated as follows: Median House Price / Median Annual Income for Law-enforcement officers; Rental Price of Two-Bedroom Apartment / Median Annual Income for Law-enforcement officers. “Law-enforcement officers” includes police and sheriff’s patrol officers, detectives and criminal investigators. - Family- & Singles-Friendliness: Full Weight (~4.44 Points)
Note: This composite metric is based on WalletHub’s Best & Worst States to Raise a Family and Best & Worst States for Singles rankings. - Public Image of Law Enforcement: Double Weight (~8.89 Points)
Note: This metric is based on an analysis of Twitter users’ posts indicating public sentiment toward law-enforcement personnel.
Sources: Data used to create this ranking were collected from U.S. Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Projections Central State Occupational Projections, Council for Community and Economic Research, Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, New York Public Radio, Urban Institute, Amnesty International USA, The Officer Down Memorial Page, Mapping Police Violence, Murder Accountability Project, Ballotpedia, The National 911 Program, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, North Carolina Harm Reduction Coalition, National Conference of State Legislatures, Govred Technology, National Blue Alert System, DrugAbuse.com and WalletHub research.