First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives in California
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$112,176
after federal, FICA and California tax
Tax takes
$51,784
31.6% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$99,641
California costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in California — roughly, since only five points along the band are published.
One filer, standard deduction, no dependants and nothing paid in before tax — the same household the rest of this page uses, so the comparison holds. City and school-district income taxes are not included.
Median here
$163,960
Kept after tax
$112,176
Worth in national money
$99,641
State rank
1
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Pay for this job is strong here. California's middle earner gets $163,960, putting the state 1 of 51 — about 54.62% ahead of the national figure.
- This is one of the better-paid jobs in California. It ranks 25 out of 492 occupations the state publishes figures for, which puts it in the top quarter locally.
- Costs eat into it here. Of $163,960, tax leaves $112,176 — and because California is dearer than average, that stretches only as far as $99,641 would nationally. Here the average runs under the middle, at $163,210.
- For first-line supervisors of police and detectives, California sits in the upper band nationally: a median of $163,960, ranking 1 of 51 and running about 54.62% above the national midpoint. Nominal advantage of this size is usually, though not always, large enough to survive the state's own tax and price levels.
- Within California, first-line supervisors of police and detectives ranks 25 of 492 occupations by median pay, placing it in the top quartile of the local distribution. This is the comparison a resident actually makes — against neighbors rather than against the same job elsewhere.
- After tax, $112,176 remains from the California median of $163,960 for this occupation. Applying the state's above-average price parity yields $99,641 in national-average terms — the quantity relevant to a relocation decision, and the one absent from essentially every published wage comparison. Mean pay of $163,210 sits under the median, so the lower tail is the longer one.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $121,720 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $163,960 |
| Top tenth earn over | $204,500 |
| This salary | $163,960 |
Positions between the published tenth, quarter, half, three-quarter and ninetieth points are estimated by straight line.
The same pay, somewhere else
The state median for this job
| Take-home in California | $112,176 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $123,333 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$27,277 |
State income tax and state price levels only. No city income tax, and no housing market.
What you would need there
The state median for this job
| To match take-home only | $147,638 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$38,781 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 113 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- A median is the middle, not an offer. Half of first-line supervisors of police and detectives in California earn under $163,960 and half over. The published range runs $121,720 at the tenth percentile to $204,500 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- In California the take-home figure of $112,176, from $163,960, assumes one filer, no dependants, and nothing paid into a pension before tax. Each of those lowers the bill, so treat it as the plain case. City and school-district income taxes are not included either, and in a few states those are real money. It ranks 25 of 492 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $99,641 uses one figure for the whole of California. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 492 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 25.
- Figures are distribution medians for first-line supervisors of police and detectives in California, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $121,720 to $204,500; within-state dispersion of that width routinely exceeds the dispersion between states, so tenure, employer and metropolitan area predict an individual's pay better than geography does.
- Take-home for California is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $112,176 from $163,960. Each omitted item reduces taxable income, so the figure is a lower bound on retained pay for this household shape. Municipal and school-district income taxes are excluded, which understates the burden materially in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Maryland. The occupation ranks 25 of 492 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $99,641, worked from $163,960, deflates by a statewide parity that conceals substantial intra-state variation, concentrated in housing — so it supports comparison between states rather than the pricing of a move to a particular California address, on work sitting at 25 of 492 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $121,720 at the bottom tenth to $204,500 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
Not on its own. Prices in California run above the national level, so the same dollars buy less here. Adjusted for that, this pay is worth $99,641 — the wage did not change, only what it covers.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Three of them are federal and one is not. After income tax, Social Security, Medicare and California's own levy, $112,176 remains.
Can I compare this job across every state?
Yes for this one. Pay is published in all 51 jurisdictions, so a state-to-state comparison here rests on the same survey everywhere rather than on a patchwork.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($121,720 to $204,500) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to California rather than a national figure.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
California's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $99,641 in national-average terms. ⚠️ RPPs are an all-items index; housing parities vary far more widely than the headline figure.
What accounts for the gap between gross wage and take-home here?
Take-home of $112,176 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and California income tax for a single filer with no adjustments. The state layer is levied in addition to the federal one; only its rate and base differ between states.
Is this occupation's state coverage complete?
State-level estimates are published for all 51 jurisdictions for this occupation, so cross-state comparison is not confounded by suppression. ⚠️ Estimates remain survey-based and carry sampling error; small differences between adjacent states should not be over-read.