Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers in North Dakota
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$61,047
after federal, FICA and North Dakota tax
Tax takes
$13,453
18.1% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$68,924
North Dakota costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in North Dakota — 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
$74,500
Kept after tax
$61,047
Worth in national money
$68,924
State rank
25
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Neither high nor low. North Dakota is 25 of 51 states for this job, with a middle wage of $74,500. What that is worth is the question the rest of this page answers.
- Ordinary, locally speaking. This job ranks 140 among 460 occupations North Dakota publishes pay for.
- North Dakota is cheaper than average, and that shows up here. From $74,500 the take-home is $61,047; adjusted for what things actually cost, it goes as far as $68,924 would nationally. The average lands at $72,400, below the middle of the range.
- North Dakota ranks 25 of 51 for police and sheriff's patrol officers at $74,500. The nominal figure is unremarkable; the adjusted figures are where the state's actual position for this occupation is determined.
- Position 140 of 460 in North Dakota places police and sheriff's patrol officers in the middle of the state's wage distribution. Because within-state and cross-state rankings measure different things, this figure and the national one above should be read together rather than as a single verdict.
- Post-tax income for police and sheriff's patrol officers in North Dakota, on $74,500, is $61,047 — equivalent to $68,924 once regional price parity is applied. ⚠️ The adjustment uses a statewide index that describes no particular address; within-state price variation, concentrated in housing, routinely exceeds the difference between two states. At $72,400 the mean undershoots the median, an inversion of the usual skew.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $58,620 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $74,500 |
| Top tenth earn over | $91,440 |
| This salary | $74,500 |
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 North Dakota | $61,047 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $61,241 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$5,903 |
The raise and the real gain point in opposite directions here.
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 | $74,225 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$8,154 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 89 |
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 police and sheriff's patrol officers in North Dakota earn under $74,500 and half over. The published range runs $58,620 at the tenth percentile to $91,440 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- In North Dakota the take-home figure of $61,047, from $74,500, 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 140 of 460 occupations here.
- One number stands for prices across all of North Dakota, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $68,924, the adjusted value of that $74,500 median, as a way to compare states fairly, not as a quote for any particular place. The two datasets are also from different years. This job sits at 140 of 460 in the state.
- Figures are distribution medians for police and sheriff's patrol officers in North Dakota, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $58,620 to $91,440; 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 North Dakota is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $61,047 from $74,500. 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 140 of 460 locally.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for North Dakota, so $68,924 — the adjusted value of that $74,500 median — establishes comparability between states rather than accuracy within one. The wage and parity series are dated independently, each following its own publication cycle, and neither is projected forward. This occupation sits at 140 of 460 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $58,620 and the top tenth $91,440, so most people doing this work in North Dakota sit within a fairly tight band.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
More than the figure suggests. Prices in North Dakota sit below the national level, so take-home here stretches like $68,924 would elsewhere. The wage is the same; the ground it covers is larger.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Four deductions, stacked. The federal layer and the two payroll taxes apply wherever you work; North Dakota then takes its own share, leaving $61,047.
Can I compare this job across every state?
All 51 jurisdictions report this work, which makes the ranking a like-for-like one.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($58,620 to $91,440) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to North Dakota rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
North Dakota's regional price parity is at or below the national average, so nominal wages understate purchasing power. Take-home deflated by the state price level is $68,924 in national-average terms. The adjustment uses an all-items index and does not isolate housing.
What accounts for the gap between gross wage and take-home here?
Take-home of $61,047 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and North Dakota 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.