Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers in Wisconsin
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$60,585
after federal, FICA and Wisconsin tax
Tax takes
$17,505
22.4% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$65,077
Wisconsin costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Wisconsin — 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
$78,090
Kept after tax
$60,585
Worth in national money
$65,077
State rank
18
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Middling, nationally. Wisconsin pays this job around $78,090 at the midpoint, 18 of 51 states. The interesting numbers on this page are the two below it.
- Ordinary, locally speaking. This job ranks 136 among 491 occupations Wisconsin publishes pay for.
- Here is where Wisconsin does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $78,090 you keep $60,585, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $65,077 would elsewhere. The average is lower, $76,560, so pay clusters nearer the top than usual.
- For police and sheriff's patrol officers the Wisconsin median is $78,090, ranking 18 of 51 states reporting. Mid-band nominal positions are the ones most frequently reordered by the adjustments, because no large wage premium exists to absorb a state's tax or price level.
- Position 136 of 491 in Wisconsin 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.
- After federal, FICA and Wisconsin income tax, retained pay for police and sheriff's patrol officers on $78,090 is $60,585. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $65,077 in national-average terms. ⚠️ That figure is purchasing power, not a wage, and nobody is paid it; it is what the take-home buys. The mean of $76,560 falls below the median, a left skew that is uncommon in wage data.
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 | $58,530 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $78,090 |
| Top tenth earn over | $94,450 |
| This salary | $78,090 |
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 Wisconsin | $60,585 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $63,766 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$543 |
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 | $73,568 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$750 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 93 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Wisconsin earn less than $78,090. The published range is $58,530 up to $94,450, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- In Wisconsin the take-home figure of $60,585, from $78,090, 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 136 of 491 occupations here.
- One number stands for prices across all of Wisconsin, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $65,077, the adjusted value of that $78,090 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 136 of 491 in the state.
- Reported values are medians; for police and sheriff's patrol officers in Wisconsin the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $58,530 to $94,450. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Take-home for Wisconsin is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $60,585 from $78,090. 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 136 of 491 locally.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Wisconsin, so $65,077 — the adjusted value of that $78,090 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 136 of 491 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $58,530 and the top tenth $94,450, so most people doing this work in Wisconsin sit within a fairly tight band.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
More than the figure suggests. Prices in Wisconsin sit below the national level, so take-home here stretches like $65,077 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; Wisconsin then takes its own share, leaving $60,585.
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 ($58,530 to $94,450) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Wisconsin rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Wisconsin'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 $65,077 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 $60,585 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Wisconsin 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.