Pay by state · 51 states
Firefighter Salary by State (2026)
Firefighters earn the most in New York at $100,960 a year and the least in Louisiana at $33,120 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). The national median is $59,280. All 51 states and territories with reported data are ranked below, with a cost-of-living adjusted column.
- Highest median
- $100,960New York
- National median
- $59,280BLS OEWS, May 2025
- Lowest median
- $33,120Louisiana
- States reporting
- 51of 54 OEWS areas
All states
Firefighter salary in every state
Sort by any column. Employment is the number of firefighters OEWS estimates in that state; blank cells are estimates BLS suppressed because the sample was too small.
| # | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | NYNew York | $100,960 | $65,420 | $106,430 | 12,950 | $93,550 |
| 2 | WAWashington | $94,520 | $72,300 | $105,540 | 7,560 | $88,326 |
| 3 | CACalifornia | $85,120 | $65,170 | $109,620 | 31,470 | $76,879 |
| 4 | NJNew Jersey | $84,130 | $61,340 | $106,330 | 7,500 | $77,322 |
| 5 | ILIllinois | $78,380 | $47,910 | $103,530 | 18,400 | $78,413 |
| 6 | CTConnecticut | $77,630 | $64,180 | $81,810 | 2,970 | $74,925 |
| 7 | DCDistrict of Columbia | $75,870 | $65,090 | $92,110 | 1,480 | $69,035 |
| 8 | COColorado | $74,170 | $60,970 | $101,260 | 6,510 | $71,973 |
| 9 | MDMaryland | $73,810 | $57,160 | $90,760 | 5,340 | $70,323 |
| 10 | PAPennsylvania | $73,460 | $56,210 | $89,190 | 5,020 | $75,288 |
| 11 | MAMassachusetts | $72,800 | $61,800 | $80,070 | 11,940 | $68,837 |
| 12 | OROregon | $70,900 | $49,420 | $90,980 | 3,790 | $68,595 |
| 13 | RIRhode Island | $67,380 | $60,650 | $75,860 | 1,620 | $65,878 |
| 14 | NVNevada | $66,570 | $56,620 | $78,130 | 2,640 | $66,584 |
| 15 | INIndiana | $62,780 | $50,300 | $75,860 | 8,530 | $67,267 |
| 16 | NENebraska | $61,040 | $51,910 | $61,040 | 1,070 | $67,745 |
| 17 | TXTexas | $60,180 | $48,680 | $71,980 | 28,170 | $62,005 |
| 18 | OHOhio | $59,370 | $40,710 | $74,250 | 18,100 | $63,994 |
| 19 | MTMontana | $59,310 | $47,770 | $68,100 | 1,010 | $62,666 |
| 20 | AZArizona | $59,280 | $46,750 | $77,690 | 7,500 | $58,881 |
| 21 | AKAlaska | $58,830 | $42,510 | $74,650 | 1,040 | $57,474 |
| 22 | VAVirginia | $58,670 | $46,200 | $70,530 | 11,160 | $58,029 |
| 23 | FLFlorida | $58,550 | $45,900 | $75,840 | 24,570 | $56,617 |
| 24 | WYWyoming | $58,090 | $43,600 | $64,940 | 680 | $62,671 |
| 25 | NHNew Hampshire | $56,620 | $45,050 | $63,650 | 2,700 | $54,356 |
| 26 | IAIowa | $55,810 | $46,020 | $63,280 | 2,170 | $63,592 |
| 27 | NDNorth Dakota | $55,080 | $47,590 | $71,930 | 820 | $61,916 |
| 28 | MIMichigan | $54,640 | $43,560 | $67,440 | 6,610 | $56,788 |
| 29 | OKOklahoma | $49,710 | $38,220 | $62,410 | 4,150 | $56,590 |
| 30 | TNTennessee | $49,300 | $39,360 | $61,670 | 7,020 | $53,663 |
| 31 | MOMissouri | $49,080 | $37,340 | $64,170 | 6,580 | $54,043 |
| 32 | UTUtah | $48,310 | $37,590 | $60,880 | 2,870 | $48,865 |
| 33 | MEMaine | $48,290 | $43,420 | $59,290 | 2,480 | $49,758 |
| 34 | SDSouth Dakota | $48,160 | $46,730 | $59,800 | 610 | $54,365 |
| 35 | ALAlabama | $47,600 | $37,150 | $59,520 | 7,260 | $53,590 |
| 36 | IDIdaho | $47,320 | $35,380 | $76,280 | 2,240 | $49,553 |
| 37 | WIWisconsin | $46,850 | $36,490 | $62,660 | 8,120 | $49,790 |
| 38 | DEDelaware | $46,710 | $45,300 | $60,670 | 560 | $46,800 |
| 39 | GAGeorgia | $46,550 | $37,100 | $55,390 | 12,700 | $48,342 |
| 40 | VTVermont | $46,430 | $37,100 | $59,600 | N/A | $47,398 |
| 41 | KSKansas | $45,900 | $37,440 | $57,950 | 3,360 | $50,961 |
| 42 | SCSouth Carolina | $42,570 | $34,510 | $49,570 | 7,780 | $45,408 |
| 43 | NMNew Mexico | $41,590 | $36,520 | $48,290 | 2,420 | $45,103 |
| 44 | ARArkansas | $39,690 | $33,560 | $52,000 | 2,480 | $45,654 |
| 45 | MNMinnesota | $38,110 | $31,110 | $59,350 | 5,810 | $38,643 |
| 46 | NCNorth Carolina | $37,940 | $34,010 | $47,690 | 19,410 | $40,222 |
| 47 | WVWest Virginia | $37,350 | $32,950 | $44,100 | 900 | $41,733 |
| 48 | KYKentucky | $37,150 | $33,390 | $48,120 | 5,150 | $41,205 |
| 49 | PRPuerto Rico | $37,120 | $32,000 | $42,560 | 1,780 | N/A |
| 50 | MSMississippi | $35,880 | $29,430 | $44,060 | 2,920 | $41,264 |
| 51 | LALouisiana | $33,120 | $27,510 | $44,770 | 5,230 | $37,548 |
Method
How the cost-of-living adjustment works
The adjusted column divides each state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity (RPP) and multiplies by 100. RPPs measure how much a fixed basket of goods, services and rents costs in one state relative to the national average, so the result restates local pay in national-average dollars.
For Firefighters, that changes the ranking: New York leads on raw pay at $100,960, while New York leads once prices are taken into account at $93,550.
Source: BEA Regional Price Parities by State, 2024 (public domain). The adjustment is NueCareer's calculation, not a BLS or BEA published statistic.
Questions
Firefighter pay by state: FAQ
Which state pays Firefighters the most?
New York reports the highest median wage for Firefighters at $100,960 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025), followed by Washington ($94,520) and California ($85,120).
Which state pays Firefighters the least?
Louisiana reports the lowest median for Firefighters at $33,120 a year, $67,840 below the highest-paying state (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Where do Firefighters earn the most after cost of living?
Dividing each state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity puts New York first at $93,550 in national-average dollars, from a raw median of $100,960. BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024.