Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2021

33-9032 Security Guards

Guard, patrol, or monitor premises to prevent theft, violence, or infractions of rules. May operate x-ray and metal detector equipment. Excludes “Police Officers” (33-3050) and “Transportation Security Screeners” (33-9093).

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National estimates for Security Guards
Industry profile for Security Guards
Geographic profile for Security Guards

National estimates for Security Guards:

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Security Guards:

Employment (1)	Employment RSE (3)	Mean hourly wage	Mean annual wage (2)	Wage RSE (3)
1,057,100	0.4 %	$ 17.23	$ 35,830	0.4 %

Percentile wage estimates for Security Guards:

Percentile	10%	25%	50% (Median)	75%	90%
Hourly Wage	$ 11.18	$ 13.89	$ 15.13	$ 18.83	$ 24.06
Annual Wage (2)	$ 23,250	$ 28,890	$ 31,470	$ 39,170	$ 50,040

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Industry profile for Security Guards:

Industries with the highest published employment and wages for Security Guards are provided. For a list of all industries with employment in Security Guards, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Industries with the highest levels of employment in Security Guards:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Investigation and Security Services	666,020	72.34	$ 16.24	$ 33,780
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals	42,130	0.75	$ 19.90	$ 41,400
Elementary and Secondary Schools	38,260	0.47	$ 20.01	$ 41,610
Traveler Accommodation	29,640	2.16	$ 17.78	$ 36,970
Local Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OEWS Designation)	21,920	0.41	$ 20.48	$ 42,590

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Security Guards:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Investigation and Security Services	666,020	72.34	$ 16.24	$ 33,780
Gambling Industries	12,380	6.83	$ 15.71	$ 32,670
Monetary Authorities-Central Bank	1,370	6.53	$ 32.05	$ 66,650
Promoters of Performing Arts, Sports, and Similar Events	3,930	5.06	$ 16.70	$ 34,730
Facilities Support Services	6,780	4.05	$ 17.23	$ 35,850

Top paying industries for Security Guards:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Natural Gas Distribution	30	0.03	$ 38.14	$ 79,320
Other Heavy and Civil Engineering Construction	(8)	(8)	$ 37.15	$ 77,260
Monetary Authorities-Central Bank	1,370	6.53	$ 32.05	$ 66,650
Scientific Research and Development Services	1,600	0.20	$ 31.54	$ 65,600
Navigational, Measuring, Electromedical, and Control Instruments Manufacturing	520	0.13	$ 30.09	$ 62,580

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Geographic profile for Security Guards:

States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for Security Guards are provided. For a list of all areas with employment in Security Guards, see the Create Customized Tables function.

States with the highest employment level in Security Guards:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
California	142,040	8.59	1.15	$ 18.37	$ 38,210
New York	112,410	12.97	1.73	$ 20.10	$ 41,810
Texas	88,700	7.25	0.97	$ 16.57	$ 34,460
Florida	83,240	9.67	1.29	$ 14.61	$ 30,400
Illinois	42,860	7.63	1.02	$ 17.65	$ 36,710

States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Security Guards:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
District of Columbia	13,910	21.02	2.80	$ 25.41	$ 52,840
Hawaii	9,100	16.60	2.21	$ 17.73	$ 36,880
Nevada	17,960	13.93	1.86	$ 15.38	$ 31,990
New York	112,410	12.97	1.73	$ 20.10	$ 41,810
Maryland	24,740	9.72	1.30	$ 19.38	$ 40,300

Top paying states for Security Guards:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
District of Columbia	13,910	21.02	2.80	$ 25.41	$ 52,840
Alaska	2,230	7.55	1.01	$ 23.58	$ 49,040
Washington	20,390	6.36	0.85	$ 21.02	$ 43,720
New York	112,410	12.97	1.73	$ 20.10	$ 41,810
Idaho	2,550	3.37	0.45	$ 19.70	$ 40,970

Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Security Guards:

Metropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA	119,630	13.79	1.84	$ 19.81	$ 41,210
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA	56,700	9.91	1.32	$ 17.75	$ 36,920
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI	39,350	9.30	1.24	$ 17.69	$ 36,800
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL	38,510	15.70	2.09	$ 14.68	$ 30,530
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV	37,160	12.67	1.69	$ 22.69	$ 47,190
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX	30,200	8.41	1.12	$ 17.45	$ 36,290
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX	25,930	8.95	1.19	$ 16.54	$ 34,410
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD	22,170	8.35	1.11	$ 16.44	$ 34,190
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA	20,250	7.82	1.04	$ 15.93	$ 33,120
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ	19,000	8.98	1.20	$ 16.17	$ 33,640

Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Security Guards:

Metropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Charleston, WV	2,820	28.48	3.80	$ 12.69	$ 26,390
The Villages, FL	660	19.87	2.65	$ 11.93	$ 24,820
Urban Honolulu, HI	7,400	18.72	2.49	$ 17.49	$ 36,380
Atlantic City-Hammonton, NJ	2,070	17.81	2.37	$ 16.31	$ 33,920
Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV	15,460	16.83	2.24	$ 15.30	$ 31,830
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL	38,510	15.70	2.09	$ 14.68	$ 30,530
Niles-Benton Harbor, MI	870	15.63	2.08	$ 16.44	$ 34,200
Trenton, NJ	3,480	15.29	2.04	$ 17.49	$ 36,370
Flint, MI	1,890	15.21	2.03	$ 14.47	$ 30,100
Hammond, LA	620	14.10	1.88	$ 12.06	$ 25,090