• Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics

Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2023

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)
1,202,940	0.3 %	$ 19.44	$ 40,440	0.4 %

Percentile wage estimates for Security Guards:

Percentile	10%	25%	50% (Median)	75%	90%
Hourly Wage	$ 13.70	$ 15.22	$ 17.82	$ 21.46	$ 27.60
Annual Wage (2)	$ 28,500	$ 31,660	$ 37,070	$ 44,630	$ 57,400

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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	735,430	73.69	$ 18.64	$ 38,770
General Merchandise Retailers	44,640	1.39	$ 16.92	$ 35,200
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals	44,460	0.78	$ 21.61	$ 44,960
Elementary and Secondary Schools	44,010	0.51	$ 21.38	$ 44,480
Traveler Accommodation	31,280	1.69	$ 19.48	$ 40,520

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	735,430	73.69	$ 18.64	$ 38,770
Promoters of Performing Arts, Sports, and Similar Events	10,740	6.56	$ 20.48	$ 42,600
Gambling Industries	12,770	5.88	$ 18.26	$ 37,970
Monetary Authorities-Central Bank	1,190	5.48	$ 32.30	$ 67,190
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)	18,200	4.42	$ 16.50	$ 34,320

Top paying industries for Security Guards:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Natural Gas Distribution	50	0.04	$ 43.22	$ 89,900
Oil and Gas Extraction	(8)	(8)	$ 38.65	$ 80,400
Jewelry, Luggage, and Leather Goods Retailers	840	0.67	$ 34.21	$ 71,160
Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services	650	0.04	$ 33.83	$ 70,360
Navigational, Measuring, Electromedical, and Control Instruments Manufacturing	470	0.11	$ 33.60	$ 69,890

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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	183,620	10.23	1.29	$ 21.61	$ 44,940
New York	121,920	12.98	1.64	$ 21.28	$ 44,250
Texas	98,660	7.28	0.92	$ 17.16	$ 35,700
Florida	91,200	9.53	1.20	$ 17.30	$ 35,980
Illinois	51,340	8.54	1.08	$ 19.28	$ 40,110

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	14,570	20.76	2.62	$ 26.36	$ 54,830
Hawaii	9,390	15.21	1.92	$ 18.98	$ 39,470
Nevada	22,490	15.18	1.92	$ 17.76	$ 36,940
New York	121,920	12.98	1.64	$ 21.28	$ 44,250
California	183,620	10.23	1.29	$ 21.61	$ 44,940

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	14,570	20.76	2.62	$ 26.36	$ 54,830
Alaska	2,320	7.43	0.94	$ 25.10	$ 52,220
Maryland	27,370	10.22	1.29	$ 22.81	$ 47,450
Minnesota	12,800	4.44	0.56	$ 22.78	$ 47,390
Washington	23,830	6.82	0.86	$ 22.69	$ 47,190

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	131,760	13.88	1.75	$ 21.18	$ 44,060
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA	77,500	12.53	1.58	$ 20.86	$ 43,400
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI	46,500	10.32	1.30	$ 19.34	$ 40,220
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL	40,830	15.00	1.89	$ 17.82	$ 37,060
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV	39,240	12.69	1.60	$ 24.99	$ 51,970
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX	31,920	8.05	1.02	$ 18.15	$ 37,760
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX	27,680	8.70	1.10	$ 16.74	$ 34,820
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA	25,060	10.34	1.31	$ 24.63	$ 51,230
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD	24,910	8.80	1.11	$ 18.99	$ 39,500
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA	22,320	7.92	1.00	$ 18.13	$ 37,710

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	2,830	27.48	3.47	$ 15.22	$ 31,650
Atlantic City-Hammonton, NJ	2,480	19.75	2.49	$ 17.91	$ 37,250
Flint, MI	2,460	18.61	2.35	$ 15.93	$ 33,130
Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV	19,780	18.26	2.31	$ 17.62	$ 36,660
Urban Honolulu, HI	7,930	18.07	2.28	$ 18.55	$ 38,580
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL	40,830	15.00	1.89	$ 17.82	$ 37,060
Jackson, MS	3,620	14.31	1.81	$ 14.85	$ 30,890
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA	131,760	13.88	1.75	$ 21.18	$ 44,060
Niles-Benton Harbor, MI	820	13.86	1.75	$ 18.14	$ 37,720
Memphis, TN-MS-AR	8,620	13.79	1.74	$ 16.99	$ 35,330