How much do security guards make in 2026?
Security guards earn a national median of $38,020 a year ($18.28 an hour) according to BLS OEWS May 2025 for SOC 33-9032, with the bottom 10% near $30,210 and the top 10% at $58,840 across 1,283,470 workers. The bulk of that population works unarmed contract posts — retail, commercial lobbies, construction sites, events — where pay sits close to the local wage floor and turnover is very high. The upper part of the band is occupied by identifiably different work. Armed posts pay more because the licensing, training and liability are greater. In-house corporate security, particularly at technology, financial and pharmaceutical employers, pays above contract rates and comes with benefits. Specialist environments — hospitals with behavioural response training, nuclear and critical infrastructure with federal requirements, casinos with surveillance regulation, and executive protection — pay well above the median because the training is real and the pool of qualified people is small. Almost every state licenses guards through a registration or guard card system, with additional firearms permits for armed work, so entry is regulated even though the entry-level pay is not high. Employment is projected to grow just 0.4% through 2034 with roughly 161,000 openings a year, virtually all of it replacement. → Full security guard career guide, career path, credentials & placement →
Note: $38,020 blends every experience level and every setting in this occupation. For pay by level alone, see Pay by Level below.
- Security Guards earn a national median $38,020/yr ($18.28/hr) (BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 33-9032); the P10 to P90 range is $30,210 to $58,840.
- Most of the occupation works unarmed contract posts paid close to the local wage floor with high turnover, which is what anchors the $38,020 median.
- Armed posts, in-house corporate security, and specialist environments — hospital behavioural response, critical infrastructure, casino surveillance, executive protection — occupy the upper part of the $30,210 to $58,840 band.
- Nearly every state licenses guards through registration or a guard card, with separate firearms permits for armed work, so entry is regulated even where pay is low.
US Security Guard Pay Distribution · BLS OEWS May 2025
Pay by Level · BLS OEWS May 2025
How much do security guards earn at each level?
BLS OEWS publishes one blended wage for the whole occupation and does not break pay out by credential or practice level. The levels below distribute the published percentile range across the credential tiers this role actually hires at.
Level medians are aligned to the BLS OEWS May 2025 percentile distribution for SOC 33-9032; GlobalCybers does not yet publish a verified placement sample for this role, so no verified median is shown.
Methodology & Sources
How the numbers on this page are built
Published (BLS): BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 33-9032, United States national estimate. Public, methodologically rigorous, but sampled on a rolling 3-year basis and published ~10 months after collection — so it reflects wages that are already 1–2 years old by the time you read them.
Level and certification medians: distributed across the published BLS percentile range for this SOC code (P10 through P90) according to the credential tiers this occupation actually hires at. They are modeled reference points, not separately surveyed wages.
State and metro figures: modeled — the BLS national median multiplied by the GlobalCybers state wage index, and for metros by the published metro index for that state. They are estimates of local pay, not BLS state or metropolitan-area observations, and are labelled as modeled in the tables below.
No verified placement sample:GlobalCybers does not yet publish a placement median for this role, so no "verified" figure appears anywhere on this page.
Pay by Career Level
How much does a security guard earn at each career stage?
Security pay follows post type, licensing and whether the employer is the client or a contractor. Each median is anchored to the BLS OEWS distribution for SOC 33-9032.
By State
Which states pay security guards the most in 2026?
These are modeled state estimates — the national security guard median scaled by the GlobalCybers state wage index — not BLS state observations. State licensing requirements vary considerably in training hours and cost, and states with stricter requirements tend to support slightly higher pay through a smaller qualified pool.
6 of 51 state guides shown, ranked by median. Bar is relative to California ($43,720), the highest-paying state shown. See all role salary guides →
security guard pay by state — all 2 state guides
By Metro
Which cities pay security guards the most?
Modeled metro estimates: the national median scaled by the state wage index and then by that state's published metro index. They estimate local wage levels and are not BLS metropolitan-area observations. In-house corporate and specialist posts concentrate in larger metros, while contract guarding is distributed everywhere.
BLS OEWS MSA estimates, May 2025. Nominal pay — weigh each metro against its cost of living before relocating.
Certification Impact
Which certifications raise a security guard’s pay the most?
Median annual pay before and after each credential, based on GlobalCybers placement data cross-referenced with BLS. License upgrades move the needle most; stackable certs add on top.
Impacts are not additive, the licensing rows share the same career ladder. Browse all 167 certifications →
Trade Comparison
How does security guard pay compare to related roles?
BLS OEWS national median across the closest trades. Security Guards sit mid-pack on median but carry one of the widest P10–P90 spreads, licensing and specialization drive the upside.
BLS OEWS May 2025. Verify security guard wages on BLS.gov →
Take-Home Pay
What does a security guard actually take home after taxes?
The medians above are gross base wage.
Estimates use 2026 federal brackets, standard deduction, and 7.65% FICA. Actual take-home varies with filing status, deductions, and local tax.
FAQ
Security Guard Salary, Frequently Asked Questions
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