BLS firefighter pay by percentile and state, what a 24-on/48-off schedule does to the hourly rate, and take-home after 2026 tax
Firefighters earned a median of $59,280 a year in May 2025 ($28.50 an hour on BLS's 2,080-hour basis), according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics' survey of 345,990 paid firefighters. Pay is spread wider than in almost any other job on this site: the lowest-paid tenth earned under $34,910 and the top tenth over $101,040, nearly three times as much. Department size, state and rank explain most of that, and overtime — excluded from these figures — adds more.
This is the BLS line for firefighters (SOC 33-2011) employed by local, state and federal agencies and private employers. Volunteer firefighters are not paid wages and are not in the survey, and fire officers and inspectors are counted separately. Take-home assumes a single filer with 2026 federal tax and FICA and no state tax.
| Pay level | Hourly | Annual | Monthly | Take-home a year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $16.79 | $34,910 | $2,909 | $30,230 |
| 25th percentile | $21.39 | $44,490 | $3,708 | $37,928 |
| Median | $28.50 | $59,280 | $4,940 | $49,811 |
| 75th percentile | $37.14 | $77,250 | $6,438 | $63,175 |
| 90th percentile | $48.58 | $101,040 | $8,420 | $79,912 |
New York's firefighters have the highest median, $100,960, then Washington ($94,520) and California ($85,120). Louisiana's $33,120 is the lowest — a third of New York's. Volunteer firefighters, who make up the largest share of firefighters nationwide, especially in communities under 25,000, are unpaid and not in these figures (BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook).
| State | Median hourly | Median annual | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York | $48.54 | $100,960 | 12,950 |
| Washington | $45.44 | $94,520 | 7,560 |
| California | $40.92 | $85,120 | 31,470 |
| New Jersey | $40.45 | $84,130 | 7,500 |
| Illinois | $37.68 | $78,380 | 18,400 |
| Connecticut | $37.32 | $77,630 | 2,970 |
| District of Columbia | $36.48 | $75,870 | 1,480 |
| Colorado | $35.66 | $74,170 | 6,510 |
| Maryland | $35.49 | $73,810 | 5,340 |
| Pennsylvania | $35.32 | $73,460 | 5,020 |
| Massachusetts | $35.00 | $72,800 | 11,940 |
| Oregon | $34.09 | $70,900 | 3,790 |
| Rhode Island | $32.39 | $67,380 | 1,620 |
| Nevada | $32.01 | $66,570 | 2,640 |
| Indiana | $30.18 | $62,780 | 8,530 |
| Nebraska | $29.35 | $61,040 | 1,070 |
| Texas | $28.94 | $60,180 | 28,170 |
| Ohio | $28.54 | $59,370 | 18,100 |
| Montana | $28.52 | $59,310 | 1,010 |
| Arizona | $28.50 | $59,280 | 7,500 |
| Alaska | $28.28 | $58,830 | 1,040 |
| Virginia | $28.21 | $58,670 | 11,160 |
| Florida | $28.15 | $58,550 | 24,570 |
| Wyoming | $27.93 | $58,090 | 680 |
| New Hampshire | $27.22 | $56,620 | 2,700 |
| Iowa | $26.83 | $55,810 | 2,170 |
| North Dakota | $26.48 | $55,080 | 820 |
| Michigan | $26.27 | $54,640 | 6,610 |
| Oklahoma | $23.90 | $49,710 | 4,150 |
| Tennessee | $23.70 | $49,300 | 7,020 |
| Missouri | $23.60 | $49,080 | 6,580 |
| Utah | $23.23 | $48,310 | 2,870 |
| Maine | $23.22 | $48,290 | 2,480 |
| South Dakota | $23.15 | $48,160 | 610 |
| Alabama | $22.89 | $47,600 | 7,260 |
| Idaho | $22.75 | $47,320 | 2,240 |
| Wisconsin | $22.53 | $46,850 | 8,120 |
| Delaware | $22.46 | $46,710 | 560 |
| Georgia | $22.38 | $46,550 | 12,700 |
| Vermont | $22.32 | $46,430 | — |
| Kansas | $22.07 | $45,900 | 3,360 |
| South Carolina | $20.47 | $42,570 | 7,780 |
| New Mexico | $19.99 | $41,590 | 2,420 |
| Arkansas | $19.08 | $39,690 | 2,480 |
| Minnesota | $18.32 | $38,110 | 5,810 |
| North Carolina | $18.24 | $37,940 | 19,410 |
| West Virginia | $17.96 | $37,350 | 900 |
| Kentucky | $17.86 | $37,150 | 5,150 |
| Mississippi | $17.25 | $35,880 | 2,920 |
| Louisiana | $15.92 | $33,120 | 5,230 |
State fire agencies pay a little more than city and county departments: $64,980 against $59,850, with federal firefighters in between at $63,270. Local government employs 87% of paid firefighters (BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook).
| Industry | Median annual wage |
|---|---|
| State government, excluding education and hospitals | $64,980 |
| Federal government, excluding postal service | $63,270 |
| Local government, excluding education and hospitals | $59,850 |
Firefighters typically work long periods, overtime is common and hours vary: a department may run 24-hour shifts followed by 48 or 72 hours off. Wildland firefighters can spend days or weeks in a fire camp, and their work may be seasonal (BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook). A 24-on/48-off rotation averages 56 hours a week (24 hours in every 72), so the same salary is worth far less per hour on duty than BLS's hourly figure, which divides the salary by 2,080 hours. The calculator's duty-hours box shows the difference.
Under section 7(k) of the FLSA, fire protection employees of a public agency are owed overtime after 212 hours in a 28-day work period — an average of 53 hours a week — or 106 hours in 14 days, instead of after 40 in a week. Comp time at time and a half can replace cash, up to 480 banked hours, and agencies with fewer than five fire employees are exempt (DOL Fact Sheet #8). A 24-on/48-off rotation puts about 224 hours in a 28-day period, so roughly 12 of them fall past the 212-hour line even before call-backs.
BLS's hourly firefighter wage is the annual wage divided by 2,080 hours. Firefighters on long rotations are on duty far more than that, so the same $59,280 median salary works out to much less per hour on shift. Base pay only; overtime and call-backs are on top.
| Schedule | Hours on duty a year | Pay per hour on duty |
|---|---|---|
| 40 hours (BLS's 2,080-hour basis) | 2,080 | $28.50 |
| 24 on / 72 off (42 hours average) | 2,184 | $27.14 |
| 212 hours per 28 days (53 hours, the 7(k) overtime line) | 2,756 | $21.51 |
| 24 on / 48 off (56 hours average) | 2,912 | $20.36 |
Licensing and certification requirements vary by state and department. Many firefighters need EMT or paramedic certification, which requires continuing education, and some need a commercial or firefighter-endorsed driver's license to drive the apparatus (BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook). BLS doesn't publish a paramedic premium for firefighters; the percentile spread below is the official measure of how much rank, certifications and department change pay.
More ways to work with your firefighter pay:
$59,280 a year ($28.50 an hour) at the BLS median for May 2025. The middle half earned $44,490 to $77,250.
New York ($48.54 an hour, $100,960 a year), then Washington and California; Louisiana pays least among the 50 states where BLS released a figure (BLS, May 2025).
It depends on the department. A common pattern is 24 hours on duty followed by 48 or 72 off (BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook). 24 on / 48 off averages 56 hours a week; 24 on / 72 off averages 42.
Under FLSA section 7(k), after 212 hours in a 28-day work period (106 in 14 days) — an average of 53 hours a week — unless a contract pays sooner (DOL Fact Sheet #8).
Tax rules, limits and pay data change. Check the current figures with the primary source before acting on them.