New York firefighter salaries by employer, 2025
9,667 people worked as firefighters for New York City and Buffalo in fiscal year 2025 (July 2024 to June 2025). Those who worked the full year earned an average of $149,286, overtime included. More New York employers follow as we collect their pay data.
What is the average firefighter salary in New York?
- Firefighters
- 9,667
- 8,102 of them worked the full year
- Employers
- 2
- with 5 or more firefighters
- Median total pay
- $160,321
- the middle firefighter: half earned more, half less
- Overtime
- $36,199
- average per full-year firefighter
What stands out in New York firefighter pay
New York City pays its firefighters the most.
Full-year firefighters averaged $152,003 at New York City1 and $89,461 at Buffalo3, overtime included.
Overtime adds an average of $36,199 a year.
Full-year firefighters had an average base pay of $94,942 and an average total pay of $149,286. The middle firefighter was paid $32,773 in overtime.1,3
Fire captains average $267,918, $118,632 more than firefighters.
Full-year fire lieutenants averaged $211,866, captains averaged $267,918 and battalion chiefs averaged $222,459, across the 2 departments. Those ranks are kept out of the firefighter figures on this page.1,3
Captains take home more than battalion chiefs.
Battalion chiefs have the higher base pay ($179,738 against $142,227), but captains were paid $99,312 in overtime on average, battalion chiefs $12,882.1,3
New York fire department pay by rank: firefighter, lieutenant, captain and battalion chief
The 2 New York fire departments covered so far, fiscal year 2025 (July 2024 to June 2025). Each department's page has its own ranges by rank where it publishes them. Pay: full-year staff, overtime included.1,3
| Rank | Positions | Average total pay | Average overtime |
|---|---|---|---|
| Firefighters | 9,667 | $149,286 | $36,199 |
| Lieutenants | 1,614 | $211,866 | $67,923 |
| Captains | 714 | $267,918 | $99,312 |
| Battalion Chiefs | 415 | $222,459 | $12,882 |
Which New York jobs count as firefighters here, and which don't?
These figures cover the Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY) and the Buffalo Fire Department, from each city's own payroll file. We decided each title by hand.
Counted as firefighters
- Firefighters at the FDNY and in Buffalo. Every pay step of the Firefighter title.
Shown separately or left out
- Lieutenants, captains and battalion chiefs. In the pay by rank table above, not in the firefighter figures. Neither department has an engineer rank in its payroll.
- Chiefs above battalion chief, fire marshals, inspectors and civilian staff. The FDNY's fire alarm dispatchers are on the 911 dispatcher pages.
- The FDNY's EMTs and paramedics. Emergency medical service is a job of its own, not firefighting.
- Buffalo's "207-a only" titles and firefighters listed as injured on duty for more than 90 days. They're paid but not working as firefighters.
- Other New York fire departments, paid and volunteer. More follow as we find payroll files that list job titles.
Questions about firefighter pay in New York
How much do firefighters make in New York?
Full-year firefighters at the 2 New York fire departments covered so far earned an average of $149,286 in fiscal year 2025 (July 2024 to June 2025), including an average of $36,199 in overtime. The middle firefighter earned $160,321.
How much does an FDNY firefighter make?
Full-year FDNY firefighters averaged $152,003 in fiscal year 2025, overtime included: $37,364 of it overtime. The city's current official range for the title runs from $56,287 to $109,352.
Which New York fire department pays firefighters the most?
Of the departments covered so far, full-year firefighters averaged $152,003 at New York City and $89,461 at Buffalo, overtime included.
How much do fire lieutenants, captains and battalion chiefs make in New York?
Full-year fire lieutenants averaged $211,866, captains averaged $267,918 and battalion chiefs averaged $222,459 in fiscal year 2025 (July 2024 to June 2025), against $149,286 for firefighters.
Sources for the New York firefighter figures
Every person who held a firefighter position at any point in fiscal year 2025 (July 2024 to June 2025) counts toward the headcount. New York City's pay figures use only people still employed at the end of June 2025 who worked at least 90% of a full year's regular hours at their title's standard week. The other employers' files have no hours, so their figures use full-time staff who were paid their salary on at least 90% of the year's paydays (Buffalo). Total pay is gross wages before tax, including overtime, lump sums and other pay. Every figure covers at least 5 people.
- City of New York, Citywide Payroll Data (Fiscal Year): titles, base salaries, regular pay, overtime and other pay of every city employee, fiscal year 2025 (July 2024 to June 2025).
- City of New York, Department of Citywide Administrative Services, Civil Service Titles: official minimum and maximum pay per title, current list (2026).
- City of Buffalo, Open Payroll: every pay line of every city employee, with title, start date and kind of pay, fiscal year 2025 (July 2024 to June 2025), added up per person.