Kentucky police officer salaries by employer, 2025
800 people worked as police officers for Louisville Metro in 2025. Those who worked the full year earned an average of $112,274, overtime included. So far this page covers only Louisville Metro; more Kentucky employers follow as we collect their pay data.
What is the average police officer salary in Kentucky?
- Police officers
- 800
- 693 of them worked the full year
- Employers
- 1
- with 5 or more officers
- Median total pay
- $106,599
- the middle police officer: half earned more, half less
- Overtime
- $22,003
- average per full-year police officer
What stands out in Kentucky police officer pay
Overtime adds an average of $22,003 a year.
Full-year LMPD officers had an average base pay of $82,742 and an average total pay of $112,274. The middle officer was paid $17,083 in overtime; some work far more and pull the average up.1
Sergeants average $139,725, $27,451 more than officers.
Full-year LMPD sergeants averaged $139,725 and lieutenants averaged $164,605. Those ranks are kept out of the officer figures on this page.1
Kentucky police pay by rank: officer, sergeant and lieutenant
The Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD), 2025. Its page has the official ranges by rank. Pay: full-year staff, overtime included.1
| Rank | Positions | Average total pay | Average overtime |
|---|---|---|---|
| Officers | 800 | $112,274 | $22,003 |
| Sergeants | 179 | $139,725 | $27,304 |
| Lieutenants | 66 | $164,605 | $25,315 |
Which Kentucky jobs count as police officers here, and which don't?
These figures cover the Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD), from Louisville Metro Government's payroll. We decided each title by hand.
Counted
- Police Officers at LMPD. Every step of the officers' contract scale.
Shown separately or left out
- Sergeants and lieutenants. In the pay by rank table above, not in the officer figures.
- Majors, the assistant chiefs and the chief. Command staff.
- Police recruits and civilian staff. Recruits in the academy, traffic guards, crime scene technicians, analysts and records staff, for example. MetroSafe's 911 dispatchers are on the 911 dispatcher pages.
- Other Kentucky police departments and sheriff's deputies. More follow as we find payroll files that list job titles.
Questions about police officer pay in Kentucky
How much do police officers make in Kentucky?
Full-year police officers at the Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD), the Kentucky department covered so far, earned an average of $112,274 in 2025, including an average of $22,003 in overtime. The middle officer earned $106,599.
How much do LMPD sergeants and lieutenants make?
Full-year LMPD sergeants averaged $139,725 and lieutenants averaged $164,605 in 2025, against $112,274 for officers.
Sources for the Kentucky police officer figures
Every person who held a police officer position at any point in 2025 counts toward the headcount. Pay figures use only people who were already on Louisville Metro's payroll in 2024 and whose base pay in 2025 reached at least 90% of their own annual rate. The file has no hours or hire dates, so this is the closest sign of a full year. Total pay is gross wages before tax, including overtime, lump sums and other pay. Every figure covers at least 5 people.
- Louisville Metro Government, Louisville Metro KY Employee Salary Data (Louisville Open Data): title, department, annual rate, base pay, overtime, incentive and other pay of every Louisville Metro employee in 2025, and in 2024 to see who was already employed.
- Louisville/Jefferson County Metro Government and River City FOP Lodge 614, Police Officers and Sergeants agreement (July 2023 to June 2027), salary schedule: the Police Officer and Police Sergeant pay scales; the range shown is the one in force from July 2025, at the end of the pay year.