SOC 33-3021 · Protective Service Occupations · May 2025

How much do Detectives and Criminal Investigators make in El Paso, TX?

In the May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics estimates, released May 15, 2026, the median annual wage for Detectives and Criminal Investigators in El Paso, TX is $109,300. The 10th percentile is $56,620 and the 90th percentile is $140,500. Employment is 1,790.

Median annual wage

$109,300

10th percentile
$56,620
25th percentile
$79,380
Median
$109,300
75th percentile
$109,300
90th percentile
$140,500
Mean
$100,100

Annual wage from the May 2025 OEWS estimates.

An auto mechanic working on a car engine
An auto mechanic working on an engine. Photograph by Okpashira. Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0

Percentile spread

For Detectives and Criminal Investigators, the published 10th percentile is $56,620 and the 90th percentile is $140,500. The difference is $83,880, which is 76.7% of the median. Ten percent of measured wages fall below the 10th percentile and ten percent fall above the 90th. How to read a percentile.

The middle half of the distribution, from the 25th percentile at $79,380 to the 75th at $109,300, covers $29,920.

The mean annual wage is $100,100, which sits below the median of $109,300. Median and mean measure different points in the same distribution.

National and state comparison

The El Paso, TX median is 16.5% higher than the national median of $93,790 for Detectives and Criminal Investigators. In 2024 national prices the local median is $121,563, which is 29.6% higher than that same national median. The national figure is already in national prices because the United States parity is 100.

It is 20.8% higher than the Texas median of $90,510.

Price-adjusted pay

The 2024 all-items regional price parity for El Paso, TX is 89.912, with the United States at 100. The Bureau of Economic Analysis released those parities on February 19, 2026. Dividing the May 2025 median of $109,300 by that parity and multiplying by 100 puts Detectives and Criminal Investigators at $121,563 in national prices. The wage year and the price year are different. Compare this wage after prices.

Nearby metros

One other metropolitan area within 200 miles publishes a annual median for Detectives and Criminal Investigators. El Paso, TX ranks 1st of 2 on that median, counting itself. Distance is the great-circle mileage between Census Bureau internal points (U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 Gazetteer Files, Core Based Statistical Areas, internal points (INTPTLAT, INTPTLONG).).

  • Las Cruces, NM is 96 miles away, with a median of $106,330 and employment of 560. That median is 2.7% lower than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $117,867, against $121,563 here.

Employment share

Detectives and Criminal Investigators accounts for 0.53% of wage-and-salary employment in El Paso, TX (1,790 of 339,120). Nationally the occupation is 0.07% of employment (114,430 of 155,495,730). The local share is 7.17 times the national share. That ratio is the location quotient computed from these May 2025 employment counts. It is not copied from the location-quotient column in the BLS bulk file.

Highest-paying jobs in El Paso, TX · Detectives and Criminal Investigators by metro · How to read these percentiles · Median and mean · When a wage is not published · How the figures are made · Compare this wage after prices

Questions this page answers

How much do Detectives and Criminal Investigators make in El Paso, TX?

In the May 2025 OEWS estimates, released May 15, 2026, the median annual wage for Detectives and Criminal Investigators in El Paso, TX is $109,300. The 10th percentile is $56,620 and the 90th percentile is $140,500. Employment is 1,790.

How does that compare with the national median for Detectives and Criminal Investigators?

The local median is 16.5% higher than the national median of $93,790.

What is Detectives and Criminal Investigators pay in El Paso, TX after local prices?

The 2024 all-items regional price parity for El Paso, TX is 89.912, with the United States at 100. In those national prices, the May 2025 median of $109,300 is $121,563. The wage is May 2025 and the parity is 2024.

How does El Paso, TX compare with nearby metros for Detectives and Criminal Investigators?

Las Cruces, NM is the closest metropolitan area within 200 miles with a published annual median, 96 miles away, at $106,330. El Paso, TX ranks 1st of 2 metros within 200 miles on that median. Distances use Census Bureau internal points.