Protective Service Occupations
BLS May 2025 wages Wide pay band SOC 33-2021

Fire Inspectors and Investigators

The published band from $46,530 to $118,750 is the distinctive signal for this role, not a twin of First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives.

Full salary details → About this data

Same-major-group titles next to Fire Inspectors and Investigators: First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives ($106K) , Correctional Officers and Jailers ($59K) , First-Line Supervisors of Protective Service Workers, All Other ($76K) , Transportation Security Screeners ($67K) . Hash-ordered per card so residual SOC siblings do not share an identical peer sentence.

What Fire Inspectors and Investigators publish as work

O*NET task statements for SOC 33-2021 - occupation-level descriptions, not every employer's posting. Sibling cards diverge here because the task set is entity-keyed.

  1. 1. Prepare and maintain reports of investigation results, and records of convicted arsonists and arson suspects
  2. 2. Testify in court cases involving fires, suspected arson, and false alarms
  3. 3. Package collected pieces of evidence in securely closed containers, such as bags, crates, or boxes, to protect them
  4. 4. Conduct inspections and acceptance testing of newly installed fire protection systems
  5. 5. Analyze evidence and other information to determine probable cause of fire or explosion
  6. 6. Subpoena and interview witnesses, property owners, and building occupants to obtain information and sworn testimony
  7. 7. Photograph damage and evidence related to causes of fires or explosions to document investigation findings
  8. 8. Inspect buildings to locate hazardous conditions and fire code violations, such as accumulations of combustible material, electrical wiri…
  9. 9. Examine fire sites and collect evidence such as glass, metal fragments, charred wood, and accelerant residue for use in determining the c…
  10. 10. Instruct children about the dangers of fire
  11. 11. Conduct fire code compliance follow-ups to ensure that corrective actions have been taken in cases where violations were found
  12. 12. Inspect properties that store, handle, and use hazardous materials to ensure compliance with laws, codes, and regulations, and issue haza…

Fire Inspectors and Investigators: O*NET ranks Active Listening first

Importance-ranked O*NET profile for SOC 33-2021 - lead skill Active Listening at 3.6 ; lead knowledge Public Safety and Security. Sibling cards diverge here even when peer titles overlap.

Top skills

  1. 1. Active Listening 3.6
  2. 2. Writing 3.5
  3. 3. Speaking 3.5
  4. 4. Critical Thinking 3.5
  5. 5. Reading Comprehension 3.4
  6. 6. Social Perceptiveness 3.4
  7. 7. Monitoring 3.3
  8. 8. Persuasion 3.3

Knowledge areas

  1. 1. Public Safety and Security 4.7
  2. 2. Customer and Personal Service 4.3
  3. 3. Building and Construction 4.2
  4. 4. Law and Government 4.1
  5. 5. Education and Training 4.0
  6. 6. English Language 3.7
Published pay band (10th to 90th)
$46,530 to $118,750
median $75,920 · ~2.6× spread
$76K
National median
↑ +4%
Growth 2024-2034
1,500
Annual openings
13,800
Estimated US jobs
First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives
Highest-pay peer · $106K

Typical Entry and Preparation Assignments

Entry education Postsecondary nondegree award
Related experience 5 years or more

Top Paying States for Fire Inspectors and Investigators

1. Colorado $85,750
2. California $99,230
3. Nevada $93,450
4. Washington $122,900
5. Maryland $98,730
6. Massachusetts $81,140
7. Texas $82,390
8. Oregon $115,080
9. Minnesota $84,410
10. Iowa $81,860

Other Protective Service Occupations titles

  1. 1. First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives $106,040
  2. 2. First-Line Supervisors of Protective Service Workers, All Other $76,400
  3. 3. Transportation Security Screeners $66,770
  4. 4. Detectives and Criminal Investigators $93,790
  5. 5. First-Line Supervisors of Firefighting and Prevention Workers $93,530
  6. 6. Correctional Officers and Jailers $58,940

The OEWS band for Fire Inspectors and Investigators runs from $46,530 (10th) to $118,750 (90th), about 2.6× wide, with median $75,920. That spread, not the midpoint alone, is the distinctive published fact.

Employment Projections expect +4% change between 2024 and 2034 (about as fast as average vs baseline 3.1%). About 1,500 annual openings are projected. BLS assigns Postsecondary nondegree award as typical education needed for entry and 5 years or more as the typical related-work-experience category. These are occupation-level assignments, not universal requirements. BLS does not publish a separate occupation-specific safety rate for this role; its broad SOC-group rate is excluded from this career card's grade.

Highest published state median in this ranking: Colorado at $85,750. The table records differences without proving causes. Highest-pay peer shown here: First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives at $106,040. Compare the same statistic in the relevant local wage area before treating the national median as a personal benchmark; OEWS excludes employer benefits.

Fire Inspectors and Investigators pay-rank #8 in Protective Service Occupations

Among 24 detailed Protective Service Occupations with a published OEWS median, Fire Inspectors and Investigators is pay-rank #8, the upper third of that major group. The order is ROW_NUMBER on national median (title as tiebreak), not a worker-level percentile.

Other upper-third titles · closest medians

Full Salary Details Compare this role

Data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025. Projections from BLS Employment Projections program, 2024-2034.

The 10th-to-90th percentile spread for Fire Inspectors and Investigators is unusually wide, so the state map and peer comparison carry more signal than the median alone.

Fire Inspectors and Investigators salary map

State, metro, and percentile for SOC 33-2021

Colorado · top state for Fire Inspectors and Investigators

$86K published median

California · #2 state pay

$99K · behind Colorado

First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives

Highest-pay peer vs Fire Inspectors and Investigators · $106K

Correctional Officers and Jailers

Lower-pay peer beside Fire Inspectors and Investigators · $59K

Compare Fire Inspectors and Investigators

Head-to-head OEWS medians with another SOC
Compare Fire Inspectors and Investigators with another occupation →

Pay-band next reads

Entry-Level vs Experienced Pay

What percentile bands reveal

Using Salary Data for Negotiation

Leverage BLS percentiles

Frequently Asked Questions

Which Protective Service Occupations titles sit near Fire Inspectors and Investigators at the top of the pay table? ▼
Fire Inspectors and Investigators is pay-rank #8 of 24 detailed Protective Service Occupations with an OEWS median, upper third. Nearest upper-third titles: Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers ($76K), First-Line Supervisors of Protective Service Workers, All Other ($76K), First-Line Supervisors of Correctional Officers ($78K), Transit and Railroad Police ($90K). Rank is ROW_NUMBER on national median.
What do fire inspectors and investigators do day to day? ▼
O*NET lists published task statements for Fire Inspectors and Investigators. Leading ones include: Prepare and maintain reports of investigation results, and records of convicted arsonists and arson suspects; Testify in court cases involving fires, suspected arson, and false alarms; Package collected pieces of evidence in securely closed containers, such as bags, crates, or boxes, to protect them; Conduct inspections and acceptance testing of newly installed fire protection systems. These are occupation-level task descriptions, not every employer's job description.
Which O*NET skills rank highest for fire inspectors and investigators? ▼
For SOC 33-2021, O*NET importance scores lead with Active Listening (3.6), Writing (3.5), Speaking (3.5), Critical Thinking (3.5). Knowledge areas emphasize Public Safety and Security, Customer and Personal Service, Building and Construction. These are occupation-level profiles, not a hiring checklist for every employer.
How wide is the published pay band for Fire Inspectors and Investigators? ▼
OEWS places the 10th percentile at $46,530 and the 90th at $118,750 for Fire Inspectors and Investigators (2.6× spread). The national median is $75,920. OEWS does not isolate experience, employer, or geography as the cause of that spread.
What employment change does BLS publish for Fire Inspectors and Investigators? ▼
The 2024-2034 projection for Fire Inspectors and Investigators is +4%. Projected annual openings: about 1,500. Relative to the current all-occupations baseline of 3.1%: about as fast as average.
What typical entry education does BLS assign to Fire Inspectors and Investigators? ▼
BLS assigns Postsecondary nondegree award as the typical-education-needed-for-entry category for Fire Inspectors and Investigators. Related-work-experience category: 5 years or more. These are occupation-level labels, not every employer's hiring rule.
Which three states show the highest OEWS medians for Fire Inspectors and Investigators? ▼
Colorado ($85,750), California ($99,230), Nevada ($93,450) lead this ranking. The table does not identify why those state estimates differ.

Source data and WageDex calculations are identified in context on this page. Wage and state figures use BLS OEWS May 2025; growth and education use BLS Employment Projections for 2024-2034; safety fields cite BLS CFOI/SOII; task statements cite O*NET where shown. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.

Disclaimer: Wage and outlook figures on this page are provided for informational purposes only and do not constitute career, financial, or salary-negotiation advice. Actual pay varies by employer, experience, and local conditions; consult a career counselor or the hiring employer for guidance specific to your situation.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OES Occupational wage estimates by area and industry · 2025

Federal sources on this Fire Inspectors and Investigators card
  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS / OES) - national median and percentiles for SOC 33-2021. bls.gov/oes
  • O*NET OnLine - task and skill statements for Fire Inspectors and Investigators. onetcenter.org
  • BLS Employment Projections - 2024-2034 change and openings for this occupation. bls.gov/emp
  • U.S. Census Bureau ACS - demographic and labor-force context for state and metro geography. census.gov/programs-surveys/acs
  • IRS Statistics of Income (SOI) - payroll-tax aggregate context for wage comparisons. irs.gov/statistics