Basic Firefighter Salary
$28.5K - $35K
5% of jobs
$35K - $41.5K
10% of jobs
$45.5K is the 25th percentile. Wages below this are outliers.
$41.5K - $48K
17% of jobs
The median wage is $53.9K / yr.
$48K - $54.5K
20% of jobs
$54.5K - $61K
14% of jobs
$67K is the 75th percentile. Wages above this are outliers.
$61K - $67.5K
10% of jobs
$67.5K - $74K
8% of jobs
$74K - $80.5K
5% of jobs
$80.5K - $87K
5% of jobs
$87K - $93.5K
3% of jobs
$93.5K - $100K
3% of jobs
$28.5K
$54.5K
$100K
$59,606
/year
$28.66
/hour
Basic Firefighter Salary Comparison by Location
Nationwide
United States
$59,606
Columbus
Ohio
$57,574
Do you get a good deal as a Basic Firefighter?
Take The Breakroom Quiz to find out if your job offers fair pay and conditions. The 3-minute quiz lets you compare your pay, hours, benefits, and more.
Take The Breakroom Quiz
How much does a Basic Firefighter make?
As of Sep 14, 2026, the average annual pay for a Basic Firefighter in the United States is $59,606 a year.
Just in case you need a simple salary calculator, that works out to be approximately $28.66 an hour. This is the equivalent of $1,146/week or $4,967/month.
While ZipRecruiter is seeing annual salaries as high as $100,000 and as low as $28,500, the majority of Basic Firefighter salaries currently range between $45,500 (25th percentile) to $69,000 (75th percentile) with top earners (90th percentile) making $88,500 annually across the United States. The average pay range for a Basic Firefighter varies greatly (by as much as 23500), which suggests there may be many opportunities for advancement and increased pay based on skill level, location and years of experience.
A Basic Firefighter in your area makes on average $57,574 per year, or $2,032 (3.409%) less than the national average annual salary of $59,606. Ohio ranks number 30 out of 50 states nationwide for Basic Firefighter salaries.
To estimate the most accurate annual salary range for Basic Firefighter jobs, ZipRecruiter continuously scans its database of millions of active jobs published locally throughout America.
Find your next high paying job as a Basic Firefighter on ZipRecruiter today.
What are Top 10 Highest Paying Cities for Basic Firefighter Jobs
We've identified 10 cities where the typical salary for a Basic Firefighter job is above the national average. Topping the list is Andrews, MD, , with Barrow, AK, and Hettinger, ND, close behind in the second and third positions. Hettinger, ND, beats the national average by $14,069 (23.6%), and Andrews, MD, furthers that trend with another $16,344 (27.4%) above the $59,606 average.
With these 10 cities having average salaries higher than the national average, the opportunities for economic advancement by changing locations as a Basic Firefighter appears to be exceedingly fruitful.
Finally, another factor to consider is the average salary for these top 10 cities varies very little at 8% between Andrews, MD, and Sunnyvale, CA, , reinforcing the limited potential for much wage advancement. The possibility of a lower cost of living may be the best factor to use when considering location and salary for a Basic Firefighter role.
City | Annual Salary | Hourly Wage |
|---|---|---|
Andrews, MD | $75,950 | $36.51 |
Barrow, AK | $74,256 | $35.70 |
Hettinger, ND | $73,675 | $35.42 |
Berkeley, CA | $72,984 | $35.09 |
Dennis, MA | $72,831 | $35.01 |
Hanalei, HI | $72,080 | $34.65 |
Funk, NE | $70,795 | $34.04 |
San Francisco, CA | $70,078 | $33.69 |
Santa Clara, CA | $70,004 | $33.66 |
Sunnyvale, CA | $69,957 | $33.63 |
What are Top 0 Best Paying Related Basic Firefighter Jobs in the U.S.
Analyzing some similar jobs related to the Basic Firefighter job category, we found that related job jobs have average salaries similar than Basic Firefighter jobs.
Job Title | Annual Salary | Hourly Wage |
|---|
About Our Data
ZipRecruiter salary estimates, histograms, trends and comparisons are derived from both employer job postings and third party data sources.
