Protective Service
Firefighters
Control and extinguish fires or respond to emergency situations where life, property, or the environment is at risk. Duties may include fire prevention, emergency medical service, hazardous material response, search and rescue, and disaster assistance.
MAY 2025 · OCCUPATIONAL WAGES
A wage reference for United States.
Published wage percentiles describe a distribution within the source occupation group. They provide context for a career decision; employer packages and job offers have their own terms.
Source wage group: Firefighters
This wage group may include multiple detailed occupations. The figures are for the source group, which may be broader than Firefighters. They are not an exact-title, employer, experience or seniority match.
May 2025 · USD · United States. Annual and hourly figures are shown only when the source publishes them; neither is calculated from the other.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics occupational wage data, distributed through the O*NET® OnLine service.
Median annual wage$59,280USD per year · Published 50th percentile
Median hourly wage$28.50USD per hour · Published 50th percentile
Annual wage thresholds
USD per year
Hourly wage thresholds
USD per hour
| Percentile | Annual wage (USD/year) | Hourly wage (USD/hour) |
|---|---|---|
| 10th | $34,910 | $16.79 |
| 25th | $44,490 | $21.39 |
| 50th · Median | $59,280 | $28.50 |
| 75th | $77,250 | $37.14 |
| 90th | $101,040 | $48.58 |
“≥” means at least the published amount; “≤” means at most that amount. These are bounds, not exact values. “Not published” means the source did not provide that figure. Occupational wages follow the source definition and do not establish an employer’s base salary, equity or total compensation.
PUT A WAGE IN CONTEXT
Where does your number sit?
Compare an entered wage with the published thresholds for United States. Your entry stays on this page.
This compares wage amounts to published percentile thresholds. It does not estimate your personal percentile, adjust for your experience, or compare total compensation. Match the wage definition and occupation group before using the result.
THE WORK BEHIND THE TITLE
What this career involves.
Occupation definitions describe common work. Responsibilities and requirements vary by employer and specific job.
Selected title examples
Airport FirefighterCrash Fire FirefighterFire Apparatus EngineerFire Chief AideFire Engine Pump OperatorFire EngineerFire Equipment OperatorFire Hydrant OperatorFire Management SpecialistFire MedicFire Rescue Technician (Fire Rescue Tech)Fire Suppression Technician (Fire Suppression Tech)
Expand more title examples (22)
Fire Technician (Fire Tech)Fireboat OperatorFirefighter DiverFirefighter ParamedicFiremanForest Fire Suppression SpecialistForest FirefighterForestry Fire Technician (Forestry Fire Tech)Hot ShotMarine FirefighterMunicipal FirefighterOil Fire SpecialistOn-Scene SupporterRescue FirefighterSmoke ChaserSmoke EaterSmoke JumperVolunteer FirefighterWater and Fire Technician (Water and Fire Tech)Wildland FirefighterWildland Firefighter SpecialistWildland Specialist Firefighter
Typical tasks
- Rescue survivors from burning buildings, accident sites, and water hazards.
- Administer first aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation to injured persons or provide emergency medical care such as basic or advanced life support.
- Dress with equipment such as fire-resistant clothing and breathing apparatus.
- Move toward the source of a fire, using knowledge of types of fires, construction design, building materials, and physical layout of properties.
- Drive and operate fire fighting vehicles and equipment.
- Respond to fire alarms and other calls for assistance, such as automobile and industrial accidents.
Expand more tasks (24)
- Search to locate fire survivors.
- Operate pumps connected to high-pressure hoses.
- Maintain contact with fire dispatchers at all times to notify them of the need for additional firefighters and supplies, or to detail any difficulties encountered.
- Extinguish flames and embers to suppress fires, using shovels or engine- or hand-driven water or chemical pumps.
- Maintain knowledge of current firefighting practices by participating in drills and by attending seminars, conventions, and conferences.
- Select and attach hose nozzles, depending on fire type, and direct streams of water or chemicals onto fires.
- Collaborate with other firefighters as a member of a firefighting crew.
- Train new employees to control and suppress fires.
- Position and climb ladders to gain access to upper levels of buildings, or to rescue individuals from burning structures.
- Create openings in buildings for ventilation or entrance, using axes, chisels, crowbars, electric saws, or core cutters.
- Participate in fire drills and demonstrations of fire fighting techniques.
- Assess fires and situations and report conditions to superiors to receive instructions, using two-way radios.
- Inspect fire sites after flames have been extinguished to ensure that there is no further danger.
- Patrol burned areas after fires to locate and eliminate hot spots that may restart fires.
- Take action to contain any hazardous chemicals that could catch fire, leak, or spill.
- Prepare written reports that detail specifics of fire incidents.
- Protect property from water and smoke, using waterproof salvage covers, smoke ejectors, and deodorants.
- Inspect buildings for fire hazards and compliance with fire prevention ordinances, testing and checking smoke alarms and fire suppression equipment as necessary.
- Collaborate with police to respond to accidents, disasters, and arson investigation calls.
- Salvage property by removing broken glass, pumping out water, and ventilating buildings to remove smoke.
- Clean and maintain fire stations and fire fighting equipment and apparatus.
- Inform and educate the public on fire prevention.
- Participate in physical training activities to maintain a high level of physical fitness.
- Orient self in relation to fire, using compass and map, and collect supplies and equipment dropped by parachute.
Skills used in this work
- Coordination
- Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
- Active Learning
- Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
- Active Listening
- Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
- Critical Thinking
- Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
- Monitoring
- Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
Expand more skills (29)
- Service Orientation
- Actively looking for ways to help people.
- Speaking
- Talking to others to convey information effectively.
- Complex Problem Solving
- Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
- Social Perceptiveness
- Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
- Operation and Control
- Controlling operations of equipment or systems.
- Operations Monitoring
- Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
- Reading Comprehension
- Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
- Time Management
- Managing one's own time and the time of others.
- Learning Strategies
- Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
- Equipment Maintenance
- Performing routine maintenance on equipment and determining when and what kind of maintenance is needed.
- Instructing
- Teaching others how to do something.
- Systems Analysis
- Determining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes.
- Equipment Selection
- Determining the kind of tools and equipment needed to do a job.
- Persuasion
- Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
- Troubleshooting
- Determining causes of operating errors and deciding what to do about it.
- Writing
- Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
- Negotiation
- Bringing others together and trying to reconcile differences.
- Quality Control Analysis
- Conducting tests and inspections of products, services, or processes to evaluate quality or performance.
- Systems Evaluation
- Identifying measures or indicators of system performance and the actions needed to improve or correct performance, relative to the goals of the system.
- Mathematics
- Using mathematics to solve problems.
- Management of Material Resources
- Obtaining and seeing to the appropriate use of equipment, facilities, and materials needed to do certain work.
- Management of Personnel Resources
- Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.
- Repairing
- Repairing machines or systems using the needed tools.
- Science
- Using scientific rules and methods to solve problems.
- Management of Financial Resources
- Determining how money will be spent to get the work done, and accounting for these expenditures.
- Technology Design
- Generating or adapting equipment and technology to serve user needs.
- Operations Analysis
- Analyzing needs and product requirements to create a design.
- Programming
- Writing computer programs for various purposes.
- Installation
- Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or programs to meet specifications.
FIND YOUR MARKET
United States wage reference Explore wages by location.
523 retained state and local wage references are available. Start with these selected locations, or search the full market directory for this career.
Selected states
Selected metro and nonmetro areas
Browse all wage markets
Available links reflect retained source coverage for this career.
TURN CONTEXT INTO A NEXT STEP
Find the next step that fits.
Look at current disclosed job ranges, explore supported employer salary evidence, or build a proposed hiring range with your own assumptions.