The Boston Police Department (BPD) traces its roots to a 1631 night watch and was formally commissioned in 1838, making it one of the oldest municipal police forces in the country. Today the BPD serves a city of more than 670,000 residents and frames its work around community policing — partnering with neighborhoods to reduce crime and improve quality of life across Boston.1,2 The department employs just over 2,000 sworn officers and is actively working to refill open positions, with reported losses outpacing new hires in recent years.3 Candidates interested in joining the department will find the application, training, and pay information for Boston police officers below.

Boston Police Officer Requirements

The City of Boston, working through the Massachusetts Civil Service Unit, sets the eligibility standards for sworn officer candidates. To be considered for a Boston Police Academy class, an applicant must meet the following minimum criteria:

  • Hold a valid Massachusetts driver’s license
  • Be at least 19 years old on the date of the written exam and no older than 39; recruits must be 21 by the day they enter the academy
  • Have a high school diploma or GED, or three years of US military service ending in an honorable discharge
  • Have lived in the City of Boston for at least one year before the date of the exam

After meeting the baseline criteria, candidates register and sit for the Massachusetts Municipal Police Officer Civil Service Examination, scheduled by the state’s Human Resources Division. Those who pass the written test sign the eligibility list and may apply during an open BPD hiring period. Applicants the city advances to the next stage complete a background investigation, drug screening, and review with the Recruit Investigations Unit before any conditional offer is issued. Conditional candidates then clear a medical exam, a psychological evaluation, the state Physical Ability Test (PAT), and the Recruit Officer Course (ROC) Entry-Level Fitness Standards adopted in 2023 by the Municipal Police Training Committee — a four-event battery covering one-minute push-ups, a 30-second plank, a 1.5-mile run/walk, and a 300-meter run.4 Those who pass each stage in turn receive an invitation to attend the Boston Police Academy.

For more information on the general process to become a police officer in a major US city, see 10 Steps to Becoming a Police Officer on our home page.

Boston Police Academy

The Boston Police Academy is a paid 29-week training program operated by the BPD and certified by the Municipal Police Training Committee (MPTC), the body that sets minimum training and education standards for police officers across Massachusetts. Recruits move through three integrated tracks: classroom academic instruction in criminal law and procedure, tactical training in defensive techniques and emergency response, and physical training and conditioning. Coursework covers procedural justice, de-escalation, crisis intervention, firearms, and emergency medical response. After graduating from the academy, officers move into a structured Field Training Officer (FTO) program of at least 12 weeks before they are assigned to full patrol duties.4,5

Salary, Benefits, and Jobs Outlook

Boston police officer base pay is set by the Boston Police Patrolmen’s Association (BPPA) collective bargaining agreement with the City of Boston. The schedule below shows the published BPPA day-shift base annual salary at each step.6

Service TimeAnnual Base SalaryMonthly Base
1st Year$78,326$6,527
2nd Year$87,240$7,270
3rd Year$96,161$8,013
5 Years (Longevity)$100,625$8,385
10 Years (Longevity)$105,087$8,757
15 Years (Longevity)$111,746$9,312
20 Years (Longevity)$114,014$9,501
25 Years (Longevity)$114,736$9,561

*Figures reflect the BPPA base day-shift schedule effective July 2022; subsequent contract escalators of 1.0% (FY24), 2.5% (FY25), and a 2.0% extension increase (FY26) apply on top of the figures shown.6,7

In addition to base pay, officers receive shift differentials for evening and night assignments, holiday pay, paid overtime, an annual uniform allowance, and Quinn Bill education incentives that add 10% for an associate’s degree, 20% for a bachelor’s, and 25% for a master’s in qualifying fields.6 Field Training Officers earn an additional $40 per week during each FTO program cycle.7 The BPD participates in the City of Boston’s municipal employee benefits program, which includes medical and dental benefit options, group life insurance, paid sick leave, paid time off, pre-tax public transportation deductions, and enrollment in the Boston Retirement System pension plan.

In Massachusetts, employment of police and sheriff’s patrol officers is projected to grow 5.5% from 2022 to 2032, with approximately 670 new positions added each year on average.8 According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH metropolitan area employed approximately 11,420 police and sheriff’s patrol officers as of May 2024, with a mean annual wage of $81,450.9

Find current Boston police officer listings on our jobs board.

Career Advancement at the Boston Police Department

All BPD recruits begin their careers as patrol officers. After gaining patrol experience, officers may pursue assignments in specialized units or test for promotion through the Massachusetts Civil Service promotional process. The traditional advancement track moves from Police Officer to Detective, Sergeant, Sergeant Detective, Lieutenant, Lieutenant Detective, and Captain, with command ranks of Deputy Superintendent and Superintendent appointed from the senior ranks.4 Sergeants represented by the BPPA receive a rank-based pay differential layered on top of the patrol officer scale, and detectives are covered separately by the Boston Police Detectives Benevolent Society contract, which the city most recently ratified as a five-year agreement on a parallel structure to the BPPA contract.6,10

Cities and Police Departments Near Boston

The Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH metropolitan area is one of the largest police labor markets in New England, with employment of police and sheriff’s patrol officers concentrated in Boston and the surrounding cities and towns.9 Candidates considering a law enforcement career in the region can also explore opportunities with the Cambridge Police Department, the Somerville Police Department, the Newton Police Department, and the Quincy Police Department. For more information about police departments across the state, see our Massachusetts page.

Additional Resources

Boston Police Department Contact

1. Boston Police Department, Join the BPD: https://police.boston.gov/joinbpd/
2. US Census Bureau, Vintage 2024 Population Estimates, Boston city, Massachusetts: https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/bostoncitymassachusetts/PST045224
3. Police1, “Boston sees continued rise in officer overtime as department struggles to recruit,” September 2024: https://www.police1.com/police-recruitment/boston-sees-continued-rise-in-officer-overtime-as-department-struggles-to-recruit
4. City of Boston, How to Become a Police Officer: https://www.boston.gov/departments/police/how-become-police-officer
5. City of Boston, Mayor Michelle Wu Announces a One-Year Contract Extension with Boston Police Patrolmen’s Association, November 2025: https://www.boston.gov/news/mayor-michelle-wu-announces-one-year-contract-extension-boston-police-patrolmens-association
6. Boston Police Patrolmen’s Association Executive Order and Salary Scale 2020-2024: https://www.boston.gov/sites/default/files/file/2025/08/BPPA%20Executive%20Order%20and%20Salary%20Scale%202020-2024.pdf
7. City of Boston, Operational Reforms in Boston’s New Police Union Contract: https://www.boston.gov/departments/mayors-office/operational-reforms-bostons-new-police-union-contract
8. Projections Central, Long-Term Occupational Projections, Massachusetts: https://projectionscentral.org/longterm
9. Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2024 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH: https://www.bls.gov/oes/2024/may/oes_14460.htm
10. City of Boston, Five-year Contract Ratified by Boston Police Detectives Benevolent Society: https://www.boston.gov/news/five-year-contract-ratified-boston-police-detectives-benevolent-society