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Average Police Captain Salary in Mexico for 2026

A police captain in Mexico earns about 524,700 MXN a year. That's 32% above the national average of 398,300 MXN.

Pay ranges widely from country to country and from role to role. The lowest reported salaries in Mexico sit around 282,300 MXN a year, while the very top stretches to 790,600 MXN. Everything on this page is in Mexican peso (MXN, symbol $), which lets you compare numbers like-for-like without worrying about exchange rates.

The numbers here are pulled together from official government wage data, large independent salary surveys, and aggregated worker-reported pay. Most reported salaries include the benefits that are common in Mexico, such as housing or transport allowances, which is worth keeping in mind if you're comparing against a country where those are usually paid on top.

How much does a police captain make in Mexico?

Average salary
524,700 MXN
43,725 MXN per month
Lowest reported
282,300 MXN
23,525 MXN per month
Highest reported
790,600 MXN
65,883 MXN per month

A typical police captain working in Mexico brings home around 43,725 MXN a month before tax. Entry-level pay starts near 282,300 MXN, and the top of the ladder reaches roughly 790,600 MXN for the most experienced and specialised people in the role.

The wide gap between low end and top end reflects how much pay can vary inside the same job title. A junior police captain working at a small local employer earns very different money from a senior at a multinational. Skills, employer, city and years in the seat all push the number around.

How police captain pay ranges in Mexico

A good way to think about salary in Mexico is to look at the distribution rather than the headline average. Half of all police captains in Mexico earn less than 483,400 MXN a year, and the other half earn more. That middle number is the median, and it is usually more useful than the average for answering "is my pay normal here".

Looking at the quartiles fills in the picture. A quarter of earners take home less than 345,100 MXN (the 25th percentile), and a quarter clear 585,900 MXN (the 75th percentile). The middle 50% of police captains sit somewhere inside that band, which is where the typical reader of this page probably lives.

The very lowest reported salaries sit around 282,300 MXN. The highest stretch to 790,600 MXN, though only a small fraction of earners ever reach that level. If you are deciding whether your own offer or current pay is reasonable, work out which of those four bands you would fall into and use that as your reference point.

282,300
Low
483,400
Median
790,600
High
345,100
25th
585,900
75th
The middle 50% sit between the 25th and 75th percentile Tails are the lowest and highest reported All figures in MXN

Police captain pay by experience in Mexico

Years of experience is the single biggest lever on pay for a police captain in Mexico, ahead of education and almost any other single factor. The longer you have been in the role, the more your employer can trust you to handle complexity, mentor others and act independently, all of which command higher pay. The chart below shows how the typical police captain salary changes as you move through the career ladder.

  • 0-2 Years
    327,300 MXN
  • 2-5 Years
    +27% from previous
    415,900 MXN
  • 5-10 Years
    +32% from previous
    548,800 MXN
  • 10-15 Years
    +17% from previous
    643,800 MXN
  • 15-20 Years
    +11% from previous
    714,600 MXN
  • 20+ Years
    +6% from previous
    756,700 MXN

The single largest jump on the ladder is from 2 - 5 Years to 5 - 10 Years, where pay rises by about 32%. That is the point at which a police captain typically goes from "competent in the role" to "the person other people in the team learn from", and the market pays well for that step.

Police captain pay by education in Mexico

Education sits alongside experience as one of the biggest factors driving police captain pay in Mexico. Higher qualifications consistently pull higher salaries, but the size of the gap tends to be smallest at junior levels and widens as people move up. Two people in the same role with the same years of experience but different degrees can end up earning very different money once they reach mid-career.

Below is the average police captain salary in Mexico broken down by the highest level of education a worker has completed.

  • High School
    415,900 MXN
  • Certificate or Diploma
    +36% from previous
    566,900 MXN
  • Bachelor's Degree
    +29% from previous
    732,400 MXN

Police captain gender pay gap in Mexico

The gender pay gap is a stubborn feature of almost every labour market, and Mexico is no exception. Male police captains in Mexico earn an average of 539,700 MXN a year, while female police captains earn around 500,100 MXN. That works out to a 8% gap in favour of men, even when comparing people doing the same work.

A pay gap of this size has a real long-term cost. Over a typical thirty-year career it can add up to several years of pay, and it compounds through pensions, retirement contributions and bonus-linked stock. Some of the gap is explained by women being more likely to work part-time, take career breaks, or be steered toward lower-paying specialisations. Some of it is straightforward unequal pay for the same job, which is harder to defend.

Police Captain gender pay gap

7%

Men earn this much more than women on average in Mexico.

Men 539,700 MXN
Women 500,100 MXN

Pay raises for a police captain in Mexico

Most countries hand out at least some kind of pay raise every year, typically when an employee's contract is reviewed or as a cost-of-living adjustment to keep wages roughly in step with inflation. The rhythm and size of those raises varies hugely between industries.

A typical worker doing this role in Mexico sees a raise of about 10% every 21 months, which works out to roughly 6% on an annual basis. That figure is the typical underlying rate; in years where inflation runs high you can usually expect a bit more, and in flat-economy years a bit less.

Across all jobs in Mexico, the national average raise is around 8% every 18 months.

By industry

Industries with the highest pay raises in Mexico:

  • Banking
  • Energy
  • Information Technology
  • Healthcare
  • Travel
    2%
  • Construction
  • Education
    1%

By experience level

Experienced workers tend to see larger raises. Retaining a senior is cheaper than replacing them, so employers fight harder for them.

  • Junior Level
    3% - 5%
  • Mid-Career
  • Senior Level
  • Top Management

Police captain bonus rates in Mexico

Bonuses are the other half of total compensation, and they vary a lot between jobs and industries. Some roles are paid almost entirely in base salary; others lean heavily on bonus structures tied to revenue, project completion or company performance. Whether a job pays a bonus, how big it is, and how often it lands all factor into whether the headline salary is actually a good offer.

26%

26% of police captains in Mexico reported a bonus of some kind in the past twelve months. That makes a police captain a low-bonus role overall, which is useful context when you're weighing up a job offer where the base is below market.

Among those who did receive a bonus, the size of the payment varied substantially. Reported bonuses ranged from 1% to 2% of base salary. The remaining 74% of police captains reported no bonus at all over the same period.

Which careers pay bonuses in Mexico

Revenue-facing roles tend to pay the biggest bonuses. Operational and support roles tend toward smaller, more predictable ones.

  • Finance
  • Architecture
  • Sales
  • Business Development
  • Marketing / Advertising
  • Information Technology
  • Healthcare
  • Insurance
  • Customer Service
  • Human Resources
  • Construction
  • Transport
  • Hospitality

Police captain: public vs private sector pay

Public-sector pay in Mexico is about 8% more than private-sector pay for similar work. The private sector typically offers stronger upside and bigger bonuses; the public sector typically offers better benefits and stability.

Public vs private pay gap

8%

Public-sector workers earn this much more than private-sector workers in Mexico on average.

Public sector 415,900 MXN
Private sector 384,200 MXN

Police captain salary by city in Mexico

Police captain pay is not even across Mexico. The chart below shows the highest-paying cities in the dataset, followed by the full location table.

  • Mexico City
  • Ecatepec de Morelos
  • Leon
  • Puebla
  • Guadalajara
  • Zapopan
  • Tijuana
  • Chihuahua
  • Monterrey
  • Nezahualcoyotl
LocationTypeAverageMedianRange
Mexico CityCity681,900 MXN626,800 MXN367,900-1,027,600 MXN
Ecatepec de MorelosCity681,500 MXN722,100 MXN319,600-1,078,200 MXN
LeonCity680,100 MXN680,100 MXN340,400-1,051,400 MXN
PueblaCity680,100 MXN664,500 MXN345,700-1,043,600 MXN
GuadalajaraCity679,200 MXN692,500 MXN332,500-1,058,800 MXN
ZapopanCity675,200 MXN619,800 MXN363,000-1,021,800 MXN
TijuanaCity675,100 MXN633,300 MXN357,700-1,025,100 MXN
ChihuahuaCity674,100 MXN687,100 MXN330,700-1,048,100 MXN
MonterreyCity671,000 MXN698,200 MXN322,600-1,057,100 MXN
NezahualcoyotlCity670,600 MXN642,800 MXN349,300-1,023,400 MXN
NaucalpanCity665,300 MXN707,600 MXN314,500-1,053,900 MXN
CuliacanCity618,800 MXN580,600 MXN327,800-939,000 MXN
SaltilloCity605,700 MXN641,900 MXN282,500-956,200 MXN
AguascalientesCity605,700 MXN605,700 MXN301,600-939,000 MXN
HermosilloCity603,400 MXN555,800 MXN325,900-909,300 MXN
MeridaCity600,000 MXN589,400 MXN307,400-925,900 MXN
CancunCity597,800 MXN575,100 MXN312,400-917,200 MXN
MexicaliCity596,800 MXN573,500 MXN312,400-913,400 MXN
ChimalhuacanCity596,100 MXN548,800 MXN320,500-899,100 MXN
AcapulcoCity595,300 MXN607,400 MXN292,000-931,900 MXN
San Luis PotosiCity592,600 MXN641,900 MXN275,200-942,700 MXN
QueretaroCity590,200 MXN638,700 MXN272,800-938,700 MXN
GuadalupeCity587,800 MXN552,400 MXN312,400-894,500 MXN
DurangoCity587,800 MXN587,800 MXN294,300-913,400 MXN
ReynosaCity585,900 MXN619,800 MXN275,800-926,000 MXN
TorreonCity585,900 MXN608,500 MXN281,500-918,600 MXN
Tlalnepantla de BazCity585,900 MXN607,400 MXN281,500-919,700 MXN
MoreliaCity581,000 MXN572,200 MXN299,500-899,100 MXN
TlaquepaqueCity581,000 MXN581,000 MXN292,000-903,500 MXN
Tuxtla GutierrezCity581,000 MXN592,600 MXN283,700-907,100 MXN
Ciudad ApodacaCity581,000 MXN615,300 MXN275,200-918,500 MXN
Ciudad Lopez MateosCity580,600 MXN628,000 MXN267,100-922,300 MXN
Cuautitlan IzcalliCity578,500 MXN565,100 MXN294,700-889,400 MXN
TolucaCity576,500 MXN598,600 MXN275,500-906,500 MXN
MatamorosCity575,100 MXN528,600 MXN312,400-868,400 MXN
IrapuatoCity572,200 MXN596,100 MXN273,000-899,100 MXN
XalapaCity571,300 MXN582,700 MXN281,500-894,500 MXN
TonalaCity566,900 MXN556,000 MXN288,700-874,500 MXN
General EscobedoCity566,900 MXN535,800 MXN301,300-864,900 MXN
San Nicolas de los GarzaCity566,900 MXN535,800 MXN301,300-864,900 MXN
VeracruzCity566,900 MXN545,300 MXN296,000-869,400 MXN
Nuevo LaredoCity563,300 MXN612,500 MXN261,300-899,200 MXN
VillahermosaCity563,000 MXN563,000 MXN281,500-874,300 MXN
MazatlanCity562,600 MXN529,600 MXN297,000-858,400 MXN
CelayaCity559,000 MXN592,600 MXN263,900-887,100 MXN
Ciudad ObregonCity559,000 MXN535,800 MXN288,700-852,600 MXN
TepicCity559,000 MXN545,300 MXN282,500-860,300 MXN
XicoCity558,300 MXN516,100 MXN301,600-844,600 MXN
CuernavacaCity553,800 MXN533,100 MXN286,400-848,200 MXN
IxtapalucaCity553,400 MXN597,800 MXN254,800-883,500 MXN
Ciudad VictoriaCity552,400 MXN552,400 MXN275,800-855,200 MXN
Villa Nicolas RomeroCity548,800 MXN516,100 MXN288,700-830,500 MXN
EnsenadaCity547,800 MXN581,000 MXN257,700-868,400 MXN
TampicoCity545,300 MXN556,000 MXN267,100-852,900 MXN
Gomez PalacioCity544,800 MXN588,500 MXN251,500-862,400 MXN
CoacalcoCity543,200 MXN566,900 MXN263,200-854,300 MXN
Ciudad Santa CatarinaCity543,200 MXN555,800 MXN267,100-849,200 MXN
UruapanCity539,800 MXN559,000 MXN259,100-846,500 MXN
OaxacaCity529,600 MXN518,900 MXN271,300-816,000 MXN
TehuacanCity528,600 MXN528,600 MXN263,900-818,100 MXN
PachucaCity525,700 MXN485,300 MXN282,500-795,700 MXN
Los MochisCity498,500 MXN524,300 MXN232,400-782,500 MXN
AcunaCity492,700 MXN504,400 MXN240,500-772,700 MXN
Ojo de AguaCity491,000 MXN510,300 MXN233,900-769,500 MXN
Los Reyes la PazCity491,000 MXN450,300 MXN265,000-741,500 MXN
Soledad de Graciano SanchezCity483,400 MXN492,400 MXN237,400-751,700 MXN
La PazCity480,600 MXN440,200 MXN259,100-724,000 MXN
CoatzacoalcosCity475,700 MXN454,900 MXN246,500-727,400 MXN
MetepecCity475,700 MXN513,300 MXN217,900-754,900 MXN
CampecheCity472,100 MXN466,300 MXN239,300-728,500 MXN
MonclovaCity471,700 MXN440,200 MXN251,500-714,300 MXN
ChilpancingoCity466,300 MXN433,800 MXN246,200-706,200 MXN
NogalesCity466,300 MXN444,300 MXN239,300-710,500 MXN
Puerto VallartaCity464,900 MXN492,700 MXN221,500-735,200 MXN
BuenavistaCity464,900 MXN501,400 MXN214,000-743,300 MXN
San Pablo de las SalinasCity464,400 MXN445,100 MXN239,000-707,700 MXN
San Cristobal de las CasasCity462,300 MXN433,400 MXN245,300-704,300 MXN
TapachulaCity459,700 MXN459,700 MXN228,000-710,500 MXN
Ciudad JuarezCity459,300 MXN498,500 MXN209,500-732,400 MXN
Poza RicaCity453,200 MXN460,500 MXN222,300-706,200 MXN
Cholula de RivadabiaCity453,200 MXN471,700 MXN216,800-710,500 MXN
ChalcoCity451,000 MXN459,300 MXN218,900-702,800 MXN
Ciudad del CarmenCity450,300 MXN450,300 MXN225,300-698,200 MXN
Playa del CarmenCity450,300 MXN431,300 MXN233,600-691,200 MXN
ChicoloapanCity448,500 MXN437,900 MXN227,600-691,200 MXN
San Luis Rio ColoradoCity447,700 MXN466,900 MXN215,100-705,500 MXN
JiutepecCity447,700 MXN414,000 MXN240,500-677,100 MXN
SalamancaCity447,300 MXN437,300 MXN227,600-688,900 MXN
ChetumalCity445,100 MXN445,100 MXN222,300-689,900 MXN
Piedras NegrasCity436,200 MXN472,000 MXN201,100-694,700 MXN
Boca del RioCity433,800 MXN399,900 MXN233,900-658,300 MXN
CuautlaCity433,400 MXN460,500 MXN205,700-687,100 MXN
ColimaCity431,300 MXN424,900 MXN218,900-665,300 MXN
CordobaCity431,100 MXN414,000 MXN221,500-659,400 MXN
ManzanilloCity431,100 MXN455,400 MXN201,100-679,200 MXN
San Juan del RioCity430,000 MXN448,500 MXN207,800-677,100 MXN
Zamora de HidalgoCity428,400 MXN453,200 MXN200,000-675,100 MXN
Ciudad VallesCity428,400 MXN411,400 MXN222,300-653,200 MXN
DeliciasCity425,100 MXN399,900 MXN225,300-646,600 MXN
IgualaCity421,400 MXN426,700 MXN204,000-653,200 MXN
FresnilloCity419,400 MXN382,600 MXN225,300-633,100 MXN
ZacatecasCity417,100 MXN394,800 MXN222,300-638,700 MXN
GuaymasCity412,000 MXN426,700 MXN197,600-648,200 MXN
OrizabaCity411,400 MXN411,400 MXN204,000-638,700 MXN
San Pedro Garza GarciaCity409,000 MXN440,200 MXN189,300-649,700 MXN
MinatitlanCity409,000 MXN401,300 MXN208,600-633,100 MXN
Hidalgo del ParralCity407,300 MXN407,300 MXN205,700-631,200 MXN
NavojoaCity404,600 MXN436,200 MXN187,300-645,800 MXN

Police Captain in Mexico: FAQs

  • How much does a police captain make per month in Mexico?

    A police captain in Mexico earns about 43,725 MXN a month before tax, based on an annual average of 524,700 MXN.

  • What's the salary range for a police captain in Mexico?

    Entry-level police captains in Mexico start near 282,300 MXN. Top-end pay reaches around 790,600 MXN. The middle 50% of earners sit between 345,100 and 585,900 MXN.

  • Is the median police captain salary in Mexico higher or lower than the average?

    The median is 483,400 MXN, lower than the average of 524,700 MXN. Half of police captains in Mexico earn below the median, half earn above it.

  • What's the gender pay gap for police captains in Mexico?

    Men working as a police captain in Mexico earn around 8% more than women on average (539,700 vs 500,100 MXN a year).

  • Do police captains in Mexico get bonuses?

    About 26% of police captains in Mexico reported a bonus in the past 12 months. Reported bonuses ranged from 1% to 2% of base salary.

  • Do police captains earn more in the public or private sector in Mexico?

    In Mexico, the public sector pays a police captain about 8% more on average. Public-sector pay tends to be steadier; private-sector pay tends to offer bigger upside.

  • How often do police captains in Mexico get a pay raise?

    A police captain in Mexico sees a raise of around 10% every 21 months, equivalent to roughly 6% a year.