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Security Guards pay in Arizona and District of Columbia
The May 2025 BLS OEWS median for Security Guards is $38,290 per year in Arizona. It is $64,210 per year in District of Columbia. Arizona is 40.4% below District of Columbia on the published median.
Both rows use SOC 33-9032 and the same annual wage metric. Median means the middle of each area's published wage spread. It is not one worker's pay. The larger median is not proof that one place gives a better job or a better result. It is one wage fact from one source period.
BLS lists 29,820 wage and salary jobs in Arizona and 15,880 in District of Columbia. Those are survey job counts, not open posts. Read pay, job scale, local share, and price level as separate facts before you make a choice.
Evidence: bls-oews-may-2025 · Rule: same-soc-same-metric-pair · nominal-median-gap · employment-not-openings