City of Baltimore / Fire Dispatcher
Role across City of Baltimore
Fire Dispatcher
Carry out the duties of this position in support of the agency's public mission.
137 people hold the Fire Dispatcher role across 2 departments in City of Baltimore, with a median total compensation of $71,320. Among 4 jurisdictions where this role is reported, City of Baltimore ranks #2 by median pay.
- Employees
- 137
- Median pay
- $71,320
- Departments
- 2
- Cross-jurisdiction
- #2 of 4
Compared with the local labor market
Fire Dispatcher pay vs. the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD area
Across all employers in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD area, the median wage for Public Safety Telecommunicators — about 780 people — is $61,080. City of Baltimore pays a median base salary of $71,320 for this role, 17% above that figure — about the 76th percentile of local pay for the occupation.
Where City of Baltimore sits in the local pay range
The bar is the range of annual wages for Public Safety Telecommunicators across every employer in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD area, from the 10th to the 90th percentile, with the middle 50% highlighted. The marker shows City of Baltimore’s median base salary for this role. Both figures are base pay only.
And across the country
Nationwide, the median wage for Public Safety Telecommunicators — about 102,500 people — is $53,040. City of Baltimore’s median base salary is 34% above that national figure, about the 82nd percentile of pay for the occupation nationally.
Local and national wages differ for reasons beyond how well a job pays — cost of living, the mix of employers, and local demand for the occupation all move the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD range relative to the national one.
Median total compensation for this role at City of Baltimore is $71,320, which includes overtime and employer-paid benefits. The benchmark above excludes both, so total compensation is deliberately not compared against it.
Benchmark: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2025). BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) covers all employers in the area — private, non-profit, and government alike — so this is a comparison against the whole local labor market for the occupation, not against private-sector pay. OEWS wages are straight-time pay and exclude overtime, shift differentials, and employer-paid benefits, so the government figure shown here is base pay on the same basis. Total compensation is not comparable to it. Job titles are matched to the closest standard occupation, so the comparison is between similar work rather than an identical job classification.
Compare jurisdictions
Fire Dispatcher pay in other jurisdictions
Where Fire Dispatchers are paid most
Median total compensation for comparable Fire Dispatcherroles in other jurisdictions (highest first). Titles are matched by normalized name across sources, not by identical job classification, and pay is not cost-of-living adjusted. Each bar links to that jurisdiction’s page for this role.
Within City of Baltimore
Departments with this role
Largest City of Baltimore departments for this role
Departments in City of Baltimoreemploying the most people in this role. Each bar links to that department’s page for the role.