Security Jobs in San Diego, CA

Government wage data shows the broad protective-service family in San Diego at $54,100 median and $69,060 mean in 2025, with a $38,120 25th percentile and a $92,500 75th percentile. A separate BLS metro release reported a $33.20 mean hourly wage for protective-service occupations versus $38.01 across all occupations locally. Current hourly online postings, however, cluster around about $20 to $23 / hour, which suggests the active ad mix skews toward lower-paid security and loss-prevention work rather than sworn roles.

Full September 2026 market report

Advertised pay

Across the 32 openings that disclose pay, the advertised range midpoint runs $42,185 at the 25th percentile, $50,190 at the median and $58,240 at the 75th. These are advertised ranges, not earned pay.

Active openings as of November 10, 2026

Senior roles | Entry level | Remote | Posted this week

Live from the Callings.ai index of over 13 million postings, refreshed hourly and re-checked here nightly. Roles that close are dropped at the next refresh.

Showing 30 of 37 openings.

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What our analysts see this month

Competitive market | next 3-6 months

This is a workable but selective market: San Diego's unemployment rate was 4.9% in August 2026 and metro nonfarm employment was up 0.7005% year over year, so the local economy is still adding jobs. But Protective Services & Public Safety is tighter than the overall market because California public-safety employment was down 1.5% year over year and active postings were down 17.4% year over year in September 2026, even as California postings across all occupations were up 2.6%. The best near-term demand is in fragmented on-site security, loss-prevention, campus, and community-safety roles, while sworn police jobs still show staffing pressure but much higher screening and longer timelines.

Best positioned: Candidates with a clean background, a valid California driver's license, current first-aid/CPR readiness, and either POST-track eligibility or documented report-writing and loss-prevention experience have the best odds right now.

Main caution: Do not mistake police salary headlines for the whole market; the current ad mix centers on about $20 to $23 / hour work, while the highest pay is concentrated in harder-to-enter sworn paths.

From the September 2026 market report

Who is hiring here

Counted across all 37 openings in this market. 7 of the employers below are hiring for more than one role right now.

1. AUS: 11 open roles
2. Lakesidefire: 2 open roles
3. Law Security, Inc.: 2 open roles
4. Securitas: 2 open roles
5. Securitas Security Services USA, Inc.: 2 open roles
6. SRG Senior Living: 2 open roles
7. TCI Transportation: 2 open roles
8. Angelo's Towing: 1 open role
9. Belmont Park: 1 open role
10. Chula Vista: 1 open role

Where the openings are

• San Diego: 25
• La Jolla: 2
• Chula Vista: 2
• El Cajon: 2
• San Diego County: 2
• Poway: 2
• Rancho San Diego: 1
• Santee: 1

Work arrangement

on-site 36 (100%)

Where the demand is

Most visible openings in San Diego are not concentrated in one giant employer or one public agency; the local sample shows more than 50 postings across more than 30 companies, and hiring is fragmented. Industry mix leans toward retail at about 35% and education at about 20%, followed by higher education, government administration, and non-profit organizations at about 10% each. That points to a practical near-term market centered on security officer, loss-prevention, campus/public-facing safety, and youth or community safety work rather than a single wave of police or fire hiring. The sworn side looks different. Chula Vista reported 28 police vacancies and said only 5% of applicants qualified in 2025, while San Diego's police union was still describing staffing and resource strain around a force of about 1,850 officers. Those are real openings, but they come with slower hiring, deeper background screening, fitness standards, and more paperwork than private-sector security roles. The Sheriff's new dispatch system supporting more than 3,200 staff is another sign that public-safety employers want candidates who can work inside modern digital workflows, not just field presence.

• Private security and loss prevention (high): This is the easiest entry lane right now: retail represents about 35% of visible demand, about 80% of postings are entry level, and hourly ads cluster around about $20 to $23 / hour.
• Campus, education, and nonprofit safety (moderate): Education accounts for about 20% of visible postings, higher education about 10%, and non-profit organizations about 10%, making this a solid lane for applicants with customer service, documentation, and community-facing experience.
• Sworn police, sheriff, fire, and lifeguard tracks (moderate): These roles offer the strongest upside, but access is narrower because agencies are screening hard; Chula Vista cited 28 vacancies but only 5% qualified applicants, while San Diego police and firefighters were still dealing with staffing and compensation pressure.

Where to focus: If you need income within 30-90 days, target retail and education security first while separately entering the longer sworn hiring pipeline.

Roles worth searching next

• Safety coordinator or EHS technician: It uses emergency-response awareness, documentation, and safety monitoring without requiring a full sworn pathway.
• Facilities or access-control coordinator: It builds on incident reporting, site awareness, and public-facing problem handling from security roles.
• Case manager or community outreach worker: Local postings already value case management and customer service, especially in nonprofit and education settings.
• Dispatch or communications specialist: It keeps you inside the public-safety ecosystem while leaning more on coordination, documentation, and systems use than on field presence.

What postings ask for

• Report writing (table_stakes | immediate): It is the most frequently requested hard skill in local postings, showing up in about 35% of the sample, and it also fits the shift toward AI-assisted reporting and documentation in public safety. Who: Everyone, especially security officers and applicants without prior sworn experience.
• Emergency response (table_stakes | immediate): Emergency response appears in about 30% of local postings, making it core across security, campus, aquatics, and public-facing roles. Who: Entry-level candidates, career switchers, and anyone targeting campus or community roles.
• First aid and CPR (table_stakes | immediate): First aid appears in about 20% of local postings and CPR in about 15%, while first aid for public safety personnel is also named among common certifications. Who: Entry-level candidates, aquatics applicants, and career switchers.
• Basic POST certificate (premium | near-term): The basic POST certificate is among the most commonly named credentials locally, and sworn departments are screening hard; Chula Vista said only 5% of applicants qualified in 2025. Who: Applicants targeting police, sheriff, or sworn public-agency roles.
• Valid California driver's license (table_stakes | immediate): A valid California driver's license, including Class C references, is one of the most common gatekeeping requirements in local ads. Who: Almost everyone in this category.
• Loss prevention (differentiator | immediate): Loss prevention appears in about 25% of local postings, which fits a market where retail accounts for about 35% of visible demand. Who: Candidates seeking faster entry through private-sector employers.

Questions about this market

What do Protective Services & Public Safety roles pay in San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA?

Government wage data shows the broad protective-service family in San Diego at $54,100 median and $69,060 mean in 2025, with a $38,120 25th percentile and a $92,500 75th percentile. A separate BLS metro release reported a $33.20 mean hourly wage for protective-service occupations versus $38.01 across all occupations locally. Current hourly online postings, however, cluster around about $20 to $23 / hour, which suggests the active ad mix skews toward lower-paid security and loss-prevention work rather than sworn roles. This is a split market: private security and entry roles often pay modestly, while sworn law-enforcement paths sit much higher; police and sheriff's patrol officers had a $107,400 median annual wage in the latest occupation-specific metro figure available, from May 2023.

Where is demand for Protective Services & Public Safety roles in San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA concentrated?

Most visible openings in San Diego are not concentrated in one giant employer or one public agency; the local sample shows more than 50 postings across more than 30 companies, and hiring is fragmented. Industry mix leans toward retail at about 35% and education at about 20%, followed by higher education, government administration, and non-profit organizations at about 10% each. That points to a practical near-term market centered on security officer, loss-prevention, campus/public-facing safety, and youth or community safety work rather than a single wave of police or fire hiring. The sworn side looks different. Chula Vista reported 28 police vacancies and said only 5% of applicants qualified in 2025, while San Diego's police union was still describing staffing and resource strain around a force of about 1,850 officers. Those are real openings, but they come with slower hiring, deeper background screening, fitness standards, and more paperwork than private-sector security roles. The Sheriff's new dispatch system supporting more than 3,200 staff is another sign that public-safety employers want candidates who can work inside modern digital workflows, not just field presence.

Which employers are hiring the most Protective Services & Public Safety talent in San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA?

Recent postings show the most activity from Costco Wholesale Corp. (10 postings), YMCA of San Diego (5 postings), San Diego State University (5 postings). See the full market report for the complete employer landscape.

How current are these listings?

Openings come from the Callings.ai live index of over 13 million jobs, refreshed hourly. This page searches postings from the last 30 days; run the search yourself to filter by anything else in plain language.

Browse California openings by job title

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