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The median annual wage for private detectives and investigators was $50,700 in May 2017. The median wage is the wage at which half the workers in an occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $28,780, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $86,730.

In May 2017, the median annual wages for private detectives and investigators in the top industries in which they worked were as follows:

Private detectives and investigators often work irregular hours because they conduct surveillance and contact people outside of normal work hours. They may work early mornings, evenings, weekends, and holidays.