Compliance Officer Salary

Created by Henry Steele

By Henry Steele - January 8, 2018
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The following article discusses the career path of Compliance Officer. Learn about how to become one, education requirements, job duties, traits and qualities, national salary outlook as well as top national employers of Compliance Officers.

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Job Duties

Compliance officers are responsible for the supervision of any issues that are related to compliance with regulations or laws. This includes ensuring that all licensing requirements are fully up to date. They often write reports on their findings to the governing body of the organization and they make recommendations in terms of necessary changes. Industries with heavy regulations, such as finances and health care, all require compliance officers as part of their staff.

Usually, compliance officers work for external contracting companies. Through this, they can get to work in a variety of different environments. Sometimes, they will work in an office and, other times, in the field

Other job duties of compliance officers are:

  • To assess operational risks, and compliance with regulations
  • Create risk management strategies
  • Perform internal audits and reviews to ensure compliance is maintained
  • To direct or conduct internal investigations in relation to compliance
  • To monitor and oversee all activities in relation to a company’s compliance with federal, state, and company regulations

Where We Work

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics does not yet categorize compliance officers in their Occupational Outlook Handbook. According to the U.S. News & World Report, however, these professionals can work in a variety of locations. In fact, they can be found anywhere where documents have to be reviewed and licenses or permits need to be held. They do often have to hold specialized certifications, applicable to the field in which they work.

How to Become

Typically, a bachelor’s degree is required as a minimum. However, compliance officers may also need additional certification, as they relate to the industry in which they work. This could be related to finances, health care, industry, environment, and so on. Generally, these certifications must be maintained through continuous education credits. As such, they must be committed to lifelong learning.

Education Requirements

A bachelor’s degree in a field such as finance, business, or accounting is the most common degree held by compliance officers, although some positions do not require a degree at all. The exact requirements vary widely depending on the role and certification as well as retraining is commonly needed. Having the right traits and qualities, as described below, is generally of greater importance.

Traits & Qualities

The most effective compliance officers have the following traits to some degree or other:

  • Leadership skills
  • Excellent communication skills in terms of public speaking and report writing
  • Ethical decision making skills
  • Extensive training on instructional design
  • Courage
  • True integrity
  • The ability to work with confidential reports and information

Minimum Education

Bachelor’s Degree

National Salary

The national average salary estimate for Compliance Officer was $69,393. This number is estimated from over 2,201,324 employees, users past and present job advertisements from Indeed.com. This equates to an hourly salary of $36.14 and monthly of $5,783.

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$15,000

$164,000

Salary Distribution

Salary by State

The following section lists Compliance Officer salaries in each state around the country. The figures are based on the total number of job postings through Indeed.com. For example, Massachusetts had the largest quoted salary of $90,694 while Idaho had the smallest quoted salary of $21,984.

AlaskaIowaMissouriOregon
AlabamaIdahoMississippiPennsylvania
ArkansasIllinoisMontanaSouth Carolina
ArizonaIndianaNorth CarolinaSouth Dakota
CaliforniaKansasNebraskaTennessee
ColoradoKentuckyNew HampshireTexas
ConnecticutLouisianaNew JerseyUtah
DCMassachusettsNew MexicoVirginia
DelawareMarylandNevadaVermont
FloridaMaineNew YorkWashington
GeorgiaMichiganOhioWisconsin
HawaiiMinnesotaOklahomaWyoming
Alaska – $60,249Rank: 24th
The average salary ranks 24th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Lower Kuskokwim School District and Galderma Laboratories, LP.

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$15.75

$47.30

Salary Distribution
Alabama – $50,398Rank: 40th
The average salary ranks 40th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like PANGEATWO and Vaco, LLC.

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$14,000

$116,000

Salary Distribution
Arkansas – $50,117Rank: 41st
The average salary ranks 41st among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like University of Arkansas, Walmart, and University of Central Arkansas.

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$14,000

$114,000

Salary Distribution
Arizona – $50,795Rank: 37th
The average salary ranks 37th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like American Express, City of Mesa, GILA RIVER INDIAN COMMUNITY, and Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System.

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$14,000

$129,000

Salary Distribution
California – $74,556Rank: 7th
The average salary ranks 7th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Robert Half Finance & Accounting, AMI Network, Amgen, and Kaiser Permanente.

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$17,000

$171,000

Salary Distribution
Colorado – $57,613Rank: 28th
The average salary ranks 28th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Robert Half, Robert Half Finance & Accounting, CITY OF BOULDER, and Denver Health.

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$14,000

$145,000

Salary Distribution
Connecticut – $71,318Rank: 9th
The average salary ranks 9th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Benchmark IT LLC, North Star Staffing Solutions, Diedre Moire, and Dragonfly Pros.

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$16,000

$165,000

Salary Distribution
DC – $82,042Rank: 3rd
The average salary ranks 3rd among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like United States Postal Service, District of Columbia Public Schools, Huxley Associates, and Sysazzle Inc..

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$20,000

$185,000

Salary Distribution
Delaware – $49,651Rank: 42nd
The average salary ranks 42nd among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Abacus Staffing, Randstad Professionals, Aerotek, and Accountemps.

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$7.25

$57.20

Salary Distribution
Florida – $54,306Rank: 30th
The average salary ranks 30th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Stark Lane, Inc., Kforce Finance and Accounting, Ascendo Resources, and City of St. Petersburg.

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$14,000

$133,000

Salary Distribution
Georgia – $62,308Rank: 22nd
The average salary ranks 22nd among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like The Bolton Group, Atlanta Public Schools, City of Atlanta, and Symicor Group.

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$14,000

$149,000

Salary Distribution
Hawaii – $51,140Rank: 35th
The average salary ranks 35th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Robert Half Finance & Accounting, State of Hawaii, and Staffing Solutions of Hawaii.

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$17,000

$102,000

Salary Distribution
Iowa – $58,997Rank: 27th
The average salary ranks 27th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Robert Half Finance & Accounting, Management Recruiters of Wausau, Palmer Group, and The University of Iowa.

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$16,000

$128,000

Salary Distribution
Idaho – $21,984Rank: 48th
The average salary ranks 48th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Transportation Compliance Service, IDAHO DEPT. OF LABOR, University of Idaho, and Manpower.

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$7.25

$24.00

Salary Distribution
Illinois – $77,122Rank: 5th
The average salary ranks 5th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Redline Associates, Phoenix 2.0, MBK Search, and PMG Employment Consultants.

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$20,000

$170,000

Salary Distribution
Indiana – $52,498Rank: 33rd
The average salary ranks 33rd among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Randstad, Robert Half Finance & Accounting, Robert Half, and Resource Employment.

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$14,000

$122,000

Salary Distribution
Kansas – $61,150Rank: 23rd
The average salary ranks 23rd among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like 3coast, The Judge Group, Robert Half Finance & Accounting, and CyberCoders.

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$14,000

$143,000

Salary Distribution
Kentucky – $54,647Rank: 29th
The average salary ranks 29th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Robert Half Technology, Robert Half Management Resources, CyberCoders, and University of Kentucky.

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$15,000

$117,000

Salary Distribution
Louisiana – $52,790Rank: 31st
The average salary ranks 31st among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like State of Louisiana and BRC Construction Group, LLC.

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$14,000

$125,000

Salary Distribution
Massachusetts – $90,694Rank: 1st
The average salary ranks 1st among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like CMC Limited, Huxley Banking & Financial Services, Compliance Search, and Kforce Finance and Accounting.

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$34,000

$174,000

Salary Distribution
Maryland – $64,788Rank: 16th
The average salary ranks 16th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Clinical Management Consultants, AgentHR Group, Greater Baden Medical Services, Inc, and Maryland Department of Transportation.

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$16,000

$145,000

Salary Distribution
Maine – $50,534Rank: 38th
The average salary ranks 38th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Manpower and Adecco.

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$24,000

$87,000

Salary Distribution
Michigan – $65,364Rank: 14th
The average salary ranks 14th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like State of Michigan, Henry Ford Health System, Oakland University, and PEAKS Org Development.

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$14,000

$154,000

Salary Distribution
Minnesota – $71,161Rank: 10th
The average salary ranks 10th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Robert Half Finance & Accounting, University of Minnesota, State of Minnesota, and Robert Half.

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$19,000

$157,000

Salary Distribution
Missouri – $62,821Rank: 21st
The average salary ranks 21st among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Cornerstone Financial Recruiting, LLC, CyberCoders, Randstad, and TEKsystems.

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$16,000

$140,000

Salary Distribution
Mississippi – $39,951Rank: 47th
The average salary ranks 47th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like University of Mississippi.

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$14,000

$90,000

Salary Distribution
Montana – $44,025Rank: 45th
The average salary ranks 45th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like First Interstate Bank, State of Montana, and Great Falls Pre Release Center.

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$19,000

$79,000

Salary Distribution
North Carolina – $64,699Rank: 17th
The average salary ranks 17th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Direct HR, Robert Half Finance & Accounting, DirectHR, and Direct Sales Recruiting, LLC.

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$15,000

$149,000

Salary Distribution
Nebraska – $52,543Rank: 32nd
The average salary ranks 32nd among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Cornerstone Staffing Inc., Snelling, Adams Inc, and University of Nebraska at Omaha.

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$14,000

$120,000

Salary Distribution
New Hampshire – $77,271Rank: 4th
The average salary ranks 4th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like MMS Group, The Nagler Group, and Liberty Mutual.

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$20,000

$170,000

Salary Distribution
New Jersey – $74,641Rank: 6th
The average salary ranks 6th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Execu|Search, Diedre Moire, Prudential, and Ramax Search.

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$17,000

$174,000

Salary Distribution
New Mexico – $45,564Rank: 43rd
The average salary ranks 43rd among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Indian Health Service, Central New Mexico Community College, UNM Medical Group, Inc., and Bernalillo County Government.

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$14,000

$98,000

Salary Distribution
Nevada – $64,006Rank: 18th
The average salary ranks 18th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like University Medical Center of Southern Nevada, NV Energy, Clark County Water Reclamation District, and College of Southern Nevada.

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$14,000

$150,000

Salary Distribution
New York – $86,925Rank: 2nd
The average salary ranks 2nd among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Frink-Hamlett Legal Solutions, Robert Walters US, The ONeil Search Group, and The Madison-Davis Group.

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$20,000

$200,000

Salary Distribution
Ohio – $51,923Rank: 34th
The average salary ranks 34th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Accounting Career Network, Robert Half Finance & Accounting, Wright State University, and Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company.

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$14,000

$140,000

Salary Distribution
Oklahoma – $44,318Rank: 44th
The average salary ranks 44th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like GRAND RIVER DAM AUTHORITY, Tinker Federal Credit Union, University of Central Oklahoma, and Manpower.

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$14,000

$104,000

Salary Distribution
Oregon – $65,058Rank: 15th
The average salary ranks 15th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like ABPS MedStaff, Aerotek, Portland State University, and Boly:Welch.

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$16,000

$146,000

Salary Distribution
Pennsylvania – $66,770Rank: 12th
The average salary ranks 12th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Watson Barron, Compliance Search, Department of Veterans Affairs, and Robert Half Finance & Accounting.

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$15,000

$154,000

Salary Distribution
South Carolina – $50,399Rank: 39th
The average salary ranks 39th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Medical University of South Carolina, AppleOne, SC Career Search, and University of South Carolina.

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$14,000

$134,000

Salary Distribution
South Dakota – $66,473Rank: 13th
The average salary ranks 13th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Indian Health Service and South Dakota State Government.

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$21,000

$136,000

Salary Distribution
Tennessee – $63,111Rank: 19th
The average salary ranks 19th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like CyberCoders, Creative Financial Staffing, AppleOne, and Community Health Systems.

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$15,000

$143,000

Salary Distribution
Texas – $69,284Rank: 11th
The average salary ranks 11th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Robert Half Technology, Robert Half, MCG Health System, and Robert Half Finance & Accounting.

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$15,000

$163,000

Salary Distribution
Utah – $51,046Rank: 36th
The average salary ranks 36th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like American Express, University of Utah, PrincePerelson & Associates, and Elwood Staffing.

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$14,000

$118,000

Salary Distribution
Virginia – $62,985Rank: 20th
The average salary ranks 20th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Department of Labor, Keel Point, LLC, Aerotek, and AppleOne.

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$14,000

$152,000

Salary Distribution
Vermont – $43,526Rank: 46th
The average salary ranks 46th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Town Consulting and State of Vermont.

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$9.30

$41.75

Salary Distribution
Washington – $72,170Rank: 8th
The average salary ranks 8th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Liberty Mutual, Volt, Huxley Associates, and Quest Strategic Advisors.

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$23,000

$147,000

Salary Distribution
Wisconsin – $59,469Rank: 25th
The average salary ranks 25th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Pathfinder Search Group, Robert Half Finance & Accounting, WISCONSIN MANAGEMENT COMPANY, and University of Wisconsin.

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$16,000

$129,000

Salary Distribution
Wyoming – $59,420Rank: 26th
The average salary ranks 26th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like State of Wyoming.

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$16,000

$130,000

Salary Distribution

Top 20 National Employers

According to Indeed.com, the following states had employers looking to hire a Compliance Officer. The quoted salary figure represents the average salary from all job postings by this employer.

Employer NameLocationAverage Salary
Ramax Search Compliance OfficerNew Jersey$190,000
Huxley Associates Compliance OfficerDC$163,801
MMS Group Compliance OfficerNevada$139,644
Compliance Search Compliance OfficerNew Jersey$138,357
Request Technology – Jacqueline White Compliance OfficerTexas$137,477
Kforce Compliance OfficerMichigan$137,343
Sysazzle Inc. Compliance OfficerDC$134,963
Ascendo Resources Compliance OfficerNorth Carolina$133,868
Enliven Archive Compliance OfficerVirginia$130,000
Request Technology – Sasha Michaels Compliance OfficerVirginia$129,617
Lyneer Staffing Solutions Compliance OfficerNew Jersey$129,021
Bristol-Myers Squibb Compliance OfficerNew Jersey$124,762
TriMet Compliance OfficerOregon$124,434
Request Technology Compliance OfficerVirginia$123,480
Robert Walters US Compliance OfficerNew York$120,784
NORTH STAR Compliance OfficerPennsylvania$120,000
Atlantic Group-Fortune 100 Company Compliance OfficerPennsylvania$120,000

Learn More

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Henry Steele
Managing Editor
Henry is Managing Editor of BusinessStudent.com. He is a seasoned business professional who regularly consults with local business's throughout Southern California. Henry pursued his undergrad in Business and Economics at the University of San Diego and gained valuable life changing experience through a unique internship upon graduation.

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