Delaware Firefighter Salary (2026) – Wilmington, Dover & Career Fire Pay

The old version of this article treated Wilmington, Dover and “New Castle County Fire” as if they were three comparable municipal career departments. They are not. This update fixes that and separates municipal firefighters, volunteer departments, combination fire companies and county paramedic jobs.

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What Is the Average Firefighter Salary in Delaware?

The latest directly verifiable Delaware state table from the Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS series, May 2023, reported about 600 firefighters in the state, a median wage of $20.66 per hour and a mean annual wage of $49,490.

That number is useful only as a statewide labor-market benchmark. Delaware's fire service includes municipal career firefighters, volunteer fire companies and combination departments with paid FF/EMT and EMS staff, so a statewide average can hide very different employment models.

How Delaware Fire Service Staffing Actually Works

This structure is why the old “Dover $50K–$78K” and “New Castle County Fire $52K–$82K” rows were removed. They described agencies that do not operate as those rows implied.

Wilmington Firefighter Salary

Wilmington is the clearest municipal career-firefighter path in Delaware. The City's most recent detailed recruit flyer located for this update was the 44th Recruit Academy posting for January–February 2025. It listed:

• $49,650.88 base salary
• $55,289.46 at the end of probation
• $77,338.57 after five years

Those figures are deliberately labeled as the 2025 recruitment schedule. Wilmington has since approved new contract terms and moved to a 24 hours on / 72 hours off schedule. The City's FY2027 budget says regular fire salaries are increasing because of contract COLAs and mandatory step increases.

Wilmington's current recruitment page allows interested candidates to submit a Firefighter Interest Card. The City also requires new employees covered by the residency ordinance to establish city residency within one year of hire.

Dover Firefighter Salary: Dover Is a Volunteer Department

The old article described Dover as a smaller career department with a $50,000–$78,000 range. That was incorrect.

The City of Dover Fire Marshal's Office states that the Dover Fire Department is a separate entity staffed entirely by dedicated volunteers. Dover Fire's own 2026 recruitment page also presents membership as community service rather than a salaried city firefighter job.

Dover does use paid EMS providers separately, and Dover Air Force Base has federal/military firefighters, but those are different employers and should not be mixed into a “Dover Fire Department salary” table.

New Castle County Paramedic Salary in 2026

New Castle County does not operate the kind of county fire department implied by the old article. The County Department of Public Safety does, however, operate a career paramedic service.

Its 2026 Paramedic — Entry Level Candidates for Paramedic Training posting lists $53,214 to $86,681 annually.

Career Firefighter/EMT Jobs at Delaware Fire Companies

Christiana Fire Company

Christiana is a combination Fire and EMS department. Its employment page says the company employs full-time firefighter/EMTs, full-time EMTs and part-time EMTs. Full-time employees work a four-platoon system of 24 hours on / 72 hours off.

Christiana's current public employment page does not publish a salary, so no Glassdoor-style estimate is inserted into the main salary table.

Aetna Hose, Hook & Ladder

Aetna in Newark maintains a current Full-Time FF/EMT employment page and accepts electronic applications. The public page links a recruitment flyer, but the salary text is not exposed reliably in the page content reviewed, so this guide does not invent a 2026 figure.

Talleyville Fire Company

Talleyville's current application page says full-time positions are not presently open but allows applicants to join a Full Time FF/EMT-B waitlist. Part-time EMT-B applications remain open.

Mill Creek Fire Company

Mill Creek's July 2026 public hiring notice lists $21.75 per hour for part-time EMTs, plus a $2.00/hour weekend premium. That is an EMS wage, not a firefighter base salary, but it is useful for applicants comparing Delaware fire-company employment models.

Wilmington Firefighter Overtime and the 24/72 Schedule

The old article said Wilmington has the most consistent overtime. Rather than ranking departments from anecdote, this update uses Wilmington's own budget.

The City budgeted $1.52 million for Fire Department overtime in FY2026. In the FY2027 budget, Wilmington reported that FY2026 overtime was trending to approximately $2.9 million, around $1.3 million over the original budget, as staffing pressure combined with the move to the new 24/72 schedule.

The City responded by adding twelve Firefighter/EMT positions for FY2027 and said those hires were expected to avoid more than $1 million in overtime that otherwise would have occurred.

That proves overtime is material to Wilmington's staffing model, but it does not mean every firefighter receives the same overtime amount. Individual gross pay depends on callbacks, vacancies, leave coverage, assignment and contract rules.

Delaware Firefighter Pension Rules

There is no single pension arrangement that can safely be applied to every firefighter job in Delaware.

The State of Delaware's County and Municipal Police/Firefighters Pension Plan covers participating counties, municipalities and fire organizations. The State Office of Pensions currently lists the employee contribution at 7% of annual creditable compensation.

The same plan allows a service pension after 20 years of credited service, or under other age/service combinations specified by the plan.

Wilmington also maintains City Fire Pension Plans, and its financial reporting shows participation in County & Municipal Police/Firefighters arrangements as well. An applicant should therefore verify the exact pension coverage tied to the specific Wilmington classification or fire-company employer rather than assuming every Delaware firefighter is in the same plan.

Delaware Taxes: No Sales Tax Does Not Mean No Income Tax

The old article said Delaware has “no state income tax.” That is incorrect.

Delaware does have a personal state income tax. Under current law, taxable income above $60,000 is taxed at a top marginal rate of 6.6%. Delaware is famous for having no general state sales tax, which is a different tax.

How to Estimate Real Delaware Firefighter Take-Home Pay

A useful take-home estimate depends on the employer:

1. Identify whether the job is a municipal firefighter, combination-company FF/EMT, EMT or county paramedic position.
2. Use the actual recruit or first-step base from the active posting.
3. Confirm whether 24/72 or another shift schedule creates built-in or scheduled overtime.
4. Add only recurring EMT/paramedic or specialty pay that the employer publishes.
5. Confirm the exact pension plan and employee contribution.
6. Subtract health insurance and other elected benefits.
7. Apply federal and Delaware income-tax withholding to your household.
8. Treat additional overtime as variable unless the employer says it is guaranteed or built into annual compensation.

For Delaware, the employment model matters as much as the salary. Wilmington career fire, Dover volunteer service, New Castle County paramedics and combination-company FF/EMT jobs should not be lumped into one generic salary range.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the average firefighter salary in Delaware?

The latest directly verifiable BLS Delaware state table reviewed here is May 2023. It reported a $49,490 mean annual wage and a median of $20.66 per hour.

How much does a Wilmington Delaware firefighter make?

Wilmington's 2025 recruit academy posting listed $49,650.88 base, $55,289.46 at the end of probation and $77,338.57 after five years. Because the City has since implemented new contract terms, the next active recruitment should be used for the exact 2026 entry salary.

Does Dover Delaware have paid career firefighters?

The City of Dover Fire Marshal's Office says Dover Fire Department is staffed entirely by volunteers. There is therefore no standard City of Dover career-firefighter salary.

How much does a New Castle County paramedic make?

The County's 2026 entry-level paramedic-training recruitment listed $53,214–$86,681 annually.

Do Delaware firefighters get overtime?

It depends on the employer. Wilmington's FY2026 fire budget included $1.52 million for overtime and later projected actual FY2026 overtime near $2.9 million, but those are department totals, not individual guarantees.

Do Delaware firefighters get a pension?

Many participating municipal and fire-company employees are covered by the Delaware County and Municipal Police/Firefighters Pension Plan, which currently lists a 7% employee contribution. Wilmington also maintains city firefighter pension plans.

Does Delaware charge state income tax?

No. Delaware has a personal income tax with a current top marginal rate of 6.6% above $60,000 of taxable income. Delaware has no general state sales tax.

Sources and Data Notes

• BLS Delaware OEWS — May 2023.
• Wilmington Fire Department 44th Recruit Academy salary flyer.
• City of Wilmington firefighter recruitment.
• Wilmington FY2027 Fire Department budget — 24/72 schedule, FY2026 overtime trend and added Firefighter/EMT positions.
• City of Dover Fire Marshal's Office — confirms Dover Fire Department is entirely volunteer.
• New Castle County 2026 entry-level paramedic recruitment.
• Christiana Fire Company employment.
• Aetna Hose, Hook & Ladder Full-Time FF/EMT employment.
• Talleyville Fire Company applications.
• Mill Creek Fire Company July 2026 EMS hiring notice.
• Delaware Office of Pensions contribution FAQ.
• County & Municipal Police/Firefighters service pension rules.
• Wilmington City Treasurer — Fire Pension Plans.
• Delaware personal income tax law.

Editorial note: Delaware has a large volunteer and combination-company fire-service footprint, so not every community has a municipal career firefighter salary schedule. Figures are labeled by source year and employment type to avoid turning volunteer departments, EMS positions or old recruit rates into fake 2026 firefighter salaries.

Interested in working as a firefighter in Delaware? See our step-by-step firefighter hiring guide for certification, CPAT, testing and academy basics.