The mayor of Detroit makes about $224,572 a year as of July 2025. That base salary comes with the standard package of city employee benefits, including health coverage, retirement plans, and a police security detail, which push the total value of the position well above the headline figure.
How the Salary Reached $224,572
In early 2023, Detroit’s Elected Officials Compensation Commission approved a staged raise for the mayor’s office. The salary jumped from $189,300 to $202,551 right away, then rose 3.5% each July through 2025, landing at roughly $224,572.
The commission meets again in odd-numbered years, so the figure can shift depending on what the 2025 session decided. For context, the city’s fiscal year 2025–26 budget runs around $3 billion, and the median Detroit household earns about $39,938 according to recent Census Bureau estimates.
Benefits Beyond Base Pay
The mayor is eligible for the same medical, dental, and vision coverage offered to other full-time city employees, scaled to executive level. Retirement options include a 457(b) deferred compensation plan, a pension, and an after-tax annuity plan.
The city charter allows expense reimbursements for costs incurred on city business, provided they are properly documented. That typically covers travel tied to official representation. The mayor also receives protection from the Detroit Police Department’s Executive Protection Unit, historically a dedicated team of officers working in shifts. Added together, benefits and security meaningfully raise the true cost of the position above the salary line.
Who Sets the Mayor’s Pay
Detroit’s mayor cannot vote on their own salary. The city charter assigns that job to the Elected Officials Compensation Commission, a seven-member body of registered Detroit voters appointed by the mayor and confirmed by the City Council. Members serve staggered seven-year terms. City employees, elected officials at any level of government, and their immediate family members are barred from serving.
Every odd-numbered year, the commission reviews pay for the mayor, city clerk, and council members. It must hold at least one public hearing and file its determination with the city clerk by July 1. The new salaries take effect automatically unless the City Council rejects them by a two-thirds vote, and even then, the council cannot cut pay below current levels. If the determination is rejected, existing salaries stay in place.
That structure keeps the mayor at arm’s length from pay decisions and sets a high bar for the council to block an increase the commission has approved.
How Detroit’s Mayoral Pay Compares
Detroit’s number sits in the middle of the pack for large American cities. Chicago’s mayor earns roughly $221,000, close to Detroit’s figure. New York City’s mayor earns about $258,750. Los Angeles pays its mayor approximately 30% more than a city council member, which currently works out to around $318,000.
Both New York and Los Angeles are significantly larger than Detroit in population and budget, which accounts for the gap. Compared with cities closer to Detroit’s size, the compensation is generally in line or slightly above average.