A police department serves a city. A sheriff’s office serves the county, covers unincorporated areas and usually runs the county jail.
City police departments
Municipal departments handle everything inside city limits: patrol, traffic, investigations, and response to emergency and non emergency calls. Their chief is normally appointed by the city government. If you live inside an incorporated city or town, this is almost always who you are calling.
County sheriff’s offices
The sheriff is usually an elected official, which is the structural difference that matters most. Sheriff’s offices typically police unincorporated and rural parts of the county, run the county jail, provide court security, and serve civil process such as evictions and subpoenas. In some counties they also police small towns under contract, and in a few places they are the only law enforcement for the entire county.
State police and highway patrol
These agencies cover interstates, state highways and expressways, handle major crash investigations, and support local agencies statewide. The naming varies by state: some call it State Police, others Highway Patrol, and a few have both with different roles.
How to tell which one covers you
- You have a city mailing address but pay no city taxes. A mailing address is not the same as city limits. Plenty of properties have a city address and sit outside it — those are sheriff territory.
- Your address is in an unincorporated area. Sheriff’s office.
- You are on an interstate or state highway. State police or highway patrol.
- You genuinely do not know. Call either one. They will transfer you, and in a real emergency 911 routes the call automatically.
Why this trips people up
Two agencies can cover addresses a few hundred metres apart, and some cities share a name with the county around them while having entirely separate departments. There are also places where a city has dissolved its own department and contracts policing to the county, so the phone number changed even though nothing visible did.
This is exactly why a number you found on an aggregator site three years ago may no longer reach anyone. Agencies merge, contract out and renumber more often than people expect.
Look up the agency that covers you
Our directory lists city police departments, county sheriff’s offices and state agencies separately, with the non emergency number each one publishes for itself. Find your agency here.
If it is an emergency, do not spend time working out which agency covers the address. Call 911: dispatchers route calls between departments constantly, and the location is what matters, not the name of the agency.
Side by side
| Police department | Sheriff’s office | |
|---|---|---|
| Area served | A city, town or village | The whole county, especially unincorporated areas |
| Head of agency | A chief, appointed by the city | A sheriff, usually elected by the county |
| Runs the jail? | Short term holding cells only | Yes, the county jail in most states |
| Court duties | None as a rule | Court security, warrants and evictions |
| Who to call | If your address is inside city limits | If you are outside city limits or in a rural area |
Who covers your address
Inside city limits
The municipal police department, in almost every case. This is who most people need.
Outside city limits
The county sheriff’s office, which is the primary agency for unincorporated and rural areas.
On the interstate
State police or highway patrol, who also back up local agencies statewide.
Frequently asked questions
Is a sheriff more senior than a police chief?
They are not in the same chain of command. A sheriff is usually elected by the county; a police chief is normally appointed by the city. Neither outranks the other — they have different jurisdictions.
Can a sheriff’s deputy pull me over inside a city?
Generally yes. Sheriff’s offices normally have county wide authority, including inside cities, even though day to day patrol there is handled by the city police.
Which one do I call if I am not sure?
Either. Dispatchers route calls between agencies constantly and will pass it to whoever covers the address. The important thing is the exact location.
Find your local non emergency number
157 agencies across 6 states, every number checked against the agency’s own official website.