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The complete 2026 General Schedule pay tables. Federal pay is the nationwide GS base rate below, plus a locality adjustment for where you work. Read the base chart first, then pick your locality area or a single grade for the salary you would actually be paid.
Nationwide base rates for GS-1 through GS-15, steps 1–10. Your actual salary adds your area's locality pay on top — pick your locality below, or use the calculator.
| Grade | Step 1 | Step 2 | Step 3 | Step 4 | Step 5 | Step 6 | Step 7 | Step 8 | Step 9 | Step 10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GS-1 | $22,584 | $23,341 | $24,092 | $24,840 | $25,589 | $26,028 | $26,771 | $27,519 | $27,550 | $28,248 |
| GS-2 | $25,393 | $25,997 | $26,839 | $27,550 | $27,858 | $28,677 | $29,496 | $30,315 | $31,134 | $31,953 |
| GS-3 | $27,708 | $28,632 | $29,556 | $30,480 | $31,404 | $32,328 | $33,252 | $34,176 | $35,100 | $36,024 |
| GS-4 | $31,103 | $32,140 | $33,177 | $34,214 | $35,251 | $36,288 | $37,325 | $38,362 | $39,399 | $40,436 |
| GS-5 | $34,799 | $35,959 | $37,119 | $38,279 | $39,439 | $40,599 | $41,759 | $42,919 | $44,079 | $45,239 |
| GS-6 | $38,791 | $40,084 | $41,377 | $42,670 | $43,963 | $45,256 | $46,549 | $47,842 | $49,135 | $50,428 |
| GS-7 | $43,106 | $44,543 | $45,980 | $47,417 | $48,854 | $50,291 | $51,728 | $53,165 | $54,602 | $56,039 |
| GS-8 | $47,738 | $49,329 | $50,920 | $52,511 | $54,102 | $55,693 | $57,284 | $58,875 | $60,466 | $62,057 |
| GS-9 | $52,727 | $54,485 | $56,243 | $58,001 | $59,759 | $61,517 | $63,275 | $65,033 | $66,791 | $68,549 |
| GS-10 | $58,064 | $59,999 | $61,934 | $63,869 | $65,804 | $67,739 | $69,674 | $71,609 | $73,544 | $75,479 |
| GS-11 | $63,795 | $65,922 | $68,049 | $70,176 | $72,303 | $74,430 | $76,557 | $78,684 | $80,811 | $82,938 |
| GS-12 | $76,463 | $79,012 | $81,561 | $84,110 | $86,659 | $89,208 | $91,757 | $94,306 | $96,855 | $99,404 |
| GS-13 | $90,925 | $93,956 | $96,987 | $100,018 | $103,049 | $106,080 | $109,111 | $112,142 | $115,173 | $118,204 |
| GS-14 | $107,446 | $111,028 | $114,610 | $118,192 | $121,774 | $125,356 | $128,938 | $132,520 | $136,102 | $139,684 |
| GS-15 | $126,384 | $130,597 | $134,810 | $139,023 | $143,236 | $147,449 | $151,662 | $155,875 | $160,088 | $164,301 |
Every General Schedule job has a grade (GS-1 through GS-15) and a step(1 through 10). The grade reflects the job's difficulty and responsibility; the step reflects how long you have been in that grade. The table above is the nationwide base rate for each combination — it is not what lands in your bank account.
Locality pay is added on top. Every GS job sits in one of 58 locality pay areas, each with its own percentage. The same GS-12 Step 1 is paid materially differently in San Francisco than in a Rest of U.S. area, because the locality percentage differs, not because the base rate does. Pick your area below to see real numbers.
Steps advance on a schedule, not on merit alone. Under 5 CFR 531.405, the waiting period for a within-grade increase is 52 calendar weeks moving up to steps 2, 3 and 4; 104 weeks to steps 5, 6 and 7; and 156 weeks to steps 8, 9 and 10. So the climb from step 1 to step 10 takes roughly 18 years at a single grade. Promotions to a higher grade move faster than steps do.
The whole chart changes once a year. The annual federal pay adjustment takes effect on the first day of the first pay period beginning on or after 1 January, so the 2026 figures above apply for the 2026 leave year. A grade and step that looks right in December will pay slightly more in January.
Coming from the military? Your rank does not map onto a GS grade automatically, and the honest answer is that placement depends on the position's qualification requirements rather than on time served. The federal pay scales guide walks through where military experience actually lands you, and how GS compares with Wage Grade (WG) and the Senior Executive Service (SES).