Military Pay Calculator
2025 DFAS basic pay by paygrade and years of service, plus BAS & BAH
Last updated June 15, 2026
Method: Basic monthly pay is read directly from the official 2025 DFAS active-duty pay table by paygrade and years-of-service longevity step. BAS uses the flat 2025 enlisted and officer rates. BAH is user-supplied because it is location-specific.
Included: Basic pay (E-1 to O-10 and W-1 to W-5), Basic Allowance for Subsistence (BAS), and an optional field for your own Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH), plus annual totals.
Not included: Federal/state income tax, FICA, TSP, SGLI and other deductions; special and incentive pays, bonuses, combat-zone tax exclusion, and automatic location-based BAH. Results are estimates, not an official LES.
🎖️ Service details
Affects your BAH rate (entered below), not basic pay or BAS.
Add your local BAH (optional)
BAH is location-specific. Look up your exact figure with the DoD BAH calculator (defensetravel.dod.mil) and paste it here. Leave at 0 if you live in government quarters.
💵 Estimated monthly total
BAH is not included because it depends on your duty-station ZIP code, paygrade and dependent status. Add your local BAH above for a full take-home estimate. This total reflects basic pay plus BAS only.
📅 Annual figures
BAS and (if entered) BAH are non-taxable allowances; basic pay is taxable. Figures use the 2025 DFAS pay and BAS tables.
Military pay calculator: everything you need to know
A military pay calculator looks up your 2025 DFAS basic monthly pay from just two inputs: your paygrade and your years of service. An E-5 (Sergeant) over 6 years earns $3,601.20 per month in basic pay; add the $465.77 enlisted BAS and monthly cash is $4,066.97 before any location-based BAH.
Within our Business & Work tools, this is the calculator for personal service-member pay - it is not a business-math tool. If you are pricing products or a job instead, use the Margin Calculator or Profit Margin Calculator for sale-price margins, the Markup Calculator to mark a cost up to a price, and the Freight Class Calculator for LTL shipping density - separate jobs, separate tools.
How military basic pay is calculated
Unlike a civilian salary, military basic pay is not negotiated - it is set by a federal table with two inputs only: your paygrade and your years of service. The "formula" is really a lookup:
Basic pay = PayTable[paygrade][longevity step] | longevity step = highest YOS bracket ≤ your years of service The longevity steps in the table are fixed at under 2 years, then 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, and 26 or more years. The calculator finds the highest step your years of service reach and returns that monthly amount - exactly how DFAS reads the chart. Total monthly cash is then basic pay + BAS + BAH, where BAS is a flat national rate and BAH is the location-based figure you supply.
Worked example: an E-5 over six years
Take an E-5 with 6 years of service in 2025. The table value at the "over 6 years" step is $3,601.20 in basic pay. Because this is an enlisted grade, BAS is $465.77. If the member lives in barracks and draws no BAH, the monthly cash is $3,601.20 + $465.77 = $4,066.97. Now suppose the same Sergeant is stationed somewhere with a BAH of $1,900/month (with dependents). The full monthly figure becomes $3,601.20 + $465.77 + $1,900.00 = $5,966.97, or about $71,600 a year in cash - of which only the $3,601.20 basic pay is taxable. That non-taxable slice is why military compensation often goes further than the taxable salary alone implies.
How to use this military pay calculator
You only need two numbers to get a basic-pay estimate, and one more for a full cash figure:
- Paygrade: choose your grade from the enlisted (E-1 to E-9), warrant officer (W-1 to W-5), or officer (O-1 to O-10) groups. The rank labels show the common Army/Navy names.
- Years of service: enter your total years. The tool picks the correct longevity step automatically - you do not have to know which bracket you fall in.
- Dependent status: this flag is a reminder that your BAH rate differs with and without dependents; it does not change basic pay or BAS.
- BAH (optional): look up your exact monthly BAH on the DoD calculator at defensetravel.dod.mil using your duty ZIP code and grade, then paste it in. Leave it at 0 if you live in government quarters.
Press Calculate pay and read the basic monthly pay at the top, the line-item breakdown (basic pay, BAS, and your BAH) below it, and the annual figures in the next card.
Who this calculator is for
It is built for anyone who needs a quick, accurate basic-pay figure without digging through a PDF pay chart:
- New recruits and ROTC/Academy candidates estimating their first paycheck at E-1 or O-1.
- Service members up for promotion comparing, say, E-4 versus E-5 pay before a board.
- Anyone hitting a longevity step who wants to see the raise at "over 6" or "over 10" years.
- Military families budgeting a PCS move and needing a realistic monthly cash number.
- Veterans and recruiters explaining the pay structure to prospective enlistees.
Understanding the military pay chart
The "military pay chart" is a grid: paygrades down the side, years-of-service brackets across the top. Reading it by hand is error-prone because the brackets are uneven (it jumps from 4 to 6 to 8 years) and some grades only exist at higher longevity - an E-8, for instance, has no entry below 8 years because you cannot reach that grade that quickly. This calculator encodes the same 2025 chart and handles those gaps for you, returning a result only where a real table value exists.
2025 military pay chart: monthly basic pay by rank and years of service
These are the 2025 DFAS enlisted basic monthly pay figures at the most-checked longevity steps. A dash means the grade does not exist that early in a career. BAS and BAH are separate and not included here.
| Paygrade | Under 2 yrs | Over 4 | Over 6 | Over 10 | Over 14 | Over 20 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| E-1 | $2,017.20 | $2,017.20 | $2,017.20 | $2,017.20 | $2,017.20 | $2,017.20 |
| E-2 | $2,261.10 | $2,261.10 | $2,261.10 | $2,261.10 | $2,261.10 | $2,261.10 |
| E-3 | $2,377.50 | $2,680.50 | $2,680.50 | $2,680.50 | $2,680.50 | $2,680.50 |
| E-4 | $2,633.40 | $3,065.40 | $3,196.20 | $3,196.20 | $3,196.20 | $3,196.20 |
| E-5 | $2,872.50 | $3,364.80 | $3,601.20 | $4,050.30 | $4,076.40 | $4,076.40 |
| E-6 | $3,135.00 | $3,749.40 | $3,903.30 | $4,387.50 | $4,732.50 | $4,856.40 |
| E-7 | $3,624.90 | $4,308.30 | $4,466.40 | $4,886.40 | $5,380.20 | $5,759.10 |
| E-8 | — | — | — | $5,214.60 | $5,497.20 | $6,155.40 |
| E-9 | — | — | — | $6,371.40 | $6,699.30 | $7,475.40 |
Key military pay terms explained
- Basic pay: the taxable base salary set by paygrade and years of service. The single largest part of most members' compensation.
- BAS (Basic Allowance for Subsistence): a flat, non-taxable monthly food allowance. In 2025 it is $465.77 for enlisted and $320.78 for officers.
- BAH (Basic Allowance for Housing): a non-taxable housing allowance that varies by duty-station ZIP code, paygrade, and dependent status.
- Paygrade vs. rank: paygrade (E-5, O-3) is the pay tier; rank (Sergeant, Captain) is the title. Pay is tied to the grade, not the rank name.
- Years of service (YOS): total time in uniform, which drives your longevity step on the table.
- LES (Leave and Earnings Statement): your official monthly pay statement showing every entitlement and deduction - the authoritative record.
A second example: a junior officer (O-2)
An O-2 (First Lieutenant / Lieutenant JG) with 3 years of service draws $6,249.90 in monthly basic pay on the 2025 table. As an officer, BAS is $320.78, so the cash before housing is $6,570.68 per month. Notice the officer BAS is lower than the enlisted rate - that difference is built into the calculator automatically based on the grade you pick. Add a representative BAH and the officer's monthly figure rises accordingly, but again, only the $6,249.90 basic pay is taxable.
How to calculate military pay step by step
Here is the full build-up for an E-6 (Staff Sergeant) over 10 years in 2025, with an example duty-station BAH of $2,100/month (with dependents). Follow the same four lines the calculator does - basic pay, then BAS, then your BAH - and read off both the monthly and annual figures.
| Component | Monthly | Annual (×12) |
|---|---|---|
| Basic pay (E-6, over 10 yrs) — taxable | $4,387.50 | $52,650 |
| + BAS (enlisted, non-taxable) | $465.77 | $5,589 |
| Subtotal (basic + BAS) | $4,853.27 | $58,239 |
| + BAH (example, non-taxable) | $2,100.00 | $25,200 |
| Total cash pay | $6,953.27 | $83,439 |
| Of which taxable (basic pay only) | $4,387.50 | $52,650 |
The $2,100 BAH is an illustrative rate; look up your exact figure on the DoD BAH calculator. Only the $4,387.50 basic pay is taxable - the $2,565.77 in monthly allowances passes through free of income tax.
What changes your total pay the most
If you experiment with the inputs, a few factors clearly dominate the cash you take home:
- Paygrade: the biggest lever - moving from E-4 to E-5, or O-3 to O-4, is a substantial jump in basic pay.
- Years of service: each longevity step adds a raise, and the gaps between steps can be hundreds of dollars a month.
- BAH location: housing allowance ranges from a few hundred dollars in low-cost areas to several thousand in high-cost cities, often the largest swing in total cash.
- Dependent status: the with-dependents BAH rate is higher than the without-dependents rate for the same grade and location.
- Special and incentive pays: not shown here, but flight pay, sea pay, hazardous duty pay, and bonuses can meaningfully raise total compensation.
Military pay calculator: monthly and annual pay by paygrade (2025)
A quick-reference conversion for common rank-and-longevity combinations, showing basic pay plus the flat BAS. Cash figures assume no BAH (add your location rate on top). Enlisted BAS is $465.77/mo; officer BAS is $320.78/mo.
| Grade & service | Basic pay /mo | BAS /mo | Monthly cash | Annual basic | Annual cash |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| E-4, over 4 yrs | $3,065.40 | $465.77 | $3,531.17 | $36,785 | $42,374 |
| E-5, over 6 yrs | $3,601.20 | $465.77 | $4,066.97 | $43,214 | $48,804 |
| E-6, over 10 yrs | $4,387.50 | $465.77 | $4,853.27 | $52,650 | $58,239 |
| E-7, over 14 yrs | $5,380.20 | $465.77 | $5,845.97 | $64,562 | $70,152 |
| E-8, over 20 yrs | $6,155.40 | $465.77 | $6,621.17 | $73,865 | $79,454 |
| O-1, over 2 yrs | $4,305.30 | $320.78 | $4,626.08 | $51,664 | $55,513 |
| O-2, over 3 yrs | $6,249.90 | $320.78 | $6,570.68 | $74,999 | $78,848 |
| O-3, over 6 yrs | $7,710.90 | $320.78 | $8,031.68 | $92,531 | $96,380 |
| O-4, over 10 yrs | $9,374.10 | $320.78 | $9,694.88 | $112,489 | $116,339 |
Allowances vary by location - why BAH is your input
BAH is the one piece of military pay that genuinely depends on geography. The Department of Defense surveys local rental markets and sets a distinct BAH rate for each Military Housing Area, for each paygrade, and separately for members with and without dependents. The result is thousands of individual rates that the DoD republishes every year. Because of that, this calculator deliberately does not guess your BAH - inventing a national average would mislead more often than it helps. Instead, pull your exact rate from the official DoD BAH calculator at defensetravel.dod.mil and paste it in. Basic pay and BAS, on the other hand, are identical nationwide, which is why they are built in. Treat the BAH-included total as "basic pay + BAS + the BAH figure you entered," and double-check that BAH against your orders or LES.
From gross pay to take-home pay
The figures here are gross entitlements, not your net deposit. Your LES then subtracts federal income tax and, in many states, state income tax (note that several states fully exempt military pay), plus FICA (Social Security and Medicare on basic pay), SGLI life insurance premiums, and any Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) contributions you elect. Allowances like BAH and BAS are non-taxable, so they pass through untouched by income tax. If you want to model the tax bite on your basic pay, run the basic-pay figure through a federal income tax tool; for a rough monthly-versus-annual sanity check on the total, the annual figures card on this page does the multiplication for you.
Tips for getting an accurate estimate
- Use your real years of service, not time in current grade - basic pay tracks total service, not time since your last promotion.
- Pull BAH fresh each year; rates are re-set annually and can move up or down with the local rental market.
- Confirm the pay-table year. This tool uses 2025; if a newer table is in effect, expect small differences.
- Remember the non-taxable allowances when comparing a military offer to a civilian salary - the after-tax value of BAH and BAS is higher than the headline number.
- Check your LES as the final word; it reflects your exact entitlements, special pays, and deductions.
Limitations and assumptions
This is a planning estimate, not an official pay statement. Keep these assumptions in mind:
- It uses the 2025 DFAS active-duty basic pay and BAS tables; reserve and National Guard drill pay are computed differently (per drill period).
- It does not include special and incentive pays, bonuses, the Family Separation Allowance, or the combat-zone tax exclusion.
- BAH is only included if you enter it, because it is location-specific; the tool does not look up rates by ZIP.
- It shows gross entitlements - taxes, FICA, SGLI, and TSP deductions are not subtracted.
- Figures may differ slightly from your LES due to mid-year corrections, proration, or partial-month pay.
How it compares to related calculators
This page answers "what is my military basic pay?" For related questions, a sister tool may fit better:
- To convert a salary to an hourly equivalent, use the Hourly to Salary Calculator.
- To model a percentage raise (such as the annual military pay raise), use the Pay Raise Calculator.
- To estimate overtime in a civilian job, use the Overtime Calculator.
Sources
- Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) - 2025 military pay tables and BAS rates.
- Department of Defense - Military Compensation: basic pay, BAS and BAH.
⚠️ Common mistakes & edge cases
Treating basic pay as total pay
Basic pay is only the taxable base. Allowances like BAH and BAS, plus special pays, can add hundreds or thousands a month. Always budget the full cash figure, not just basic pay.
Confusing time in grade with years of service
Longevity steps track total years of service, not time since your last promotion. Enter your overall service time or you will land on the wrong pay step.
Assuming BAH is a single national number
BAH varies by duty ZIP, grade, and dependent status - there are thousands of rates. Use the official DoD BAH calculator for your exact figure rather than a guess or average.
Forgetting allowances are non-taxable
BAH and BAS are not taxed, so comparing a military offer to a civilian salary on gross numbers alone understates the military package's after-tax value.
❓ Frequently asked questions
How does this military pay calculator work?
Pick your paygrade (E-1 through O-10, including warrant officers W-1 to W-5) and enter your years of service. The military pay calculator looks up your basic monthly pay in the 2025 DFAS pay table, which steps up at set longevity points (under 2 years, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, and 26+ years). It then adds the flat 2025 Basic Allowance for Subsistence (BAS) and, if you enter it, your location-specific Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH).
What is basic pay in the military?
Basic pay is the taxable base salary every active-duty service member earns, set by paygrade and years of service in the annual federal pay tables published by DFAS. It is the same across all branches - the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Space Force, and Coast Guard all use the identical chart. Basic pay does not include allowances like BAH and BAS, special and incentive pays, or bonuses.
Why doesn't the calculator show my BAH automatically?
BAH (Basic Allowance for Housing) is set by your duty-station ZIP code, your paygrade, and whether you have dependents - there are thousands of distinct rates, and they change each year. Inventing a figure would be misleading, so this tool lets you paste your exact BAH from the official DoD BAH calculator at defensetravel.dod.mil instead. Basic pay and BAS are the same nationwide, so those are built in.
What pay-table year does this calculator use?
It uses the 2025 active-duty basic pay and BAS tables published by the Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) and militarypay.defense.gov. The across-the-board 2025 rates took effect January 1, 2025, and the additional junior-enlisted (E-1 to E-4) increase took effect April 1, 2025; this tool shows the final post-April 2025 amounts. When DFAS publishes the next annual table, the figures here will be updated; always confirm against your Leave and Earnings Statement (LES).
Is military basic pay the same in every branch?
Yes. Basic pay is a federal pay scale tied only to paygrade and years of service, so an E-5 with six years of service earns the same basic pay whether they serve in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Space Force, or Coast Guard. What differs between branches and individuals is allowances, special pays, and assignment-based incentives.
How do years of service change my pay?
Basic pay rises at fixed longevity steps. For example, an E-5 earns more at 'over 6 years' than at 'over 4 years,' and an officer's pay keeps stepping up through 'over 20' or beyond. The calculator automatically selects the highest longevity step that applies to the years of service you enter, matching how DFAS reads the table.
Are BAH and BAS taxable?
No. Both the Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) and the Basic Allowance for Subsistence (BAS) are non-taxable allowances, so they do not appear on your W-2 as taxable wages. Basic pay, by contrast, is taxable income subject to federal income tax and FICA. This is why a service member's take-home cash can be higher than the taxable basic pay suggests.
What is the difference between basic pay and take-home pay?
Basic pay is your gross taxable salary before anything is added or subtracted. Take-home (net) pay is what lands in your account after adding non-taxable allowances like BAH and BAS and subtracting federal and state income tax, Social Security and Medicare (FICA), SGLI life insurance, TSP retirement contributions, and any other deductions. This calculator estimates pay and allowances, not your exact net deposit.
Does this include special pays, bonuses, or combat pay?
No. The calculator covers basic pay, BAS, and (if you enter it) BAH. It does not include hazardous duty pay, flight pay, sea pay, hardship duty pay, enlistment or reenlistment bonuses, the Family Separation Allowance, or the tax exclusion for serving in a combat zone. Those are added on top of the figures shown here and vary widely by assignment.
How is the 2025 military pay raise reflected here?
The figures use the 2025 pay table, which incorporated the 4.5% across-the-board basic pay raise effective January 1, 2025, plus the targeted additional 10% raise for junior enlisted members (grades E-1 through E-4) that took effect April 1, 2025. The numbers in this tool are the post-raise 2025 monthly amounts as published by DFAS.
Can I use this as an Army pay calculator or for other branches?
Yes. Because basic pay is identical across services, this works as an Army pay calculator, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Space Force, or Coast Guard pay calculator. Just select the paygrade - the rank labels show the common Army/Navy equivalents - and the result applies to any branch.
Is this military pay calculator free?
Yes. It is completely free, with no sign-up and no limit on how many paygrade and years-of-service combinations you can check. Compare an E-4 to an E-5, or your pay now versus after your next longevity step, as many times as you like.
How much does an E-5 make a year in the military?
In 2025, an E-5 over 6 years of service earns $3,601.20 per month in basic pay, which is $43,214 a year. Adding the flat enlisted Basic Allowance for Subsistence (BAS) of $465.77 per month brings monthly cash to $4,066.97, or about $48,804 a year before any Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH). BAH, special pays, and bonuses are on top of that, and only the basic pay is taxable.
What is the highest military basic pay in 2025?
The highest active-duty basic pay in 2025 is $18,969.30 per month, the rate for the most senior general and flag officers (O-8 through O-10) at their longevity steps. Federal law caps it at the Executive Schedule Level II rate, so it does not keep rising with additional years of service. Enlisted pay tops out far lower: an E-9 reaches $9,900.60 per month at 38 or more years of service.
💡 Good to know
Basic pay is identical across all branches
An E-5 over six years earns the same basic pay in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Space Force, or Coast Guard. Allowances and special pays are what differ between members.
Non-taxable allowances stretch your pay
BAH and BAS are not taxed. That means their after-tax value is higher than an equal amount of taxable salary, which is worth remembering when comparing military and civilian offers.
Your LES is the final word
This tool estimates basic pay and allowances. Your monthly Leave and Earnings Statement reflects your exact entitlements, special pays, and every deduction - always reconcile against it.
Related Calculators
Hourly to Salary Calculator
Convert an hourly wage to annual salary and back
Pay Raise Calculator
Calculate your new pay after a percentage raise
Overtime Calculator
Calculate overtime pay at time-and-a-half
Timesheet Calculator
Total weekly work hours and pay from a timesheet
Margin Calculator
Calculate profit margin, revenue and cost
Break-Even Calculator
Find the units you must sell to break even