2020 Military Pay Charts (2023)

FAQs

What is the military pay for 2022? ›

For instance, in 2022, a newly enlisted service member with a paygrade of E-1 receives $1,833 per month in basic pay. Meanwhile, a more senior enlisted person with a paygrade of E-6, who has more than a decade of service, earns $3,988 monthly. Officers are paid more.

E-2: Enlisted E-2 rank service members start at $1,836.30 per month with two years or less of service, and gradually work up to $1,836.30 per month, with more than 40 years of service. E-3: Enlisted E-3 rank service members begin at $1,931.10 per month with two years or less of service.

What is the retirement pay for an E7 with 20 years? As of 2022 the pay calculation projection an E7 retiring with exactly 20 years of service would receive $27,827 per year. It's important to note the present value of almost $800,000 for a 40 year old receiving this pension indefinitely.

Service members have access to two different retirement vehicles: A pension, which is only available to those who retire after at least 20 years of service.

Most retirees at 20 years will receive 50% of their base pay, which would equal the following amounts: E-7 Monthly: $1,997.20. E-7 Annually: $23,972.40. O-5 Monthly: $3,848.70.

Every member's retirement pay differs to some degree based on length of service and rank. For example, the retirement of an E-8 with 20 years is roughly $22,000 a year for just waking up in the morning.

E-8 is the 8th enlisted paygrade in the United States military. The E-8 grade begins at 8 years of experience with a basic pay rate of $4,739.10 per month and a drill pay rate of $157.97 per drill. The civilian equivalent of this military grade is roughly GS-6 under the federal government's General Schedule payscale.

What does an E-6 get paid? ›

E-6 is the 6th enlisted paygrade in the United States military, with monthly basic pay ranging from $2,849.40 for an entry-level E-6 to $4,413.30 per month for E-6 personnel with over 40 years of experience.

Salary Ranges for Navy Seals

The salaries of Navy Seals in the US range from $15,929 to $424,998 , with a median salary of $76,394 . The middle 57% of Navy Seals makes between $76,394 and $192,310, with the top 86% making $424,998.

How much does an E-4 Specialist in the Army get paid? A Specialist is a enlisted soldier in the United States Army at DoD paygrade E-4. A Specialist receives a monthly basic pay salary starting at $2,393 per month, with raises up to $2,906 per month once they have served for over 6 years.

The SrA rank is an enlisted rank, equivalent to a corporal in the Army and Marines, and a Petty Officer Third Class in the Navy and Coast Guard. The base pay is the same for an E-4 in all branches of service, ranging from $25,668 to $31,158 per year.

How much does an E-2 Private Second Class in the Army get paid? A Private Second Class is a enlisted soldier in the United States Army at DoD paygrade E-2. A Private Second Class receives a monthly basic pay salary starting at $2,055 per month, with raises up to $2,055 per month once they have served for over 2 years.

You can get both Social Security benefits and military retirement benefits. Generally, there is no reduction of Social Security benefits because of your military retirement benefits. You'll get your Social Security benefit based on your earnings and the age you choose to start receiving benefits.

Can You Live Off Military Retirement Pay? The short answer is, yes, absolutely. But it takes a lot of planning to make this work. A good friend of mine, Doug Nordman, wrote the book, The Military Guide to Financial Independence and Early Retirement, and founded the website, The Military Guide.

Your military pension does not affect your Social Security benefits. You'll get your full Social Security benefit based on your earnings. Survivors benefits may affect benefits payable under the optional Department of Defense Survivors Benefit Plan.

The minimum eligibility period for receipt of pension is 10 years. A Central Government servant retiring in accordance with the Pension Rules is entitled to receive pension on completion of at least 10 years of qualifying service.

If you retired as an enlisted service member with 20 years of service, you could receive an average military pay of $30,000 to 35,000 per year while a service member who retired as a typical officer could receive an average of $60,000 to $70,000 per year.

How many years of service is required for full pension military? ›

personnel who have rendered at least 20 years of active service while Section 5(a) is compulsory retirement for uniformed personnel at the age of 60 and have rendered at least 15 years of active service. The AFP Pension Budget.

A few officers top 40 years of service in part because the years spent at military academies is counted toward their pension. In 2011, the Pentagon noted that the highest pension, $272,892, was paid to a retired four-star officer with 43 years of service.

The most common grade, not rank — which is merely seniority within a grade — at which US armed forces enlisted members retire is E-7, with around 22 years of service. For officers, it's O-5, with around 24 years of service.

In fact, it's a tremendous asset with significant value. For the average retiring officer (let's say an O5 with 20 years), the military pension amount is valued at well over a million dollars. Did you know that?

The E-9 grade begins at 10 years of experience with a basic pay rate of $5,789.10 per month and a drill pay rate of $192.97 per drill.

Many military members stick around for 20 years just to earn retirement benefits. Stay on active duty for as long as it's challenging and fulfilling. But if it becomes too much, consider joining the National Guard or Reserves to continue your military career and earn your retirement benefits.

For the full retirement benefit, you must be 62 years old at retirement or, if you have 30 years of credited service, you may retire as early as age 55. With less than 30 years of service, you may retire as early as age 55, but you will receive a reduced benefit.

Sergeant first class (E-7) -- six years. Master sergeant/first sergeant (E-8) -- eight years. Sergeant major (E-9) -- nine years.

Sergeants can take retirement at any time after they fulfill their time commitment, but after 20 years, retirement benefits increase. For those who started active duty before 1980 and retire after 20 years of service, retired pay amounts equal about 75 percent of their base salary.

Including the most common pay allowances, the average total compensation for a Sergeant First Class may range from $64,130.19 to $95,651.79 per year as of 2022.

How much does a Master Sergeant make after 20 years? ›

E9 - Army - Command Sergeant Major/Sergeant Major pay FAQ

The national average salary for an E9 - Army - Command Sergeant Major/Sergeant Major is $40,337 per year in United States.

Including the most common pay allowances, the average total compensation for a Sergeant Major may range from $27,143.55 to $135,010.35 per year as of 2022.

How much does an E-3 Private First Class in the Army get paid? A Private First Class is a enlisted soldier in the United States Army at DoD paygrade E-3. A Private First Class receives a monthly basic pay salary starting at $2,161 per month, with raises up to $2,436 per month once they have served for over 3 years.

For advancement to E-6, member must have a minimum of 36 months TIR as an E-5*. The TIR requirement for advancement to E-6 can be waived for up to one year for those with demonstrated superior performance.

Navy SEALs are eligible for retirement after 20 years of service, but many SEAL members continue service for at least 30 years to maximize their retirement benefits. After 20 years of service, Navy SEALS are eligible for 50% of their average base salary for retirement.

The highest ranking SEAL in the U.S. Navy (there is only one) is a four-star Admiral (O-10), the Navy's highest rank, who earns $15,583 a month.

To date, 13 women have been chosen for Special Warfare Combatant-Craft Crewman training, with one completing the course and becoming the Navy's first female Naval Special Warfare operator -- the boat operators who transport Navy SEALs and conduct their own classified missions -- in July 2021.

Taxes, taxes, taxes

The biggest deduction from your civilian paycheck will likely be taxes. In the military, the federal government generally only taxes base pay, and many states waive income taxes. Other military pay—things like housing allowances, combat pay or cost-of-living adjustments—may not be taxed.

Is military pay taxed? ›

Non-Excludable Taxes – Military pay for earned while in a combat zone is subject to Social Security and Medicare taxes and will appear on your W-2.

The highest pays by branch are: Army: $646. Marine Corps: $750. Navy: $750.

A Sergeant is a noncommissioned officer in the United States Army at DoD paygrade E-5. A Sergeant receives a monthly basic pay salary starting at $2,610 per month, with raises up to $3,704 per month once they have served for over 12 years.

Navy Seaman Pay

A Seaman is a junior enlisted in the United States Navy at DoD paygrade E-3. A Seaman receives a monthly basic pay salary starting at $2,161 per month, with raises up to $2,436 per month once they have served for over 3 years.

Paygrade E-1

E-1 is the 1st enlisted paygrade in the United States military, with monthly basic pay ranging from $1,833.30 for an entry-level E-1 to $1,833.30 per month for E-1 personnel with over 40 years of experience.

Meanwhile, a more senior enlisted person with a paygrade of E-6, who has more than a decade of service, earns $3,988 monthly. Officers are paid more. A new officer's basic pay begins at $3,477 in 2022, while a more senior officer with a paygrade of O-4, having served more than 10 years, receives $7,892 monthly.

How much does an E-1 Private in the Army get paid? A Private is a enlisted soldier in the United States Army at DoD paygrade E-1. A Private receives a monthly basic pay salary starting at $1,833 per month, with raises up to $1,833 per month once they have served for over 2 years.

Armed Forces personnel are set to receive increases to their salaries (Picture: Alamy). Essentially, the headline figures are that the most senior officers in the Armed Forces, one-star level and above, are getting a pay rise of 3.5%, whereas everybody else is getting 3.75%, backdated to April 2022.

Veterans receiving VA disability compensation are set to see their monthly VA pay increase by 5.9% in 2022. To put that in dollars, for every $1,000 a veteran currently receives in benefits payments, they will see an additional $59 in 2022.

What is US military salary? ›

Per reference (a), the Secretary of Defense has approved temporary BAH rate increases for 28 MHAs that experienced an average increase of 20 percent or more in rental housing costs. 3. Payment period. The payment period for the temporary BAH increase is from 1 October 2022 through 31 December 2022.

Military retirees and disabled veterans will see their monthly checks increase by 8.7% for 2023, thanks to an annual adjustment to the federal Cost of Living Allowance (COLA) due to inflation.

Average U.S. Army Sergeant Major yearly pay in the United States is approximately $91,754, which is 14% above the national average.

Since 1957, if you had military service earnings for active duty (including active duty for training), you may have extra Social Security wage credits added to your earnings record.

The most common reason someone might be receiving two Social Security payments in a single month is that they are receiving both Social Security Disability Insurance (SSD or SSDI) benefits and Supplement Security Income (SSI) benefits.

Veterans that obtain an 80 percent VA Disability rating receive $1,778.43 a month from the Veterans Administration. Eligible disabled veterans may also be able to receive extra monthly compensation for dependent children and parents.

Average U.S. Army Soldier yearly pay in the United States is approximately $35,537, which is 10% below the national average.

Which state has the highest BAH? ›

There aren't restrictions on BAH that limit service members to renting. You can use this monthly allowance to help you qualify for a VA loan and buy a home. And your BAH could cover most or even all of your monthly mortgage payment.

Therefore, two military members not married to each other and living together could get BAH with dependents based on their status. If they get married one of them will lose the BAH with dependents, it will revert to single BAH.