GS Pay Scale 2026: General Schedule Pay Table by Grade and Step
The General Schedule (GS) is the pay system for the majority of civilian white-collar federal employees. It has 15 grades, GS-1 to GS-15, and each grade has 10 steps. In OPM's 2026 base table, annual pay runs from $22,584 at GS-1, step 1 to $164,301 at GS-15, step 10. Most employees also get locality pay on top of the base rate, from 17.06% in the Rest of U.S. area to 46.34% in San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland. The tables below are OPM's 2026 tables, the current ones: as of November 8, 2026, OPM had not posted a 2027 General Schedule table.
GS Pay in 2026 at a Glance
- 2026 raise: OPM's 2026 tables incorporate a 1% General Schedule increase, effective January 2026. Each locality table lists a total increase of 1%.
- Base pay range: $22,584 (GS-1, step 1) to $164,301 (GS-15, step 10).
- Locality pay: OPM publishes 2026 tables for 58 locality pay areas. The lowest payment is 17.06% (Rest of U.S.) and the highest is 46.34% (San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland, CA).
- Pay cap: locality rates are limited to the Executive Schedule level IV rate, $197,200 in the 2026 tables.
- Steps: moving from step 1 to step 10 normally takes 18 years if you stay in one grade.
2026 GS Base Pay Table
This is OPM's Salary Table 2026-GS: annual base rates before locality pay. OPM says most GS employees are also entitled to locality pay, so few are paid the base rate alone. Use it to compare grades and steps, then add your area's locality payment (next section).
| 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 |
2026 GS Pay With Locality
Locality pay is a percentage added to the base rate based on where your duty station is. OPM explains that it reflects pay levels for non-federal workers in each area, measured by Bureau of Labor Statistics surveys. GS employees in foreign areas are not eligible for locality pay.
The table shows step 1 and step 10 for three areas: Rest of U.S., the catch-all area with the lowest payment (17.06%); Reno-Fernley, NV, the named metro area with the lowest payment (17.52%); and Washington-Baltimore-Arlington (33.94%). At the top grades in the DC area, rates hit the $197,200 cap: GS-15, steps 6 to 10 all pay $197,200.
| Grade | Rest of U.S. (17.06%) | Reno-Fernley, NV (17.52%) | Washington-Baltimore (33.94%) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Step 1 | Step 10 | Step 1 | Step 10 | Step 1 | Step 10 | |
| GS-1 | $26,437 | $33,067 | $26,541 | $33,197 | $30,249 | $37,835 |
| GS-2 | $29,725 | $37,404 | $29,842 | $37,551 | $34,011 | $42,798 |
| GS-3 | $32,435 | $42,170 | $32,562 | $42,335 | $37,112 | $48,251 |
| GS-4 | $36,409 | $47,334 | $36,552 | $47,520 | $41,659 | $54,160 |
| GS-5 | $40,736 | $52,957 | $40,896 | $53,165 | $46,610 | $60,593 |
| GS-6 | $45,409 | $59,031 | $45,587 | $59,263 | $51,957 | $67,543 |
| GS-7 | $50,460 | $65,599 | $50,658 | $65,857 | $57,736 | $75,059 |
| GS-8 | $55,882 | $72,644 | $56,102 | $72,929 | $63,940 | $83,119 |
| GS-9 | $61,722 | $80,243 | $61,965 | $80,559 | $70,623 | $91,815 |
| GS-10 | $67,970 | $88,356 | $68,237 | $88,703 | $77,771 | $101,097 |
| GS-11 | $74,678 | $97,087 | $74,972 | $97,469 | $85,447 | $111,087 |
| GS-12 | $89,508 | $116,362 | $89,859 | $116,820 | $102,415 | $133,142 |
| GS-13 | $106,437 | $138,370 | $106,855 | $138,913 | $121,785 | $158,322 |
| GS-14 | $125,776 | $163,514 | $126,271 | $164,157 | $143,913 | $187,093 |
| GS-15 | $147,945 | $192,331 | $148,526 | $193,087 | $169,279 | $197,200* |
For every other area, use OPM's full 2026 locality pay tables (annual and hourly rates for all 58 areas) or our federal pay calculator, which uses the same OPM tables for any grade, step and area.
How Step Increases Work
A step increase (OPM calls it a within-grade increase, or WGI) moves you from one step to the next in the same grade. OPM says each step is worth about 3% of salary. You get a step increase when three conditions are met:
- Your most recent rating of record is at least Level 3 ("Fully Successful" or equivalent).
- You have finished the waiting period for your current step (table below).
- You did not receive an "equivalent increase" in pay during the waiting period.
| Move | Waiting period (creditable service) |
|---|---|
| Step 1 to 2, 2 to 3, 3 to 4 | 52 weeks at each step |
| Step 4 to 5, 5 to 6, 6 to 7 | 104 weeks at each step |
| Step 7 to 8, 8 to 9, 9 to 10 | 156 weeks at each step |
Added up, that is 18 years from step 1 to step 10 in a single grade. Step increases only apply to permanent positions, which OPM defines as appointments not designated temporary and not limited to 1 year or less. Employees with an outstanding (or equivalent) rating can also be considered for a quality step increase, at most one per year.
Where New Employees Start
- Step: a new GS employee is usually hired at step 1 of the grade. Agencies can set a higher step for a new hire in special cases: a special need of the agency or superior qualifications.
- Grade by education: OPM says people with a high school diploma and no other experience typically qualify for GS-2, a bachelor's degree for GS-5 and a master's degree for GS-9. The job announcement sets the grade for each position.
- Promotions: employees can move up a grade at set intervals (generally after at least a year) up to the full promotion potential in the job announcement. A promotion raise is generally at least two steps at the grade you are leaving.
Special Rates and Law Enforcement Pay
Some employees are paid more than the tables above show. GS law enforcement officers at grades GS-3 through GS-10 get a higher locality rate from a separate OPM table. And where OPM has approved a special rate table for an occupation (OPM approves these where agencies have serious difficulty staffing certain jobs in certain areas), an employee whose regular GS rate is lower gets the higher special rate. Your agency's HR office can tell you which table applies to you.
What About 2027?
OPM usually adjusts the GS base schedule each January. The 2027 tables do not exist yet: when we checked on November 8, 2026, OPM's 2027 General Schedule page returned "Page Not Found." For the President's proposal, the formula figure and where Congress stands, see Federal Pay Raise 2027. We will replace these tables with OPM's 2027 tables once OPM posts them.
Sources & Methodology
- Pay tables: OPM Salary Table 2026-GS and the 2026 locality tables for Rest of U.S., Reno-Fernley and Washington-Baltimore-Arlington. The lowest and highest locality payments compare the headings of all 58 OPM 2026 locality tables. Every table cell on this page is OPM's published figure; a script re-reads them from saved copies of OPM's tables.
- Grades, steps, starting step, promotions and locality pay: OPM General Schedule overview.
- Step increase rules and waiting periods: OPM Fact Sheet: Within-Grade Increases.
- Law enforcement and special rates: OPM 2026 General Schedule pay tables page.
- All sources retrieved November 8, 2026.
FAQ
How much does a GS-12 make in 2026?
The 2026 base rate for GS-12 is $76,463 at step 1 to $99,404 at step 10. With locality pay, GS-12 step 1 is $89,508 in the Rest of U.S. area and $102,415 in the Washington-Baltimore area.
What is the highest GS salary in 2026?
GS-15, step 10 is $164,301 in the base table. With locality pay, rates are capped at $197,200 (Executive Schedule level IV), so in high-locality areas such as Washington-Baltimore several GS-15 steps pay the same $197,200.
Has OPM released the 2027 GS pay scale?
Not as of November 8, 2026. This page shows the 2026 tables until OPM posts the 2027 ones.
How often do GS employees get step increases?
After 52 weeks at steps 1 to 3, 104 weeks at steps 4 to 6 and 156 weeks at steps 7 to 9, as long as performance is at least Fully Successful and there was no equivalent increase in the waiting period.
This page is for educational purposes only and is not financial or career advice. Pay figures are OPM's published 2026 rates; your agency's HR office has your official rate.
