air force ranks and pay
Air Force

Air Force Ranks and Basic Pay for 2023

The United States Air Force serves as the aerial and cyberspace warfare branch of the military. It was divided from the U.S. Army in the early 20th century in order to support changing technology as equipment went into the air.

The USAF has a structure for how it ranks its service members. The ranking is important as it not only assigns roles and responsibilities but also relates to how much you get paid.

Here is a detailed outline of Air Force rankings and 2023 pay.

Air Force Ranks And Pay For 2023 – Enlisted

InsigniaPay GradeRankAbbreviation2023 Minimum Monthly Pay
E-1 +4 monthsAirman BasicAB$1,917.60
E-2AirmanAmn$2,149.20
airman first class smallE-3Airman First ClassA1C$2,259.90
E-4Senior AirmanSrA$2,503.50
E-5Staff SergeantSSgt$2,730.30
air force e 6 insigniaE-6Technical SergeantTSgt$2,980.50
E-7Master SergeantMSgt$3,445.80
E-8Senior Master SergeantSMSgt$4,957.20
E-9Chief Master SergeantCMSgt$6,055.50
command chief master sergeant insig smallE-9Command Chief Master SergeantCCM$6,055.50
chief master sergeant of the air force insigE-9Chief Master Sergeant Of The Air ForceCMSAF$6,055.50

The pay in the United States Air Force improves the longer you serve, just like most occupations. As you will notice in the charts (below) the base pay steadily increases yet eventually reaches a cap for each ranking.

Here is a detailed breakdown of USAF ranks and pay based on years served:

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Years 2 – 6

Pay GradeLess than 2 YearsOver 2 YearsOver 3 YearsOver 4 YearsOver 6 Years
E-1 +4 months$1,917.60$1917.60$1917.60$1917.60$1917.60
E-2$2,149.20$2,149.20$2,149.20$2,149.20$2,149.20
E-3$2,259.90$2,402.10$2,547.60$2,547.60$2,547.60
E-4$2,503.50$2,631.60$2,774.10$2,914.80$3,039.30
E-5$2,730.30$2,914.20$3,055.20$3,199.20$3,423.90
E-6$2,980.50$3,279.90$3,424.80$3,656.50$3,711.90
E-7$3,445.80$3,760.80$3,905.10$4,095.30$4,244.70

Years 8 – 16

Pay GradeOver 8 YearsOver 10 YearsOver 12 YearsOver 14 YearsOver 16 Years
E-1$1,917.60$1,917.60$1,917.60$1,917.60$1,917.60
E-2$2,149.20$2,149.20$2,149.20$2,149.20$2,149.20
E-3$2,547.60$2,547.60$2,547.60$2,547.60$2,547.60
E-4$3,039.30$3,039.30$3,039.30$3,039.30$3,039.30
E-5$3,658.50$3,851.70$3,874.80$3,874.80$3,874.80
E-6$4,042.20$4,170.90$4,419.90$4,496.10$4,551.30
E-7$4,500.60$4,644.90$4,900.50$5,113.50$5,258.70
E-8$4,957.20$5,176.50$5,312.10$5,474.70$5,650.80
E-9N/A$6,055.50$6,192.90$6,365.70$6,568.80

Years 18 – 26

Pay GradeOver 18 YearsOver 20 YearsOver 22 YearsOver 24 YearsOver 26 Years
E-1$1,917.60$1,917.60$1,917.60$1,917.60$1,917.60
E-2$2,149.20$2,149.20$2,149.20$2,149.20$2,149.20
E-3$2,547.60$2,547.60$2,547.60$2,547.60$2,547.60
E-4$3,039.30$3,039.30$3,039.30$3,039.30$3,039.30
E-5$3,874.80$3,874.80$3,874.80$3,874.80$3,874.80
E-6$4,616.40$4,616.40$4,616.40$4,616.40$4,616.40
E-7$5,413.50$5,473.20$5,674.50$5,782.50$6,193.50
E-8$5,968.80$6,130.20$6,404.40$6,556.50$6,930.90
E-9$6,774.90$7,102.80$7,381.50$7,673.70$8,121.60

30+ Years

Pay GradeOver 30 YearsOver 34 YearsOver 38 YearsOver 40 Years
E-8$7,069.80$7,069.80$7,069.80$7,069.80
E-9$8,526.90$8,953.80$9,402.30$9,402.30

The pay rates posted above do not include a variety of bonuses and benefits exclusive to the U.S. Air Force. 

Additional incentives, pay, and bonuses may also include:

    • Uniform allowances
    • Family separation allowance
    • Hardship duty pay
    • Re-Enlistment bonuses
    • Quick ship bonuses
    • BAH – Basic Allowance for Housing
    • Foreign Language Proficiency Bonus

Please check with your local Air Force recruiter to learn more about pay and benefits.

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Let’s examine the ranking structure for officers in the Air Force:

InsigniaPay GradeRankAbbreviationMinimum Monthly Pay
O-1Second Lieutenant2d Lt$3,637.20
O-2First Lieutenant1st Lt$4,190.70
O-3CaptainCapt$4,849.80
O-4MajorMaj$5,516.40
O-5Lieutenant ColonelLt Co$6,393.30
air force colonel smallO-6ColonelCol$7,669.20
O-7Brigadier GeneralBrig$10,113.00
O-8Major GeneralMaj G$12,170.70
O-9Lieutenant GeneralLt Ge$17,201.40
O-10GeneralGen$17,675.10

Along with the pay charts for enlisted personnel, the above figures for monthly pay are the bare minimums. The good news is that you will at least earn that much and more depending on how many years you have served.

Years 2 – 6

Pay GradeLess Than 2 YearsOver 2 YearsOver 3 YearsOver 4 YearsOver 6 Years
O-1$3,637.20$3,786.00$4,576.80$4,576.80$4,576.80
O-2$4,190.70$4,772.70$5,496.90$5,682.60$5,799.30
O-3$4,849.80$5,497.80$5,933.40$6,469.80$6,780.30
O-4$5,516.40$6,385.20$6,812.10$6,906.30$7,301.70
O-5$6,393.30$7,202.10$7,700.40$7,794.30$8,105.70
O-6$7,669.20$8,425.20$8,978.10$8,978.10$9,012.60
O-7$10,113.00$10,582.80$10,800.30$10,973.40$11,286.00
O-8$12,170.70$11,570.00$12,834.30$12,908.10$13,238.40

Years 8 – 16

Pay GradeOver 8 YearsOver 10 YearsOver 12 YearsOver 14 YearsOver 16 Years
O-1$4,576.80$4,576.80$4,576.80$4,576.80$4,576.80
O-2$5,799.30$5,799.30$5,799.30$5,799.30$5,799.30
O-3$7,120.50$7,340.10$7,701.60$7,890.60$7,890.60
O-4$7,726.20$8,254.80$8,665.50$8,951.10$9,115.50
O-5$8,291.40$8,700.60$9,001.80$9,389.70$9,982.80
O-6$9,398.70$9,450.00$9,450.00$9,967.00$10,936.20
O-7$11,595.30$11,952.60$12,308.70$12,666.60$13,789.50
O-8$13,789.50$13,918.20$14,441.70$14,592.60$15,043.50

Years 18 – 26

Pay GradeOver 18 YearsOver 20 YearsOver 22 YearsOver 24 YearsOver 26 Years
O-1$4,576.80$4,576.80$4,576.80$4,576.80$4,576.80
O-2$5,799.30$5,799.30$5,799.30$5,799.30$5,799.30
O-3$7,890.60$7,890.60$7,890.60$7,890.60$7,890.60
O-4$9,210.30$9,210.30$9,210.30$9,210.30$9,210.30
O-5$10,265.40$10,544.70$10,861.80$10,861.80$10,861.80
O-6$11,493.60$12,050.40$12,367.50$12,688.80$13,310.70
O-7$14,737.80$14,737.80$14,737.80$14,737.80$14,813.70
O-8$15,696.50$16,298.10$16,700.10$16,700.10$16,700.10
O-9N/A$17,201.40$17,449.80$17,675.10$17,675.10
O-10N/A$17,675.10$17,675.10$17,675.10$17,675.10

30+ Years

Pay GradeOver 30 YearsOver 34 YearsOver 38 YearsOver 40 Years
O-6$13,576.50$13,576.50$13,576.50$13,576.50
O-7$15,110.10$15,110.10$15,110.10$15,110.10
O-8$17,118.30$17,545.80$17,545.80$17,545.80
O-9$17,675.10$17,675.10$17,675.10$17,675.10
O-10$17,675.10$17,675.10$17,675.10$17,675.10

Related Article: Air Force Height And Weight Requirements

Conclusion

There is a lot to the pay structure in the U.S. Air Force depending on ranking and years served.

The article breaks just the surface of USAF pay and rankings. Please contact a local recruiter to receive more details about expected monthly pay and other military benefits.

References

Federalpay.org

Defense.gov

Craig S.
Air Force Ranks & Pay

Air Force Ranks & Pay

4.9 out of 5 (122 Ratings)

Like every other branch in the US military, your pay in the Air Force is dictated by your rank and length of time in service.
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