Military Pay Grade Abbreviations
44 abbreviations · part of Military Abbreviations
US military pay grades (E-1 to E-9 for enlisted members, W-1 to W-5 for warrant officers and O-1 to O-10 for commissioned officers) and the NATO rank codes (OR-1 to OR-9 and OF-1 to OF-10) used to compare ranks across allied forces. A pay grade is identical in every US service even though rank titles differ: an E-5 is a sergeant in the Army and Marine Corps, a staff sergeant in the Air Force and a petty officer second class in the Navy and Coast Guard. Basic pay for each grade is set by law, usually raised every January, and increases with years of service.
| Abbreviation | Stands for | Description |
|---|---|---|
| E-1 | Enlisted pay grade 1 | Lowest US military pay grade, held by new recruits: Private in the Army and Marine Corps, Seaman Recruit in the Navy and Coast Guard, Airman Basic in the Air Force and… |
| E-2 | Enlisted pay grade 2 | Second US enlisted pay grade: Private (PV2) in the Army, Seaman Apprentice in the Navy and Coast Guard, Airman in the Air Force, Private First Class in the Marine Corps… |
| E-3 | Enlisted pay grade 3 | Third US enlisted pay grade, held by Army privates first class, Navy and Coast Guard seamen (and firemen, airmen and hospitalmen), Air Force airmen first class, Marine… |
| E-4 | Enlisted pay grade 4 | Fourth US enlisted pay grade: Specialist or Corporal in the Army, Petty Officer Third Class in the Navy and Coast Guard, Senior Airman in the Air Force, Corporal in the… |
| E-5 | Enlisted pay grade 5 | Fifth US enlisted pay grade and the first at which every service treats its members as noncommissioned officers: Sergeant in the Army, Marine Corps and Space Force… |
| E-6 | Enlisted pay grade 6 | Sixth US enlisted pay grade: Staff Sergeant in the Army and Marine Corps, Petty Officer First Class in the Navy and Coast Guard, and Technical Sergeant in the Air Force… |
| E-7 | Enlisted pay grade 7 | Seventh US enlisted pay grade and the start of the senior NCO corps in most services: Sergeant First Class in the Army, Chief Petty Officer in the Navy and Coast Guard… |
| E-8 | Enlisted pay grade 8 | Eighth US enlisted pay grade: Master Sergeant or First Sergeant in the Army, Senior Chief Petty Officer in the Navy and Coast Guard, Senior Master Sergeant in the Air… |
| E-9 | Enlisted pay grade 9 | Highest US enlisted pay grade: Sergeant Major or Command Sergeant Major in the Army, Master Chief Petty Officer in the Navy and Coast Guard, Chief Master Sergeant in… |
| O-1 | Officer pay grade 1 | Entry commissioned officer pay grade: Second Lieutenant in the Army, Air Force, Space Force and Marine Corps, and Ensign in the Navy and Coast Guard. |
| O-10 | Officer pay grade 10 | Highest active US officer pay grade: General in the Army, Air Force, Space Force and Marine Corps, and Admiral in the Navy and Coast Guard. |
| O-1E | Officer pay grade 1 with prior enlisted service | Special pay grade for O-1 officers who served more than four years on active duty as enlisted members or warrant officers before commissioning. |
| O-2 | Officer pay grade 2 | Second officer pay grade: First Lieutenant in the Army, Air Force, Space Force and Marine Corps, and Lieutenant Junior Grade in the Navy and Coast Guard. |
| O-3 | Officer pay grade 3 | Third officer pay grade: Captain in the Army, Air Force, Space Force and Marine Corps, and Lieutenant in the Navy and Coast Guard. |
| O-4 | Officer pay grade 4 | Fourth officer pay grade: Major in the Army, Air Force, Space Force and Marine Corps, and Lieutenant Commander in the Navy and Coast Guard. |
| O-5 | Officer pay grade 5 | Fifth officer pay grade: Lieutenant Colonel in the Army, Air Force, Space Force and Marine Corps, and Commander in the Navy and Coast Guard. |
| O-6 | Officer pay grade 6 | Sixth officer pay grade: Colonel in the Army, Air Force, Space Force and Marine Corps, and Captain in the Navy and Coast Guard. |
| O-7 | Officer pay grade 7 | First general and flag officer pay grade: Brigadier General in the Army, Air Force, Space Force and Marine Corps, and Rear Admiral (lower half) in the Navy and Coast… |
| O-8 | Officer pay grade 8 | Two-star general and flag officer pay grade: Major General in the Army, Air Force, Space Force and Marine Corps, and Rear Admiral (upper half) in the Navy and Coast… |
| O-9 | Officer pay grade 9 | Three-star pay grade: Lieutenant General in the Army, Air Force, Space Force and Marine Corps, and Vice Admiral in the Navy and Coast Guard. |
| OF-1 | NATO officer grade 1 | NATO code covering the two most junior commissioned grades: US second and first lieutenants and Navy ensigns and lieutenants junior grade, British Army second… |
| OF-10 | NATO officer grade 10 | Five-star ranks on the NATO scale: US General of the Army, Fleet Admiral and General of the Air Force, British field marshal, admiral of the fleet and marshal of the… |
| OF-2 | NATO officer grade 2 | Captain-level officers share this NATO code: US Army, Air Force and Marine captains (O-3), US Navy and Coast Guard lieutenants, British Army captains, Royal Navy… |
| OF-3 | NATO officer grade 3 | Majors and their equivalents fall under this NATO code: US O-4s (majors and Navy lieutenant commanders), British Army and Royal Marines majors, Royal Navy lieutenant… |
| OF-4 | NATO officer grade 4 | Lieutenant colonels and their equivalents across the alliance: US O-5s, including Navy commanders, plus British lieutenant colonels, Royal Navy commanders and RAF wing… |
| OF-5 | NATO officer grade 5 | Colonels and naval captains in allied forces, including US O-6s, British Army colonels, Royal Navy captains and RAF group captains. |
| OF-6 | NATO officer grade 6 | One-star officers across NATO, among them US brigadier generals and rear admirals (lower half), British brigadiers, Royal Navy commodores and RAF air commodores. |
| OF-7 | NATO officer grade 7 | Two-star officers in allied armed forces: US major generals and rear admirals (upper half), British major generals, Royal Navy rear admirals and RAF air vice-marshals. |
| OF-8 | NATO officer grade 8 | Three-star officers on the NATO scale, including US lieutenant generals and vice admirals, British lieutenant generals, Royal Navy vice admirals and RAF air marshals. |
| OF-9 | NATO officer grade 9 | Four-star officers of the alliance: US generals and admirals, British generals, Royal Navy admirals and RAF air chief marshals. |
| OR-1 | NATO other ranks grade 1 | NATO code for the most junior enlisted rank in allied forces, used under the standardization agreement STANAG 2116 to compare ranks across countries. |
| OR-2 | NATO other ranks grade 2 | Second step on the NATO enlisted scale, equal to US pay grade E-2: an Army Private (PV2), Navy Seaman Apprentice, Air Force Airman and Marine Corps Private First Class. |
| OR-3 | NATO other ranks grade 3 | Matches US pay grade E-3 on the NATO comparison scale, covering Army privates first class, Navy seamen, Air Force airmen first class and Marine lance corporals. |
| OR-4 | NATO other ranks grade 4 | Corporal-level code in NATO's rank table, equal to US pay grade E-4: Army specialists and corporals, Navy petty officers third class, Air Force senior airmen and Marine… |
| OR-5 | NATO other ranks grade 5 | Equivalent of US pay grade E-5 under STANAG 2116: Army and Marine sergeants, Navy petty officers second class and Air Force staff sergeants. |
| OR-6 | NATO other ranks grade 6 | Places US E-6s, namely Army and Marine staff sergeants, Navy petty officers first class and Air Force technical sergeants, on the common NATO scale. |
| OR-7 | NATO other ranks grade 7 | Senior NCO code on the NATO scale, equal to US pay grade E-7: Army sergeants first class, Navy chief petty officers, Air Force master sergeants and Marine gunnery… |
| OR-8 | NATO other ranks grade 8 | Corresponds to US pay grade E-8: Army master sergeants and first sergeants, Navy senior chiefs, Air Force senior master sergeants and Marine master sergeants and first… |
| OR-9 | NATO other ranks grade 9 | Highest NATO enlisted code, equal to US pay grade E-9: sergeants major, master chief petty officers, chief master sergeants and Marine master gunnery sergeants. |
| W-1 | Warrant officer pay grade 1 | Entry warrant officer pay grade, held by Army Warrant Officers 1 (WO1) and Marine Corps Warrant Officers (WO). |
| W-2 | Warrant officer pay grade 2 | Second warrant pay grade, held by Chief Warrant Officers 2 (Army CW2, Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard CWO2). |
| W-3 | Warrant officer pay grade 3 | Middle warrant officer pay grade, held by Army CW3s and Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard CWO3s. |
| W-4 | Warrant officer pay grade 4 | Senior warrant officer pay grade, held by Army CW4s and CWO4s in the Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard. |
| W-5 | Warrant officer pay grade 5 | Highest warrant officer pay grade, held by Army CW5s and Navy and Marine Corps CWO5s. |
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