BAH 2026 · housing area
BAH in San Antonio for 2026
The 2026 housing allowance of the San Antonio housing area, where Joint Base San Antonio trains airmen and medics from every service, and how far it is from Austin.
BAH 2026 in San Antonio
E-5 with dependents
$1,869
| Per year, tax free | $22,428 |
| Without dependents | $1,500 |
| Difference | $369 |
An E-5 with dependents at Joint Base San Antonio receives $1,869 a month of BAH in 2026 and $1,500 without dependents; a married O-3 receives $2,127. The San Antonio, TX housing area (TX285) of the Defense Travel Management Office covers 113 ZIP codes in Bexar County and the surrounding counties, which take in the three main parts of the joint base: Fort Sam Houston, home of military medical training, Lackland, where every enlisted airman starts basic training, and Randolph, a pilot instructor training base. The area ranks 209 of 338 for the E-5 family rate, in the lower half of the country despite the size of the city. Its officer rates are compressed: an O-3 with dependents receives $2,127, almost the same as an E-7, $2,112. Austin, an hour north, pays an E-5 family $2,241.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How we calculate
San Antonio BAH by grade
| Grade | With dependents | Without dependents |
|---|---|---|
| E-1 | $1,728 | $1,359 |
| E-4 | $1,728 | $1,359 |
| E-5 | $1,869 | $1,500 |
| E-6 | $2,094 | $1,596 |
| E-7 | $2,112 | $1,731 |
| E-8 | $2,121 | $1,920 |
| E-9 | $2,157 | $1,977 |
| W-2 | $2,118 | $1,917 |
| O-1 | $1,905 | $1,584 |
| O-2 | $2,091 | $1,827 |
| O-3 | $2,127 | $2,007 |
| O-4 | $2,307 | $2,088 |
| O-5 | $2,457 | $2,100 |
| O-6 | $2,475 | $2,103 |
A training city with compressed rates
San Antonio's table is flatter than most. From E-6 to O-3, the with-dependents rates stay within a narrow band, from $2,094 to $2,127, before rising for field grade officers: $2,307 for an O-4 and $2,457 for an O-5. The single rates follow the same pattern. For members assigned to the joint base after a tour in a high-cost area, the drop in BAH can be steep, but rents in the area are among the lowest of the large metropolitan areas in the country.
San Antonio and Austin
| Grade | San Antonio | Austin | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| E-4 | $1,728 | $2,046 | $318 |
| E-5 | $1,869 | $2,241 | $372 |
| E-7 | $2,112 | $3,039 | $927 |
| O-3 | $2,127 | $3,447 | $1,320 |
| O-5 | $2,457 | $4,095 | $1,638 |
Austin is a separate housing area with much higher rates. Recruiters, ROTC cadre at the University of Texas and members of the Army's headquarters units in Austin receive that table. A member assigned to San Antonio who commutes from the Austin side receives the San Antonio rate, since the duty station decides.
Where the area reaches
The ZIP codes run from 78002 to 78670, including suburbs such as Schertz, Universal City and Converse near Randolph, and communities west of Lackland. Use the BAH calculator to check a ZIP code, the military pay calculator for the full monthly figure, and the Fort Hood page for the other large Texas installation.
Why San Antonio BAH went down in 2026
San Antonio is one of the areas where the 2026 table fell. The E-5 family rate dropped from $1,935 in 2025 to $1,869, a change of -3.4%, and the O-3 rate from $2,187 to $2,127. The DTMO's yearly survey found lower median rents for the housing standards it prices in the area.
| Grade | 2025 | 2026 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| E-4 | $1,791 | $1,728 | −$63 (−3.5%) |
| E-5 | $1,935 | $1,869 | −$66 (−3.4%) |
| E-6 | $2,154 | $2,094 | −$60 (−2.8%) |
| E-7 | $2,172 | $2,112 | −$60 (−2.8%) |
| E-9 | $2,208 | $2,157 | −$51 (−2.3%) |
| O-1 | $1,968 | $1,905 | −$63 (−3.2%) |
| O-3 | $2,187 | $2,127 | −$60 (−2.7%) |
| O-5 | $2,466 | $2,457 | −$9 (−0.4%) |
Rate protection after a decrease
A decrease does not cut the allowance of members already in the area. Under individual rate protection, a member entitled to BAH in San Antonio on December 31, 2025 keeps the 2025 rate in 2026, as long as the member stays at the same duty station, keeps the same dependency status and is not reduced in grade. Members who arrive in 2026, or whose status changes, receive the new rate. Rent makes up about 83% of the housing cost behind the rate and utilities 17%, before the 5% member cost share.
For trainees, the situation is different again: members in basic or initial training who have dependents usually receive the with-dependents rate of the place where the family lives, not the San Antonio rate, until they reach their first permanent duty station.
Instructors at the Defense Language Institute English Language Center and the medical education commands at Fort Sam Houston serve long tours, so rate protection after the 2026 decrease matters to many families here.