Military pay · grade group
Junior officer pay (O-1 to O-3) in 2026
Basic pay for second lieutenants and ensigns, first lieutenants and lieutenants junior grade, captains and Navy lieutenants, with what the allowances add at a few stations.
O-1 to O-3 basic pay in 2026
O-2, over 4
$6,484.50
| Per year | $77,814 |
| Before the 3.8% raise (approx.) | $6,247 |
| Per drill (1/30 of a month) | $216.15 |
A newly commissioned O-1, second lieutenant or ensign, earns $4,150.20 a month of basic pay in 2026, an O-2 with more than two years $5,446.20 and an O-3 with more than six years $7,737, after the 3.8% raise of January 1, 2026. The O-1 row stops rising at over 3 years and the O-2 row at over 6, because officers normally pin on the next grade before then: promotion to O-2 usually comes after about two years and to O-3 after about four. The O-3 row climbs until over 14 years, to $9,004.20. These rates apply to officers commissioned without significant prior enlisted service; those with more than four years of active enlisted or warrant service are paid at the higher O-1E to O-3E rates. Officers receive BAS of $328.48 and BAH at officer rates, which in high-cost areas can approach basic pay.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How we calculate
O-1 to O-3 basic pay, 2026
| Years | O-1 | O-2 | O-3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 or less | $4,150.20 | $4,782 | $5,534.10 |
| Over 2 | $4,320 | $5,446.20 | $6,273.90 |
| Over 3 | $5,222.40 | $6,272.40 | $6,770.40 |
| Over 4 | $5,222.40 | $6,484.50 | $7,382.70 |
| Over 6 | $5,222.40 | $6,617.70 | $7,737 |
| Over 8 | $5,222.40 | $6,617.70 | $8,125.50 |
| Over 10 | $5,222.40 | $6,617.70 | $8,375.70 |
| Over 12 | $5,222.40 | $6,617.70 | $8,788.20 |
| Over 14 | $5,222.40 | $6,617.70 | $9,004.20 |
Promotion, not seniority, drives junior officer pay
The junior officer rows are short on purpose. An O-1 who stays an O-1 stops gaining at over three years, an O-2 at over six. Since promotion to O-2 and O-3 is close to automatic for officers in good standing, at roughly two and four years, the real progression is diagonal: $4,150.20 on commissioning, $5,446.20 as a first lieutenant or lieutenant junior grade at two years, $7,382.70 as a captain or Navy lieutenant at four, and $8,125.50 at eight. That is an increase of more than half in basic pay over eight years, before any yearly raise.
What the allowances add, station by station
| Station | O-1 with dependents | O-3 with dependents | O-3 without |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fort Bragg | $1,842 | $2,175 | $1,956 |
| Norfolk | $2,454 | $2,694 | $2,505 |
| Colorado Springs | $2,376 | $2,595 | $2,397 |
| San Diego | $4,032 | $4,518 | $4,248 |
| Washington DC | $3,213 | $4,020 | $3,531 |
For a junior officer, BAH is often the largest single factor in the comparison between assignments. In the Washington area, an O-3 with dependents receives $4,020 of BAH, against $2,175 at Fort Bragg, while basic pay is the same. BAS is a flat $328.48 for every officer, lower than the enlisted rate. The military pay calculator adds basic pay, BAH and BAS for any ZIP code.
Service commitments and the money that follows
Most junior officers serve under an active-duty commitment after commissioning or training, and pilots and some specialists carry longer ones. During those years, saving in the TSP with the Blended Retirement System match is the main lever: an O-2 over 2 years who puts 5% of basic pay into the TSP contributes $272.31 a month and receives the same amount from the service once the full match applies. The TSP calculator projects it, and the O-4 to O-6 page shows the next steps of the officer table.
Junior officers with prior service
An officer commissioned after more than four years of active enlisted or warrant officer service is paid from a separate set of rates, O-1E to O-3E, which start at the "over 4" column and run higher: an O-3E with more than ten years earns $8,375.70 against $8,375.70 for an O-3. The O-1E to O-3E page explains who qualifies.
Grade names across the services
O-1 is second lieutenant in the Army, Air Force, Marine Corps and Space Force and ensign in the Navy and Coast Guard; O-2 is first lieutenant or lieutenant junior grade; O-3 is captain or, in the Navy and Coast Guard, lieutenant. The pay is identical for the same grade and years in every service.