Reviewed by Jonathan Teplitsky · Updated June 2026
GS Pay Scale 2026 and 2025 (with Locality Pay)
The General Schedule has two components: base pay (uniform nationwide) and locality pay (17.14% to 46.91% in 2025). Most online GS charts show only base — that's the wrong number for almost every federal employee. A GS-13 Step 5 base of ~$98,000 is actually ~$115,000 in Rest of US and ~$144,000 in San Jose-SF.
This page covers both years' base pay, the 15-grade/10-step structure, WGI, FWS, and SES. Locality-by-locality breakdowns (GS-7 in Boston, GS-13 in Atlanta) will be a follow-up content series.
How GS pay works
15 grades (GS-1 to GS-15), 10 steps per grade. Grade reflects job level; step reflects time and performance.
Base × (1 + locality %) = Adjusted basic pay
Adjusted basic is your paycheck — and the figure used for FERS high-3.
2025 GS base pay (selected)
2025 raise was 2.0% across-the-board:
- GS-5 Step 1: ~$33,900
- GS-7 Step 5: ~$45,800
- GS-9 Step 10: ~$66,200
- GS-11 Step 5: ~$70,300
- GS-12 Step 5: ~$84,300
- GS-13 Step 5: ~$98,000
- GS-13 Step 10: ~$117,000
- GS-14 Step 5: ~$116,000
- GS-15 Step 10: ~$167,000 (Executive Schedule Level IV cap)
2026 GS base pay
Set by executive determination, finalized with March 2026 budget proposal. Plan small single-digit increase on each 2025 figure. Locality percentages adjust separately.
Locality pay
53 metro areas + Rest of US. 2025 highlights:
- San Jose-San Francisco: 46.91%
- New York City: 42.74%
- Hartford: 41.18%
- Los Angeles: 40.48%
- Washington DC: 33.94%
- Rest of US: 17.14%
GS-12 Step 5 base ~$84,300 → ~$98,800 Rest of US, ~$113,000 DC, ~$124,000 San Jose-SF. Locality long-tail (GS-7 in Seattle, GS-13 in Denver) covered in follow-up series.
Within-Grade Increases (WGI)
- Steps 1→4: 1 year each (52 weeks)
- Steps 4→8: 2 years each (104 weeks)
- Steps 8→10: 3 years each (156 weeks)
18 years total Step 1 to Step 10. Quality Step Increase (QSI) for sustained high performance adds extra step outside WGI clock.
Standard career ladders
- Entry/clerical: GS-5 → 7 → 9
- Professional: GS-7 → 9 → 11 → 12
- Technical: GS-9 → 11 → 12 → 13
- Senior/management: GS-12 → 13 → 14 → 15
Ladder promotions are non-competitive; competitive promotions require a vacancy announcement.
Federal Wage System (FWS)
Blue-collar/trade: mechanics, electricians, machinists, painters, equipment operators. WG (worker), WL (leader), WS (supervisor). Rates set by local wage surveys, not GS+locality. A WG-10 in San Diego is benchmarked against San Diego private trade wages.
Senior Executive Service (SES)
Above GS-15. Most agencies set single rate by performance; some use ES-1 to ES-5 tier. Not stepped — moves through annual performance reviews. Capped at Executive Schedule Level III (or II for certified appraisal systems).
Next
Federal employees hub, benefits, federal retirement, FSO pay.
Sources
- OPM Pay & Leave
- Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS
- 5 U.S.C. Chapter 53