General Schedule · effective January 2026

GS-12 pay scale 2026

GS-12 base pay runs from $76,463 at step 1 to $99,404 at step 10. Every GS employee also gets a locality payment, so actual GS-12 pay at step 1 ranges from $89,508 (Rest of U.S.) to $111,896 (San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland, CA) across 58 locality pay areas.

GS-12 pay by step

StepBase payRest of U.S. (17.06%)
Step 1$76,463$89,508
Step 2$79,012$92,491
Step 3$81,561$95,475
Step 4$84,110$98,459
Step 5$86,659$101,443
Step 6$89,208$104,427
Step 7$91,757$107,411
Step 8$94,306$110,395
Step 9$96,855$113,378
Step 10$99,404$116,362

Source: U.S. Office of Personnel Management, General Schedule (GS) pay tables, 2026 — base and locality pay tables (annual rates) and locality pay area definitions. Data captured October 2, 2026.

GS-12 pay by locality

Locality pay areaLocality payStep 1Step 5Step 10
Albany-Schenectady, NY-MA20.77%$92,344$104,658$120,050
Albuquerque-Santa Fe-Las Vegas, NM18.33%$90,479$102,544$117,625
Atlanta–Athens-Clarke County–Sandy Springs, GA-AL23.79%$94,654$107,275$123,052
Austin-Round Rock-Georgetown, TX20.35%$92,023$104,294$119,633
Birmingham-Hoover-Talladega, AL18.24%$90,410$102,466$117,535
Boston-Worcester-Providence, MA-RI-NH-CT-ME-VT32.58%$101,375$114,893$131,790
Buffalo-Cheektowaga-Olean, NY22.41%$93,598$106,079$121,680
Burlington-South Burlington-Barre, VT19.45%$91,335$103,514$118,738
Charlotte-Concord, NC-SC19.67%$91,503$103,705$118,957
Chicago-Naperville, IL-IN-WI30.86%$100,059$113,402$130,080
Cincinnati-Wilmington-Maysville, OH-KY-IN21.93%$93,231$105,663$121,203
Cleveland-Akron-Canton, OH-PA22.23%$93,461$105,923$121,502
Colorado Springs, CO20.15%$91,870$104,121$119,434
Columbus-Marion-Zanesville, OH22.15%$93,400$105,854$121,422
Corpus Christi-Kingsville-Alice, TX17.63%$89,943$101,937$116,929
Dallas-Fort Worth, TX-OK27.26%$97,307$110,282$126,502
Davenport-Moline, IA-IL18.93%$90,937$103,064$118,221
Dayton-Springfield-Kettering, OH21.42%$92,841$105,221$120,696
Denver-Aurora, CO30.52%$99,800$113,107$129,742
Des Moines-Ames-West Des Moines, IA18.01%$90,234$102,266$117,307
Detroit-Warren-Ann Arbor, MI29.12%$98,729$111,894$128,350
Fresno-Madera-Hanford, CA17.65%$89,959$101,954$116,949
Harrisburg-Lebanon, PA19.43%$91,320$103,497$118,718
Hartford-East Hartford, CT-MA32.08%$100,992$114,459$131,293
Houston-The Woodlands, TX35%$103,225$116,990$134,195
Huntsville-Decatur, AL-TN21.91%$93,216$105,646$121,183
Indianapolis-Carmel-Muncie, IN18.15%$90,341$102,388$117,446
Kansas City-Overland Park-Kansas City, MO-KS18.97%$90,968$103,098$118,261
Laredo, TX21.59%$92,971$105,369$120,865
Las Vegas-Henderson, NV-AZ19.57%$91,427$103,618$118,857
Los Angeles-Long Beach, CA36.47%$104,349$118,264$135,657
Miami-Port St. Lucie-Fort Lauderdale, FL24.67%$95,326$108,038$123,927
Milwaukee-Racine-Waukesha, WI22.42%$93,606$106,088$121,690
Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN-WI27.62%$97,582$110,594$126,859
New York-Newark, NY-NJ-CT-PA37.95%$105,481$119,546$137,128
Omaha-Council Bluffs-Fremont, NE-IA18.23%$90,402$102,457$117,525
Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL17.93%$90,173$102,197$117,227
Philadelphia-Reading-Camden, PA-NJ-DE-MD28.99%$98,630$111,781$128,221
Phoenix-Mesa, AZ22.45%$93,629$106,114$121,720
Pittsburgh-New Castle-Weirton, PA-OH-WV21.03%$92,543$104,883$120,309
Portland-Vancouver-Salem, OR-WA26.13%$96,443$109,303$125,378
Raleigh-Durham-Cary, NC22.24%$93,468$105,932$121,511
Reno-Fernley, NV17.52%$89,859$101,842$116,820
Richmond, VA22.28%$93,499$105,967$121,551
Rochester-Batavia-Seneca Falls, NY17.88%$90,135$102,154$117,177
Sacramento-Roseville, CA-NV29.76%$99,218$112,449$128,987
San Antonio-New Braunfels-Pearsall, TX18.78%$90,823$102,934$118,072
San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA33.72%$102,246$115,880$132,923
San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland, CA46.34%$111,896$126,817$145,468
Seattle-Tacoma, WA31.57%$100,602$114,017$130,786
Spokane-Spokane Valley-Coeur d'Alene, WA-ID17.67%$89,974$101,972$116,969
St. Louis-St. Charles-Farmington, MO-IL20.03%$91,779$104,017$119,315
State of Alaska32.36%$101,206$114,702$131,571
State of Hawaii22.21%$93,445$105,906$121,482
Tucson-Nogales, AZ19.28%$91,205$103,367$118,569
Virginia Beach-Norfolk, VA-NC18.8%$90,838$102,951$118,092
Washington-Baltimore-Arlington, DC-MD-VA-WV-PA33.94%$102,415$116,071$133,142
Rest of U.S.17.06%$89,508$101,443$116,362

Source: U.S. Office of Personnel Management, General Schedule (GS) pay tables, 2026 — base and locality pay tables (annual rates) and locality pay area definitions. Data captured October 2, 2026.

Federal jobs at grade 12

Federal employees at grade 12 on the GS or GL (law enforcement) pay plan in each job's occupational series.

Source: U.S. Office of Personnel Management, Federal Workforce Data — Employment, July 2026 (federal civilian employees by agency, occupational series, pay plan, grade, duty state and pay). Data captured October 2, 2026.

Other GS grades

Base pay at step 1. GS pay scale 2026: all grades and locality areas