How to Understand Navy Pay Scales
All Department of Defense pay is administered by the Defense Finance and Accounting Service, or DFAS. All branches of the military, including the Navy, fall under the Department of Defense. Your pay scale depends on your pay grade (rank) and the number of years you have in active service. The base pay a service member in the Navy receives accounts for the majority of their compensation. In addition to the base pay, there are additional allowances for housing, food and uniform expenses. Understanding your base pay using the Navy pay scale is fairly simple.
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Things You'll Need
- Navy pay scale (available on the Internet or once a year in The Navy Times)
Instructions
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1
Locate the "Military Pay Table" on The Defense Finance and Accounting Service's website.
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2
Look for your pay grade in the left column. The table starts with Officers at the top of the left column, followed by Warrant Officers and ending with Enlisted personnel, senior to junior.
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Locate the number of years you have served on active duty in the top row. You may have to go to the next page if you have more than 18 years of active duty service.
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4
Move from the row your pay grade is located to the right until you reach the column corresponding with the number of years you have served on active duty.
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Check the amount in that box. The number represents your monthly base pay.
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Tips & Warnings
Other allowances included in your pay, such as uniform and food, are found on the pages following base pay amounts. The uniform allowance is a set amount, regardless of rank and years in service. The food allowance is a set amount for Enlisted personnel and a set amount for Officers.
To find your basic allowance for housing, visit the Defense Travel Management Office website.
