2027 Military Pay Chart and 7-6-5% Raise (Projected)

For 2027, President Trump has used his own statutory authority to set the tiered military pay raise the House already passed — 7% for junior enlisted, scaling down to 5% for senior officers — even though the Senate’s NDAA hasn’t moved.

That doesn’t finalize the number (Congress can still supersede it with a signed NDAA), but it makes the tiered raise the default outcome for January 2027 rather than one of two competing proposals. (For reference, the confirmed 2026 raise was 3.8% for all pay grades.)

2027 Military Pay Chart (Projected): 7-6-5% Raise

These are projected 2027 monthly basic pay rates: DFAS’s official 2026 tables with the raise President Trump set on August 26, 2026, which takes effect January 1, 2027, unless Congress passes a different raise in the NDAA. Figures are rounded to the nearest dollar. DFAS publishes the official 2027 tables in December, and I’ll swap them in then.

Enlisted (monthly basic pay, by years of service)

Officers (monthly basic pay, by years of service)

A few notes on these tables: they’re basic pay only, before BAH, BAS and special pays. The August 26 letter doesn’t say which rate warrant officers get, so they’re not shown until DFAS publishes the official tables. Officers in grades O-7 and above aren’t shown because their pay is capped by law at Executive Schedule Level II (about $19,000 a month in 2026), so most of their raise is cut off. If the Senate’s flat 3.6% raise wins out in the final NDAA instead, every figure here would be lower.

2027 Military Pay Raise: Trump Sets 7-6-5% by Presidential Authority, NDAA Still Pending

The Trump administration’s FY2027 defense budget request proposed a tiered pay raise for military members — the largest increases going to junior enlisted troops who face the greatest financial pressure:

• E-5 and below: 7% pay raise
• E-6 through O-3: 6% pay raise
• O-4 and above: 5% pay raise

The House Armed Services Committee embraced the tiered structure, and on July 22, 2026 the full House passed its FY2027 NDAA (H.R. 8800) in a narrow 216-212 vote, authorizing $1.15 trillion in defense spending and keeping the tiered raise intact. The reasoning behind the tiers: junior enlisted members in the barracks forego housing allowances and rely on military dining — a materially different financial situation than senior officers.

The Senate Armed Services Committee rejected the tiered approach and proposed a flat 3.6% raise for all ranks instead in its version, S. 4784. That 3.6% figure isn’t arbitrary — it’s the automatic floor set by the Employment Cost Index formula written into 37 U.S.C. 1009, which applies by default if no one acts to change it. The Senate’s reasoning, outlined in the committee’s NDAA summary, is that the 14.5% cumulative raise junior enlisted received in 2025 already moved them well above the 90th percentile of comparable civilian pay — as confirmed by the Department of Defense’s 14th Quadrennial Review of Military Compensation. Layering an additional 7% on top of that, the Senate argued, would distort the pay structure and be difficult to sustain.

Historically, the Senate has also rejected large tiered proposals — in 2024 they pushed back on a 19.5% House proposal for junior enlisted, with the final 2025 NDAA landing at 14.5% cumulative for E-1 through E-4.

But the pay debate was overtaken by a bigger procedural fight: on July 14, 2026, the Senate failed to invoke cloture on the motion to proceed to S. 4784, 50-46 — short of the 60 votes needed, and largely along party lines. Democrats blocked the vote over provisions unrelated to pay, including the bill’s stance on the ongoing conflict with Iran and provisions deepening U.S.-Israeli military and intelligence cooperation. Until the Senate passes its own version, formal House-Senate conference negotiations on pay (and everything else in the bill) can’t begin.

The August 26 Letter: What Changed

Section 1009 of Title 37 gives the President authority to set military basic pay increases directly, and the 3.6% ECI-based figure only applies automatically if the President doesn’t act. In his August 26, 2026 letter — the same one that confirmed the civilian pay freeze — Trump exercised that authority under 1009(e) to formally set the 2027 raise at 7% for E-1 through E-5, 6% for E-6 through O-3, and 5% for O-4 and above, “consistent with my Fiscal Year 2027 Budget.” He separately set a 3.6% raise, under 1009(c), for uniformed service members outside the Armed Forces (such as NOAA Corps and Public Health Service Commissioned Corps officers).

This doesn’t end the legislative fight — Congress can still pass a differing NDAA and have the President sign it into law before year-end, which would supersede the proclamation. But it does mean that if the Senate stall drags past December without a reconciled bill, the tiered 7-6-5% raise (not the 3.6% ECI floor) is what takes effect by default. That’s a meaningful shift in leverage toward the House’s position.

Both chambers’ bills also increase special and incentive pay: aviator incentive pay up to $60,000/year (from $50,000), hostile fire pay $450 → $600/month, and imminent danger pay $275 → $400/month. Those provisions still require a signed NDAA — the president’s pay proclamation only covers basic pay.

What Each Plan Would Mean for Your Monthly Pay

Here’s the raise in dollars at common ranks and years of service, under the 7-6-5% plan that’s set to take effect and the Senate’s flat 3.6%. Monthly basic pay from DFAS’s 2026 tables, rounded to the nearest dollar.

Basic pay only; BAH, BAS and special pays aren’t included. The 7-6-5% plan gives junior enlisted the biggest percentage, but senior ranks still get the biggest raise in dollars because they start from a higher base.

What the Raise Changes Besides Basic Pay

• TSP matching. Under the Blended Retirement System, the government puts in an automatic 1% of your basic pay plus up to 4% more in matching, so a higher basic pay means a bigger match.
• Retirement. Military retired pay is figured from your highest 36 months of basic pay (High-36), so the raise lifts that average for anyone retiring in the next few years.
• BAH and BAS don’t change with it. Housing and food allowances are set separately. The 2027 BAH rates usually come out in December, and BAS is tied to USDA food costs.

Military Retirees and Veterans: The 2027 COLA

Retired pay doesn’t get the 7-6-5% raise. It goes up by the annual cost-of-living adjustment instead, which matches the 3.6% Social Security COLA announced in October. The increase takes effect December 1, 2026, so it first shows up in the retiree payment at the end of December. Retirees under the REDUX/Career Status Bonus plan get the COLA minus one point, or 2.6%.

VA disability compensation normally rises by the same 3.6%, but each year Congress has to pass the annual Veterans’ Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act first. This year’s bills (S. 4487 and H.R. 8552) hadn’t passed either chamber as of October 19, 2026. Last year’s bill wasn’t signed until November 25, 2025, and the 2.8% increase still applied from December 1. My VA disability rates chart has the 2027 amounts by rating.

For comparison, civilian federal employees on the GS pay scale face a planned 0% freeze in 2027, set in the same August 26 letter — see the full 2027 GS pay raise breakdown for details on the civilian side of this divide.

One thing that trips up a lot of new service members: every figure in the tables on this page (and on DFAS’s own pay tables) is a monthly amount — but you’re actually paid twice a month, not once. Mid-month pay lands on the 15th and end-of-month pay on the 1st of the following month (either one moves to the business day before if it falls on a weekend or holiday), and each of those two paychecks is roughly half your monthly base pay, before BAH and BAS get added on top. If your deposit looks like “half” of the chart number, that’s expected — not a shortage. Your LES (Leave and Earnings Statement) breaks out mid-month and end-of-month pay separately if you want to check the math. My 2027 military pay dates calendar lists every payday, including the early ones.

Key Dates for 2027 Military Pay

• July 14, 2026: Senate cloture vote to open NDAA floor debate failed, 50-46 (over Iran/Israel provisions, not pay).
• July 22, 2026: House passed its FY2027 NDAA (H.R. 8800), 216-212, keeping the tiered 5–7% raise.
• August 26, 2026: President Trump’s letter set the 7-6-5% raise under 37 U.S.C. 1009(e), making it the default absent a different NDAA.
• September 14, 2026: The House bill was received in the Senate, which still hasn’t passed its own version.
• October 2026: The 3.6% COLA was announced, setting the 2027 increase for military retired pay.
• November 3, 2026: Midterm election; final NDAA talks are expected to pick up afterward.
• December 2026: Final NDAA expected. DFAS publishes the official 2027 pay tables, and new BAH rates come out.
• January 1, 2027: The raise takes effect. The first paycheck with it is mid-month pay on January 15, 2027.

I’ll update this page when the Senate acts, when a final NDAA is signed (or the proclamation stands by default), and when DFAS posts the official 2027 tables in December.

2026 Military Pay Charts: 3.8% Raise Confirmed

The military pay raise for 2026 was confirmed at 3.8%, aligning with the Employment Cost Index (ECI). It was included in the $900 billion 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) signed into law. The raise applied to all pay grades across the Navy, Marine Corps, Army, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard.

The 2026 VA disability rates also increased with a 2.8% cost-of-living adjustment.

2026 Military Pay Chart — Under 20 Years of Service (all pay grades):

2026 Military Pay Chart — 20 or More Years of Service:

2025 Military Pay Chart: 4.5% (Plus 10% for Junior Enlisted)

The 2025 National Defense Authorization Act included a 4.5% pay raise for military workers. An additional 10% increase applied to junior enlisted service members (E-1 through E-4) effective April 1, 2025 — bringing their total 2025 increase to 14.5%. This two-step structure was designed to address financial hardship for the lowest-paid service members.

2025 Military Pay Chart — Under 20 Years of Service:

2025 Military Pay Chart — 20 or More Years of Service:

2024 Military Pay Chart: 5.2%

The 5.2% basic pay raise in 2024 was one of the largest in the last decade, implemented to combat high inflation. Final pay charts are sourced from DFAS.

2024 Military Pay Chart — Under 20 Years of Service:

2024 Military Pay Chart — 20 or More Years of Service:

2023 Military Pay Chart: 4.6%

2023 Military Pay Chart — Under 20 Years of Service:

2023 Military Pay Chart — 20 or More Years of Service:

2022 Military Pay Charts: 2.7%

Congress approved the FY2022 NDAA confirming a 2.7% pay increase for active members of the armed forces. It also established a $15 minimum wage for covered service and construction contracts.

2022 Military Pay Chart — Under 20 Years of Service:

2022 Military Pay Chart — 20 or More Years of Service:

2021 Military Pay Charts: 3.0%

The 2021 NDAA was passed with a veto-proof majority, confirming a 3.0% pay increase in line with the latest COLA adjustment.

2021 Military Pay Chart — Under 20 Years of Service:

2021 Military Pay Chart — Over 20 Years of Service:

Military Pay Raise History