2021 General Schedule Base Pay Table
The nationwide 2021 GS base schedule. Every grade, every step. If your duty station receives locality pay, open the matching locality pay area instead. Your actual salary will be higher than the base numbers below.
Archive year. This is the 2021 GS base table.
The current year is 2026.
1.0% 2021 across-the-board base raise
$19,738 to $143,598 2021 base range
22.00% Average locality adjustment
FedPayscale.org
GS locality rates
2021 Base GS Pay Scale
Official General Schedule base rates for 2021. Every grade and every step on one printable sheet.
| Grade | Step 1 | Step 2 | Step 3 | Step 4 | Step 5 | Step 6 | Step 7 | Step 8 | Step 9 | Step 10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GS-1 | $19,738 | $20,400 | $21,056 | $21,709 | $22,365 | $22,749 | $23,398 | $24,052 | $24,078 | $24,690 |
| GS-2 | $22,194 | $22,722 | $23,457 | $24,078 | $24,349 | $25,065 | $25,781 | $26,497 | $27,213 | $27,929 |
| GS-3 | $24,216 | $25,023 | $25,830 | $26,637 | $27,444 | $28,251 | $29,058 | $29,865 | $30,672 | $31,479 |
| GS-4 | $27,184 | $28,090 | $28,996 | $29,902 | $30,808 | $31,714 | $32,620 | $33,526 | $34,432 | $35,338 |
| GS-5 | $30,414 | $31,428 | $32,442 | $33,456 | $34,470 | $35,484 | $36,498 | $37,512 | $38,526 | $39,540 |
| GS-6 | $33,903 | $35,033 | $36,163 | $37,293 | $38,423 | $39,553 | $40,683 | $41,813 | $42,943 | $44,073 |
| GS-7 | $37,674 | $38,930 | $40,186 | $41,442 | $42,698 | $43,954 | $45,210 | $46,466 | $47,722 | $48,978 |
| GS-8 | $41,723 | $43,114 | $44,505 | $45,896 | $47,287 | $48,678 | $50,069 | $51,460 | $52,851 | $54,242 |
| GS-9 | $46,083 | $47,619 | $49,155 | $50,691 | $52,227 | $53,763 | $55,299 | $56,835 | $58,371 | $59,907 |
| GS-10 | $50,748 | $52,440 | $54,132 | $55,824 | $57,516 | $59,208 | $60,900 | $62,592 | $64,284 | $65,976 |
| GS-11 | $55,756 | $57,615 | $59,474 | $61,333 | $63,192 | $65,051 | $66,910 | $68,769 | $70,628 | $72,487 |
| GS-12 | $66,829 | $69,057 | $71,285 | $73,513 | $75,741 | $77,969 | $80,197 | $82,425 | $84,653 | $86,881 |
| GS-13 | $79,468 | $82,117 | $84,766 | $87,415 | $90,064 | $92,713 | $95,362 | $98,011 | $100,660 | $103,309 |
| GS-14 | $93,907 | $97,037 | $100,167 | $103,297 | $106,427 | $109,557 | $112,687 | $115,817 | $118,947 | $122,077 |
| GS-15 | $110,460 | $114,142 | $117,824 | $121,506 | $125,188 | $128,870 | $132,552 | $136,234 | $139,916 | $143,598 |
2021 GS base pay table
Every row is a GS grade. Every column is a step inside that grade. Click a grade to open its dedicated pay scale page with all 10 steps, biweekly and hourly pay, and the locality version for every pay area.
| Grade | Step 1 | Step 2 | Step 3 | Step 4 | Step 5 | Step 6 | Step 7 | Step 8 | Step 9 | Step 10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GS-1 | $19,738 | $20,400 | $21,056 | $21,709 | $22,365 | $22,749 | $23,398 | $24,052 | $24,078 | $24,690 |
| GS-2 | $22,194 | $22,722 | $23,457 | $24,078 | $24,349 | $25,065 | $25,781 | $26,497 | $27,213 | $27,929 |
| GS-3 | $24,216 | $25,023 | $25,830 | $26,637 | $27,444 | $28,251 | $29,058 | $29,865 | $30,672 | $31,479 |
| GS-4 | $27,184 | $28,090 | $28,996 | $29,902 | $30,808 | $31,714 | $32,620 | $33,526 | $34,432 | $35,338 |
| GS-5 | $30,414 | $31,428 | $32,442 | $33,456 | $34,470 | $35,484 | $36,498 | $37,512 | $38,526 | $39,540 |
| GS-6 | $33,903 | $35,033 | $36,163 | $37,293 | $38,423 | $39,553 | $40,683 | $41,813 | $42,943 | $44,073 |
| GS-7 | $37,674 | $38,930 | $40,186 | $41,442 | $42,698 | $43,954 | $45,210 | $46,466 | $47,722 | $48,978 |
| GS-8 | $41,723 | $43,114 | $44,505 | $45,896 | $47,287 | $48,678 | $50,069 | $51,460 | $52,851 | $54,242 |
| GS-9 | $46,083 | $47,619 | $49,155 | $50,691 | $52,227 | $53,763 | $55,299 | $56,835 | $58,371 | $59,907 |
| GS-10 | $50,748 | $52,440 | $54,132 | $55,824 | $57,516 | $59,208 | $60,900 | $62,592 | $64,284 | $65,976 |
| GS-11 | $55,756 | $57,615 | $59,474 | $61,333 | $63,192 | $65,051 | $66,910 | $68,769 | $70,628 | $72,487 |
| GS-12 | $66,829 | $69,057 | $71,285 | $73,513 | $75,741 | $77,969 | $80,197 | $82,425 | $84,653 | $86,881 |
| GS-13 | $79,468 | $82,117 | $84,766 | $87,415 | $90,064 | $92,713 | $95,362 | $98,011 | $100,660 | $103,309 |
| GS-14 | $93,907 | $97,037 | $100,167 | $103,297 | $106,427 | $109,557 | $112,687 | $115,817 | $118,947 | $122,077 |
| GS-15 | $110,460 | $114,142 | $117,824 | $121,506 | $125,188 | $128,870 | $132,552 | $136,234 | $139,916 | $143,598 |
Jump to a specific 2021 grade
Each grade has its own page with all 10 steps, step-increase timing and typical job roles. The salary below each grade is the 2021 nationwide Step 1 base rate for that grade.
GS-1 $19,738
GS-2 $22,194
GS-3 $24,216
GS-4 $27,184
GS-5 $30,414
GS-6 $33,903
GS-7 $37,674
GS-8 $41,723
GS-9 $46,083
GS-10 $50,748
GS-11 $55,756
GS-12 $66,829
GS-13 $79,468
GS-14 $93,907
GS-15 $110,460
Top localities in 2021
Highest locality adjustments
Lowest locality adjustments
About the 2021 GS table
The 2021 base General Schedule applied the 1.0% across-the-board raise set by the annual pay plan. The base table is the starting point. Most civilian federal employees are paid from a locality-adjusted version that adds a geographic percentage on top.
When to use the base table
- Comparing GS raises across years without locality noise.
- Checking historical pay for back-pay or service credit questions.
- Printing a clean reference sheet for a specific year.
When to use a locality table instead
- Your duty station is inside a named pay area. Use the matching locality page.
- Your duty station is not in a named area. Use the Rest of U.S. table.
- You need the actual salary for a promotion, step increase or job offer.
2021 GS pay questions
-
What was the 2021 GS pay raise?
The 2021 across-the-board General Schedule raise was 1.0%. This applied to the nationwide base table before any locality adjustment. See raise history for year-over-year context. -
How did locality pay work in 2021?
2021 had 54 GS locality pay areas including Rest of U.S. Adjustments ranged from 15.95% in Des Moines-Ames-West Des Moines to 41.44% in San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland. -
What was the highest GS salary in 2021?
For the base table, GS-15 Step 10 was $143,598. In a high-paying locality such as San Francisco, GS-15 Step 10 could exceed that, though some combinations are capped at the Executive Schedule Level 4 limit. -
Where can I find my 2021 locality-adjusted table?
Every 2021 locality table is linked from the locality directory. Pick the pay area tied to your duty station to see all grades and steps with the locality percentage applied.