GS pay scale 2026
Huntsville-Decatur, AL-TN

58 locality pay areasPage last changed 2026-10-07

Huntsville, AL GS pay scale 2026: 21.91% locality pay

In 2026 the Huntsville-Decatur, AL-TN locality pay area adds 21.91% to the General Schedule base table: a GS-12 step 5 earns $105,646, and the 150 rates run from $27,532 to $197,200, the statutory ceiling.

GS-12 step 5, assembled

Base rate: $86,659
Locality pay, 21.91%: + $18,987
Annual rate: $105,646

$4,049.60 every two weeks, $50.62 an hour, $50.88 an overtime hour.

#30 on paper, #5 after prices

+25Places gained, of 57 areas with a price index.

Buys at U.S. prices

$113,510Price level 93.1, U.S. = 100, for Huntsville, AL.

Ceiling watch

1 of 150GS-15 step 10 is held to $197,200.

Key facts

Rank on paper, GS-12 step 5: #30 of 57
Rank after local prices: #5 of 57
Locality pay change since 2016: +5.54 points
Rank of that change: #20 of 58, tied
Pay gap, latest council estimate: 46.34%
Rate the 1990 formula would set: 39.37%
Federal civilian jobs, 2025: 22,775
Share of all jobs here: 4.95%
Largest county by federal jobs: Madison County, AL: 19,425

Sources and methods

Every 2026 rate in Huntsville-Decatur, AL-TN

A yearAn hourEvery two weeks

Every 2026 rate in Huntsville-Decatur, AL-TN, U.S. dollars a year, by grade and step. Click any cell, or use the arrow keys, and the bar at the top of the page moves onto it; ◀ marks GS-12 step 5. ▲ marks the one cell cut to the $197,200 statutory ceiling.
Grade	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
GS-1	27,532	28,455	29,371	30,282	31,196	31,731	32,637	33,548	33,586	34,437
GS-2	30,957	31,693	32,719	33,586	33,962	34,960	35,959	36,957	37,955	38,954
GS-3	33,779	34,905	36,032	37,158	38,285	39,411	40,538	41,664	42,790	43,917
GS-4	37,918	39,182	40,446	41,710	42,974	44,239	45,503	46,767	48,031	49,296
GS-5	42,423	43,838	45,252	46,666	48,080	49,494	50,908	52,323	53,737	55,151
GS-6	47,290	48,866	50,443	52,019	53,595	55,172	56,748	58,324	59,900	61,477
GS-7	52,551	54,302	56,054	57,806	59,558	61,310	63,062	64,813	66,565	68,317
GS-8	58,197	60,137	62,077	64,016	65,956	67,895	69,835	71,775	73,714	75,654
GS-9	64,279	66,423	68,566	70,709	72,852	74,995	77,139	79,282	81,425	83,568
GS-10	70,786	73,145	75,504	77,863	80,222	82,581	84,940	87,299	89,657	92,016
GS-11	77,772	80,366	82,959	85,552	88,145	90,738	93,331	95,924	98,517	101,110
GS-12	93,216	96,324	99,431	102,539	105,646	108,753	111,861	114,968	118,076	121,183
GS-13	110,847	114,542	118,237	121,932	125,627	129,322	133,017	136,712	140,407	144,102
GS-14	130,987	135,354	139,721	144,088	148,455	152,821	157,188	161,555	165,922	170,289
GS-15	154,075	159,211	164,347	169,483	174,619	179,755	184,891	190,027	195,163	197,200

Hourly rates in Huntsville-Decatur, AL-TN, 2026, U.S. dollars: the annual rate divided by 2,087 hours and rounded to the cent, as 5 U.S.C. 5504(b) sets. OPM prints the same figures in its hourly table for this area.
Grade	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
GS-1	13.19	13.63	14.07	14.51	14.95	15.20	15.64	16.07	16.09	16.50
GS-2	14.83	15.19	15.68	16.09	16.27	16.75	17.23	17.71	18.19	18.67
GS-3	16.19	16.72	17.26	17.80	18.34	18.88	19.42	19.96	20.50	21.04
GS-4	18.17	18.77	19.38	19.99	20.59	21.20	21.80	22.41	23.01	23.62
GS-5	20.33	21.01	21.68	22.36	23.04	23.72	24.39	25.07	25.75	26.43
GS-6	22.66	23.41	24.17	24.93	25.68	26.44	27.19	27.95	28.70	29.46
GS-7	25.18	26.02	26.86	27.70	28.54	29.38	30.22	31.06	31.90	32.73
GS-8	27.89	28.82	29.74	30.67	31.60	32.53	33.46	34.39	35.32	36.25
GS-9	30.80	31.83	32.85	33.88	34.91	35.93	36.96	37.99	39.02	40.04
GS-10	33.92	35.05	36.18	37.31	38.44	39.57	40.70	41.83	42.96	44.09
GS-11	37.26	38.51	39.75	40.99	42.24	43.48	44.72	45.96	47.21	48.45
GS-12	44.67	46.15	47.64	49.13	50.62	52.11	53.60	55.09	56.58	58.07
GS-13	53.11	54.88	56.65	58.42	60.20	61.97	63.74	65.51	67.28	69.05
GS-14	62.76	64.86	66.95	69.04	71.13	73.23	75.32	77.41	79.50	81.60
GS-15	73.83	76.29	78.75	81.21	83.67	86.13	88.59	91.05	93.51	94.49

Biweekly rates in Huntsville-Decatur, AL-TN, 2026, U.S. dollars: the hourly rate times 80, the hours of one pay period, as 5 U.S.C. 5504(b) sets; the annual rate divided by 26 gives a different, wrong figure.
Grade	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
GS-1	1,055.20	1,090.40	1,125.60	1,160.80	1,196.00	1,216.00	1,251.20	1,285.60	1,287.20	1,320.00
GS-2	1,186.40	1,215.20	1,254.40	1,287.20	1,301.60	1,340.00	1,378.40	1,416.80	1,455.20	1,493.60
GS-3	1,295.20	1,337.60	1,380.80	1,424.00	1,467.20	1,510.40	1,553.60	1,596.80	1,640.00	1,683.20
GS-4	1,453.60	1,501.60	1,550.40	1,599.20	1,647.20	1,696.00	1,744.00	1,792.80	1,840.80	1,889.60
GS-5	1,626.40	1,680.80	1,734.40	1,788.80	1,843.20	1,897.60	1,951.20	2,005.60	2,060.00	2,114.40
GS-6	1,812.80	1,872.80	1,933.60	1,994.40	2,054.40	2,115.20	2,175.20	2,236.00	2,296.00	2,356.80
GS-7	2,014.40	2,081.60	2,148.80	2,216.00	2,283.20	2,350.40	2,417.60	2,484.80	2,552.00	2,618.40
GS-8	2,231.20	2,305.60	2,379.20	2,453.60	2,528.00	2,602.40	2,676.80	2,751.20	2,825.60	2,900.00
GS-9	2,464.00	2,546.40	2,628.00	2,710.40	2,792.80	2,874.40	2,956.80	3,039.20	3,121.60	3,203.20
GS-10	2,713.60	2,804.00	2,894.40	2,984.80	3,075.20	3,165.60	3,256.00	3,346.40	3,436.80	3,527.20
GS-11	2,980.80	3,080.80	3,180.00	3,279.20	3,379.20	3,478.40	3,577.60	3,676.80	3,776.80	3,876.00
GS-12	3,573.60	3,692.00	3,811.20	3,930.40	4,049.60	4,168.80	4,288.00	4,407.20	4,526.40	4,645.60
GS-13	4,248.80	4,390.40	4,532.00	4,673.60	4,816.00	4,957.60	5,099.20	5,240.80	5,382.40	5,524.00
GS-14	5,020.80	5,188.80	5,356.00	5,523.20	5,690.40	5,858.40	6,025.60	6,192.80	6,360.00	6,528.00
GS-15	5,906.40	6,103.20	6,300.00	6,496.80	6,693.60	6,890.40	7,087.20	7,284.00	7,480.80	7,559.20

Source: OPM 2026 General Schedule salary table for this area, Salary Table 2026-HNT, matched cell by cell.

Under the 2027 proposal this area keeps 21.91% and GS-12 step 5 keeps $105,646 (2027 pay raise; compare with Rest of U.S.).

Locality pay in Huntsville, AL since 2016

Solid line: this area; dashed line: the Rest of U.S. rate.

Locality pay, percent, as printed in OPM’s General Schedule table for 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025, 2026. Sources and caveats.
Locality pay, %	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024	2025	2026
Huntsville, AL	16.37	17.82	18.49	19.18	19.85	19.85	20.45	20.96	21.48	21.91	21.91
Rest of U.S.	14.35	15.06	15.37	15.67	15.95	15.95	16.20	16.50	16.82	17.06	17.06

What the 1990 pay law’s formula would pay in Huntsville, AL

Federal Salary Council estimates for Huntsville, AL in the editions checked here, the memos for pay in 2018 to 2026: the pay gap between non-federal and General Schedule base pay, and the locality rate the 1990 law’s formula would set. Sources: memo of January 10, 2025, Attachment 1, and the council’s earlier memos; the President’s Pay Agent on 2026; what these estimates are and are not.
Edition, for pay in	Data as of	Listed as	Pay gap, %	Formula rate, %	Rate paid that year, %
2026	March 2024	Locality pay area	46.34	39.37	21.91
2025	March 2023	Locality pay area	53.53	46.22	21.91
2024	March 2022	Locality pay area	46.88	39.89	21.48
2023	March 2021	Locality pay area	42.69	35.90	20.96
2022	March 2020	Locality pay area	45.00	38.10	20.45
2021	March 2019	Locality pay area	50.05	42.90	19.85
2020	March 2018	Locality pay area	55.21	47.82	19.85
2019	March 2017	Locality pay area	57.58	50.08	19.18
2018	March 2016	Locality pay area	56.68	49.22	18.49

What a GS-12 step 5 buys after local prices

The areas ranked next to Huntsville, AL by what a GS-12 step 5 buys: the 2026 salary divided by the BEA price level for 2024, where 100 is the U.S. average. How the comparison is made; all 57 ranked.
#	Locality	On paper	Price level	What it buys
2	Houston-The Woodlands, TX	$116,990	98.6	$118,616
3	Davenport-Moline, IA-IL	$103,064	89.1	$115,700
4	Dayton-Springfield-Kettering, OH	$105,221	92.7	$113,514
5	Huntsville-Decatur, AL-TN	$105,646	93.1	$113,510
6	Cleveland-Akron-Canton, OH-PA	$105,923	93.9	$112,776
7	State of Alaska	$114,702	102.4	$112,059
8	Birmingham-Hoover-Talladega, AL	$102,466	91.6	$111,809

A GS-12 step 5 here buys $113,510 at national average prices, the fifth-most of the 57 areas with a price index.

Federal jobs in Huntsville, AL

Federal civilian jobs at worksites in the 9 counties of this area, every federal pay system counted (the Postal Service in, the uniformed military out), as annual averages from the BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2023, 2024, 2025. BLS reports another 4,771 federal jobs in Alabama and Tennessee without a county; they belong to no area. Sources and caveats.
Year	Federal civilian jobs	Share of all jobs, %	Average pay per job
2023	22,694	5.13	$121,070
2024	23,091	5.10	$125,376
2025	22,775	4.95	$128,610

Federal jobs of every pay system are 4.95% of all jobs here, the fourth-highest share of the 58 areas.

Average pay per federal job, overtime included, was $128,610 in 2025, the third-highest of the 58 areas; across all 58 it was $105,058.

Counties in Huntsville-Decatur, AL-TN

9 counties paid at this rate

Alabama, 8 counties

Colbert County (added 2024)
DeKalb County
Lauderdale County (added 2024)
Lawrence County
Limestone County
Madison County
Marshall County
Morgan County

Tennessee, 1 county

Lincoln County (added 2024)

Source: OPM 2026 locality pay area definitions. The duty station’s county counts (how that works).