GS pay scale 2026
Omaha-Council Bluffs-Fremont, NE-IA

58 locality pay areasPage last changed 2026-10-07

Omaha, NE GS pay scale 2026: 18.23% locality pay

In 2026 the Omaha-Council Bluffs-Fremont, NE-IA locality pay area adds 18.23% to the General Schedule base table: a GS-12 step 5 earns $102,457, and the 150 rates run from $26,701 to $194,253.

GS-12 step 5, assembled

Base rate: $86,659
Locality pay, 18.23%: + $15,798
Annual rate: $102,457

$3,927.20 every two weeks, $49.09 an hour, $49.34 an overtime hour.

#49 on paper, #11 after prices

+38Places gained, of 57 areas with a price index.

Buys at U.S. prices

$111,474Price level 91.9, U.S. = 100, for Omaha, NE-IA.

Ceiling watch

ClearNo cell reaches $197,200.

Key facts

Rank on paper, GS-12 step 5: #49 of 57
Rank after local prices: #11 of 57
Locality pay change since 2016: +3.88 points
Rank of that change: #46 of 58
Pay gap, latest council estimate: 36.15%
Rate the 1990 formula would set: 29.67%
Federal civilian jobs, 2025: 9,589
Share of all jobs here: 1.83%
Largest county by federal jobs: Douglas County, NE: 5,990

Sources and methods

Every 2026 rate in Omaha-Council Bluffs-Fremont, NE-IA

A yearAn hourEvery two weeks

Every 2026 rate in Omaha-Council Bluffs-Fremont, NE-IA, 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. No cell here reaches the $197,200 statutory ceiling.
Grade	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
GS-1	26,701	27,596	28,484	29,368	30,254	30,773	31,651	32,536	32,572	33,398
GS-2	30,022	30,736	31,732	32,572	32,937	33,905	34,873	35,841	36,810	37,778
GS-3	32,759	33,852	34,944	36,037	37,129	38,221	39,314	40,406	41,499	42,591
GS-4	36,773	37,999	39,225	40,451	41,677	42,903	44,129	45,355	46,581	47,807
GS-5	41,143	42,514	43,886	45,257	46,629	48,000	49,372	50,743	52,115	53,486
GS-6	45,863	47,391	48,920	50,449	51,977	53,506	55,035	56,564	58,092	59,621
GS-7	50,964	52,663	54,362	56,061	57,760	59,459	61,158	62,857	64,556	66,255
GS-8	56,441	58,322	60,203	62,084	63,965	65,846	67,727	69,608	71,489	73,370
GS-9	62,339	64,418	66,496	68,575	70,653	72,732	74,810	76,889	78,967	81,045
GS-10	68,649	70,937	73,225	75,512	77,800	80,088	82,376	84,663	86,951	89,239
GS-11	75,425	77,940	80,454	82,969	85,484	87,999	90,513	93,028	95,543	98,058
GS-12	90,402	93,416	96,430	99,443	102,457	105,471	108,484	111,498	114,512	117,525
GS-13	107,501	111,084	114,668	118,251	121,835	125,418	129,002	132,585	136,169	139,753
GS-14	127,033	131,268	135,503	139,738	143,973	148,208	152,443	156,678	160,913	165,148
GS-15	149,424	154,405	159,386	164,367	169,348	174,329	179,310	184,291	189,272	194,253

Hourly rates in Omaha-Council Bluffs-Fremont, NE-IA, 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	12.79	13.22	13.65	14.07	14.50	14.75	15.17	15.59	15.61	16.00
GS-2	14.39	14.73	15.20	15.61	15.78	16.25	16.71	17.17	17.64	18.10
GS-3	15.70	16.22	16.74	17.27	17.79	18.31	18.84	19.36	19.88	20.41
GS-4	17.62	18.21	18.79	19.38	19.97	20.56	21.14	21.73	22.32	22.91
GS-5	19.71	20.37	21.03	21.69	22.34	23.00	23.66	24.31	24.97	25.63
GS-6	21.98	22.71	23.44	24.17	24.91	25.64	26.37	27.10	27.84	28.57
GS-7	24.42	25.23	26.05	26.86	27.68	28.49	29.30	30.12	30.93	31.75
GS-8	27.04	27.95	28.85	29.75	30.65	31.55	32.45	33.35	34.25	35.16
GS-9	29.87	30.87	31.86	32.86	33.85	34.85	35.85	36.84	37.84	38.83
GS-10	32.89	33.99	35.09	36.18	37.28	38.37	39.47	40.57	41.66	42.76
GS-11	36.14	37.35	38.55	39.76	40.96	42.17	43.37	44.57	45.78	46.99
GS-12	43.32	44.76	46.21	47.65	49.09	50.54	51.98	53.43	54.87	56.31
GS-13	51.51	53.23	54.94	56.66	58.38	60.09	61.81	63.53	65.25	66.96
GS-14	60.87	62.90	64.93	66.96	68.99	71.01	73.04	75.07	77.10	79.13
GS-15	71.60	73.98	76.37	78.76	81.14	83.53	85.92	88.30	90.69	93.08

Biweekly rates in Omaha-Council Bluffs-Fremont, NE-IA, 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	1,023.20	1,057.60	1,092.00	1,125.60	1,160.00	1,180.00	1,213.60	1,247.20	1,248.80	1,280.00
GS-2	1,151.20	1,178.40	1,216.00	1,248.80	1,262.40	1,300.00	1,336.80	1,373.60	1,411.20	1,448.00
GS-3	1,256.00	1,297.60	1,339.20	1,381.60	1,423.20	1,464.80	1,507.20	1,548.80	1,590.40	1,632.80
GS-4	1,409.60	1,456.80	1,503.20	1,550.40	1,597.60	1,644.80	1,691.20	1,738.40	1,785.60	1,832.80
GS-5	1,576.80	1,629.60	1,682.40	1,735.20	1,787.20	1,840.00	1,892.80	1,944.80	1,997.60	2,050.40
GS-6	1,758.40	1,816.80	1,875.20	1,933.60	1,992.80	2,051.20	2,109.60	2,168.00	2,227.20	2,285.60
GS-7	1,953.60	2,018.40	2,084.00	2,148.80	2,214.40	2,279.20	2,344.00	2,409.60	2,474.40	2,540.00
GS-8	2,163.20	2,236.00	2,308.00	2,380.00	2,452.00	2,524.00	2,596.00	2,668.00	2,740.00	2,812.80
GS-9	2,389.60	2,469.60	2,548.80	2,628.80	2,708.00	2,788.00	2,868.00	2,947.20	3,027.20	3,106.40
GS-10	2,631.20	2,719.20	2,807.20	2,894.40	2,982.40	3,069.60	3,157.60	3,245.60	3,332.80	3,420.80
GS-11	2,891.20	2,988.00	3,084.00	3,180.80	3,276.80	3,373.60	3,469.60	3,565.60	3,662.40	3,759.20
GS-12	3,465.60	3,580.80	3,696.80	3,812.00	3,927.20	4,043.20	4,158.40	4,274.40	4,389.60	4,504.80
GS-13	4,120.80	4,258.40	4,395.20	4,532.80	4,670.40	4,807.20	4,944.80	5,082.40	5,220.00	5,356.80
GS-14	4,869.60	5,032.00	5,194.40	5,356.80	5,519.20	5,680.80	5,843.20	6,005.60	6,168.00	6,330.40
GS-15	5,728.00	5,918.40	6,109.60	6,300.80	6,491.20	6,682.40	6,873.60	7,064.00	7,255.20	7,446.40

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

Under the 2027 proposal this area keeps 18.23% and GS-12 step 5 keeps $102,457 (2027 pay raise; compare with Rest of U.S.).

Locality pay in Omaha, NE 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. Grey: the Rest of U.S. rate its counties were paid before it had a table of its own. Sources and caveats.
Locality pay, %	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024	2025	2026
Omaha, NE	14.35	15.06	15.37	15.87	16.33	16.33	16.93	17.52	17.94	18.23	18.23
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

Omaha, NE got a locality pay table of its own in 2019; the grey figures before that are the Rest of U.S. rate its counties were paid.

What the 1990 pay law’s formula would pay in Omaha, NE

Federal Salary Council estimates for Omaha, NE 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. Formula rate “—”: the memos print none for a Rest of U.S. research area, whose gap is from the memo’s research-area table. 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	36.15	29.67	18.23
2025	March 2023	Locality pay area	41.28	34.55	18.23
2024	March 2022	Locality pay area	39.39	32.75	17.94
2023	March 2021	Locality pay area	41.47	34.73	17.52
2022	March 2020	Locality pay area	41.53	34.79	16.93
2021	March 2019	Locality pay area	40.45	33.76	16.33
2020	March 2018	Locality pay area	42.19	35.42	16.33
2019	March 2017	Rest of U.S. research area	45.45	—	15.87
2018	March 2016	Rest of U.S. research area	46.81	—	15.37

The formula would pay Omaha, NE 29.67%, 11.44 points above the 18.23% paid in 2026, the fourth-narrowest distance between formula and pay of the 57 areas with a formula rate, shared with Davenport, IA.

The latest estimate puts non-federal pay for the same work here 36.15% above General Schedule base pay, the third-smallest gap of the 58 areas.

Omaha, NE is a separate locality pay area in the memos from the edition for pay in 2020; before that, in two editions it is a Rest of U.S. research area, with a gap of 45.45% to 46.81%.

What a GS-12 step 5 buys after local prices

The areas ranked next to Omaha, NE 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
8	Birmingham-Hoover-Talladega, AL	$102,466	91.6	$111,809
9	Detroit-Warren-Ann Arbor, MI	$111,894	100.3	$111,562
10	Des Moines-Ames-West Des Moines, IA	$102,266	91.7	$111,521
11	Omaha-Council Bluffs-Fremont, NE-IA	$102,457	91.9	$111,474
12	Kansas City-Overland Park-Kansas City, MO-KS	$103,098	92.5	$111,406
13	Hartford-East Hartford, CT-MA	$114,459	102.7	$111,400
14	Columbus-Marion-Zanesville, OH	$105,854	95.5	$110,878

Local prices here, 91.9 against a U.S. average of 100, are the fifth-lowest of the 57 areas with a price index.

It ranks #49 on paper and #11 once local prices are counted, a gain of 38 places, the fourth-biggest of the 57 areas, shared with Corpus Christi, TX.

Federal jobs in Omaha, NE

Federal civilian jobs at worksites in the 12 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 724 federal jobs in Iowa and Nebraska without a county; they belong to no area. Sources and caveats.
Year	Federal civilian jobs	Share of all jobs, %	Average pay per job
2023	9,790	1.90	$88,934
2024	9,863	1.90	$92,253
2025	9,589	1.83	$94,508

Counties in Omaha-Council Bluffs-Fremont, NE-IA

12 counties paid at this rate

Iowa, 5 counties

Fremont County (added 2024)
Harrison County
Mills County
Pottawattamie County
Shelby County (added 2024)

Nebraska, 7 counties

Burt County (added 2024)
Cass County
Dodge County
Douglas County
Sarpy County
Saunders County
Washington County

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