INDEPENDENTREFERENCEGSGS Pay TablesWhat the federal pay tables mean 2026 edition
Effective January 2026

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  1. GS pay scale 2026
  2. States
  3. New Mexico

58 locality pay areasPage last changed 2026-10-07

New Mexico GS pay scale 2026: the 2 locality pay areas in the state

In 2026 a GS-12 step 5 in New Mexico is paid $102,544 in Albuquerque-Santa Fe-Las Vegas, NM and $101,443 in the rest of the state, which is on the Rest of U.S. rate.

Spread at GS-12 step 5

$1,101

Goes furthest

$107,324At U.S. prices, in Albuquerque, NM.

Against Rest of U.S.

+$1,101over $101,443

Which areas cover New Mexico, and what each pays

GS-12 step 5 in 2026 in each area that covers New Mexico, what it buys at national average prices (BEA price level, U.S. = 100) and how many of the state’s 33 counties it covers; the county of the duty station decides (how that works). Source: the OPM 2026 General Schedule table of each area — Salary Table 2026-AQ (Albuquerque, NM), Salary Table 2026-RUS (Rest of U.S.).
Locality pay areaLocality payOn paperPrice levelWhat it buysCounties here
Albuquerque-Santa Fe-Las Vegas, NM18.33%$102,54495.5$107,32411
Rest of U.S.17.06%$101,443——22

The $1,101 between its best- and lowest-paid areas is the third-narrowest spread inside any of the 38 states with more than one area.

Counties of New Mexico in each locality pay area, as OPM’s 2026 definitions list them; the county of the duty station decides (how that works).
Locality pay areaCounties
Albuquerque, NMBernalillo County, Cibola County, Los Alamos County, McKinley County, Mora County, Rio Arriba County, San Miguel County, Sandoval County, Santa Fe County, Torrance County, Valencia County
Rest of U.S.all other counties of New Mexico (22)

Federal jobs in New Mexico, area by area

28,435 federal civilian jobs in New Mexico in 2025, 3.25% of all jobs in the state, 1,749 fewer than in 2024, down 5.79%, by the locality pay area of the worksite county; every federal pay system counted. The share is of the 27,790 jobs BLS places in a county. BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2024, 2025. The state total BLS publishes differs from the sum of its county rows by 1 job, from rounding of annual averages. Sources and caveats.
Locality pay areaFederal jobs, 2025Share, %Change from 2024
Albuquerque, NM17,69863.7−1,416
Rest of U.S.10,09236.3−356
No county reported644——

Federal jobs in New Mexico fell 5.79% from 2024 to 2025, the second-steepest drop of the 50 states and the District of Columbia, and the 2025 average still counts staff on paid administrative leave until 30 September.

Every grade at step 5 in New Mexico

Annual rates in U.S. dollars at step 5; ▲ marks a cell cut to the $197,200 statutory ceiling. For any other step, the pay calculator finds the area from a ZIP code.
GradeAlbuquerque-Santa Fe-Las VegasRest of U.S.
GS-130,27929,954
GS-232,96432,611
GS-337,16036,762
GS-441,71341,265
GS-546,66846,167
GS-652,02151,463
GS-757,80957,188
GS-864,01963,332
GS-970,71369,954
GS-1077,86677,030
GS-1185,55684,638
GS-12102,544101,443
GS-13121,938120,629
GS-14144,095142,549
GS-15169,491167,672

Where else these areas reach

Locality pay areas are lists of counties and ignore state lines: inside one area a move across a state line does not change pay (how that works; every state and the areas in it).
AreaCounties hereAlso covers
Albuquerque, NM11nowhere else