58 locality pay areasPage last changed 2026-10-07

Ohio GS pay scale 2026: the 6 locality pay areas in the state

In 2026 a GS-12 step 5 in Ohio is paid $101,443 to $105,923, depending on which of its 6 locality pay areas, Rest of U.S. included, the duty station is in.

Spread at GS-12 step 5

$4,480

Goes furthest

$113,514At U.S. prices, in Dayton, OH.

Against Rest of U.S.

+$4,480over $101,443

Which areas cover Ohio, and what each pays

GS-12 step 5 in 2026 in each area that covers Ohio, what it buys at national average prices (BEA price level, U.S. = 100) and how many of the state’s 88 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-CLE (Cleveland, OH), Salary Table 2026-COL (Columbus, OH), Salary Table 2026-CIN (Cincinnati, OH), Salary Table 2026-DAY (Dayton, OH), Salary Table 2026-PIT (Pittsburgh, PA), Salary Table 2026-RUS (Rest of U.S.).
Locality pay area	Locality pay	On paper	Price level	What it buys	Counties here
Cleveland-Akron-Canton, OH-PA	22.23%	$105,923	93.9	$112,776	22
Columbus-Marion-Zanesville, OH	22.15%	$105,854	95.5	$110,878	23
Cincinnati-Wilmington-Maysville, OH-KY-IN	21.93%	$105,663	95.4	$110,793	8
Dayton-Springfield-Kettering, OH	21.42%	$105,221	92.7	$113,514	12
Pittsburgh-New Castle-Weirton, PA-OH-WV	21.03%	$104,883	94.7	$110,787	2
Rest of U.S.	17.06%	$101,443	—	—	21

Ohio is split among six locality pay areas, Rest of U.S. included, the third-most of any state, as many as California.

Cleveland-Akron-Canton, OH-PA pays $105,923, the most in Ohio, but Dayton-Springfield-Kettering, OH pays $105,221 and leaves you $738 better off once local prices are counted, the smallest such gap of the 17 states where the best-paid area is not the one that goes furthest.

Only 21 of its 88 counties are on the Rest of U.S. rate, the third-smallest share of the 35 states with such counties.

Price levels across its areas run from 92.7 in Dayton, OH to 95.5 in Columbus, OH, the third-narrowest range of the 24 states with two or more priced areas.

Counties of Ohio in each locality pay area, as OPM’s 2026 definitions list them; the county of the duty station decides (how that works).
Locality pay area	Counties
Cleveland, OH	Ashland County, Ashtabula County, Carroll County, Columbiana County, Crawford County, Cuyahoga County, Erie County, Geauga County, Harrison County, Holmes County, Huron County, Lake County, Lorain County, Mahoning County, Medina County, Portage County, Richland County, Stark County, Summit County, Trumbull County, Tuscarawas County, Wayne County
Columbus, OH	Coshocton County, Delaware County, Fairfield County, Fayette County, Franklin County, Guernsey County, Hardin County, Hocking County, Knox County, Licking County, Logan County, Madison County, Marion County, Morgan County, Morrow County, Muskingum County, Noble County, Perry County, Pickaway County, Pike County, Ross County, Union County, Vinton County
Cincinnati, OH	Adams County, Brown County, Butler County, Clermont County, Clinton County, Hamilton County, Highland County, Warren County
Dayton, OH	Allen County, Auglaize County, Champaign County, Clark County, Darke County, Greene County, Mercer County, Miami County, Montgomery County, Preble County, Shelby County, Van Wert County
Pittsburgh, PA	Belmont County, Jefferson County
Rest of U.S.	all other counties of Ohio (21)

Federal jobs in Ohio, area by area

82,101 federal civilian jobs in Ohio in 2025, 1.48% of all jobs in the state, 2,850 fewer than in 2024, down 3.35%, by the locality pay area of the worksite county; every federal pay system counted. The share is of the 78,097 jobs BLS places in a county. BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2024, 2025. Sources and caveats.
Locality pay area	Federal jobs, 2025	Share, %	Change from 2024
Cleveland, OH	24,819	31.8	−783
Dayton, OH	21,500	27.5	−834
Columbus, OH	17,369	22.2	−361
Cincinnati, OH	10,080	12.9	−522
Rest of U.S.	4,042	5.2	−185
Pittsburgh, PA	287	0.4	−8
No county reported	4,004	—	—

Of the jobs placed in a county here, 5.2% are on the Rest of U.S. rate, the fifth-lowest share of the 35 states with such jobs and more than one area.

Every grade at step 5 in Ohio

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.
Grade	Cleveland-Akron-Canton	Columbus-Marion-Zanesville	Cincinnati-Wilmington-Maysville	Dayton-Springfield-Kettering	Pittsburgh-New Castle-Weirton	Rest of U.S.
GS-1	31,277	31,257	31,201	31,070	30,970	29,954
GS-2	34,051	34,029	33,967	33,825	33,717	32,611
GS-3	38,385	38,360	38,291	38,131	38,008	36,762
GS-4	43,087	43,059	42,982	42,802	42,664	41,265
GS-5	48,206	48,175	48,088	47,887	47,733	46,167
GS-6	53,736	53,701	53,604	53,380	53,208	51,463
GS-7	59,714	59,675	59,568	59,319	59,128	57,188
GS-8	66,129	66,086	65,967	65,691	65,480	63,332
GS-9	73,043	72,996	72,864	72,559	72,326	69,954
GS-10	80,432	80,380	80,235	79,899	79,643	77,030
GS-11	88,376	88,318	88,159	87,790	87,508	84,638
GS-12	105,923	105,854	105,663	105,221	104,883	101,443
GS-13	125,957	125,874	125,648	125,122	124,720	120,629
GS-14	148,844	148,747	148,479	147,858	147,383	142,549
GS-15	175,077	174,963	174,648	173,917	173,359	167,672

What a move inside Ohio is worth after prices

A transfer at GS-12 step 5 between areas of Ohio: the raise on paper, what it is worth at national average prices, and how much of it is left. Tax and housing are not in these figures (what the comparison leaves out).
Move	On paper	After prices	Kept
Dayton, OH to Cleveland, OH	+$702	−$738	none
Pittsburgh, PA to Cleveland, OH	+$1,040	+$1,990	191%
Dayton, OH to Columbus, OH	+$633	−$2,636	none
Pittsburgh, PA to Columbus, OH	+$971	+$91	9%

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).
Area	Counties here	Also covers
Cleveland, OH	22	Pennsylvania
Columbus, OH	23	nowhere else
Cincinnati, OH	8	Indiana, Kentucky
Dayton, OH	12	nowhere else
Pittsburgh, PA	2	Pennsylvania, West Virginia