58 locality pay areasPage last changed 2026-10-07

Virginia GS pay scale 2026: the 4 locality pay areas in the state

In 2026 a GS-12 step 5 in Virginia is paid $101,443 to $116,071, depending on which of its 4 locality pay areas, Rest of U.S. included, the duty station is in.

Spread at GS-12 step 5

$14,628

Goes furthest

$108,286At U.S. prices, in Richmond, VA.

Against Rest of U.S.

+$14,628over $101,443

Which areas cover Virginia, and what each pays

GS-12 step 5 in 2026 in each area that covers Virginia, what it buys at national average prices (BEA price level, U.S. = 100) and how many of the state’s 95 counties and 38 independent cities it covers; the county or independent city of the duty station decides (how that works). Source: the OPM 2026 General Schedule table of each area — Salary Table 2026-DCB (Washington, DC), Salary Table 2026-RCH (Richmond, VA), Salary Table 2026-VB (Virginia Beach, VA), Salary Table 2026-RUS (Rest of U.S.).
Locality pay area	Locality pay	On paper	Price level	What it buys	Counties and cities here
Washington-Baltimore-Arlington, DC-MD-VA-WV-PA	33.94%	$116,071	108.9	$106,601	25
Richmond, VA	22.28%	$105,967	97.9	$108,286	24
Virginia Beach-Norfolk, VA-NC	18.80%	$102,951	97.9	$105,115	18
Rest of U.S.	17.06%	$101,443	—	—	66

The $14,628 between its best- and lowest-paid areas is the fifth-widest spread inside any of the 38 states with more than one area, shared with Maryland and West Virginia.

Washington-Baltimore-Arlington, DC-MD-VA-WV-PA pays $116,071, the most in Virginia, but Richmond, VA pays $105,967 and leaves you $1,686 better off once local prices are counted, the fourth-smallest such gap of the 17 states where the best-paid area is not the one that goes furthest.

Its best-paid area, Washington-Baltimore-Arlington, DC-MD-VA-WV-PA, pays the fifth-most of the 58 areas at GS-12 step 5.

Counties and independent cities of Virginia in each locality pay area, as OPM’s 2026 definitions list them; the county or independent city of the duty station decides (how that works).
Locality pay area	Counties and independent cities
Washington, DC	Alexandria city, Arlington County, Caroline County, Clarke County, Culpeper County, Fairfax County, Fairfax city, Falls Church city, Fauquier County, Frederick County, Fredericksburg city, King George County, Loudoun County, Madison County, Manassas Park city, Manassas city, Orange County, Prince William County, Rappahannock County, Shenandoah County, Spotsylvania County, Stafford County, Warren County, Westmoreland County, Winchester city
Richmond, VA	Amelia County, Brunswick County, Charles City County, Chesterfield County, Colonial Heights city, Cumberland County, Dinwiddie County, Emporia city, Essex County, Goochland County, Greensville County, Hanover County, Henrico County, Hopewell city, King William County, King and Queen County, Louisa County, New Kent County, Nottoway County, Petersburg city, Powhatan County, Prince George County, Richmond city, Sussex County
Virginia Beach, VA	Chesapeake city, Franklin city, Gloucester County, Hampton city, Isle of Wight County, James City County, Mathews County, Middlesex County, Newport News city, Norfolk city, Poquoson city, Portsmouth city, Southampton County, Suffolk city, Surry County, Virginia Beach city, Williamsburg city, York County
Rest of U.S.	all other counties (50) and independent cities (16) of Virginia

Federal jobs in Virginia, area by area

187,884 federal civilian jobs in Virginia in 2025, 4.53% of all jobs in the state, 5,549 fewer than in 2024, down 2.87%, by the locality pay area of the worksite county; every federal pay system counted. The share is of the 182,248 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 2 jobs, from rounding of annual averages. Sources and caveats.
Locality pay area	Federal jobs, 2025	Share, %	Change from 2024
Washington, DC	94,754	52.0	−3,734
Virginia Beach, VA	59,438	32.6	−417
Richmond, VA	17,942	9.8	−413
Rest of U.S.	10,114	5.5	−116
No county reported	5,638	—	—

Its 187,884 federal civilian jobs are the third-most of the 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Federal jobs of every pay system are 4.53% of all jobs in Virginia, the fourth-highest share of the 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Average pay per federal job in Virginia, overtime included, was $117,602 in 2025, the third-highest of the 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Every grade at step 5 in Virginia

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	Washington-Baltimore-Arlington	Richmond	Virginia Beach-Norfolk	Rest of U.S.
GS-1	34,274	31,290	30,400	29,954
GS-2	37,313	34,065	33,095	32,611
GS-3	42,063	38,401	37,308	36,762
GS-4	47,215	43,105	41,878	41,265
GS-5	52,825	48,226	46,854	46,167
GS-6	58,884	53,758	52,228	51,463
GS-7	65,435	59,739	58,039	57,188
GS-8	72,464	66,156	64,273	63,332
GS-9	80,041	73,073	70,994	69,954
GS-10	88,138	80,465	78,175	77,030
GS-11	96,843	88,412	85,896	84,638
GS-12	116,071	105,967	102,951	101,443
GS-13	138,024	126,008	122,422	120,629
GS-14	163,104	148,905	144,668	142,549
GS-15	191,850	175,149	170,164	167,672

What a move inside Virginia is worth after prices

A transfer at GS-12 step 5 between areas of Virginia: 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
Richmond, VA to Washington, DC	+$10,104	−$1,686	none
Virginia Beach, VA to Washington, DC	+$13,120	+$1,485	11%
Virginia Beach, VA to Richmond, VA	+$3,016	+$3,171	105%

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 and cities here	Also covers
Washington, DC	25	District of Columbia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, West Virginia
Richmond, VA	24	nowhere else
Virginia Beach, VA	18	North Carolina