Ranks by service
Military rank equivalents across the six services
Which Navy rank equals an Army captain? Is an Air Force staff sergeant the same as a Marine one? The pay grade answers every such question.
Find the equivalent rank in every service
Navy, O-3 · Commissioned officer
Lieutenant (LT)
Junior grade officer
| Army | Captain (CPT) |
| Marine Corps | Captain (Capt) |
| Air Force | Captain (Capt) |
| Space Force | Captain (Capt) |
| Coast Guard | Lieutenant (LT) |
| 2026 basic pay, over 6 years | $7,737.00 a month |
Same pay grade means the same basic pay in every service. Basic pay only: housing, food and special pays are not included.
Everything about O-3Military ranks are compared across services by pay grade. The Department of War explains that pay grades such as E-1, W-2 and O-5 are "administrative classifications used primarily to standardize compensation across the military services", and that "among the services, rank and precedence are determined by paygrade". An Army sergeant first class, a Marine gunnery sergeant, a Navy chief petty officer and an Air Force master sergeant are therefore equivalents: all are E-7, all paid the same $3,932.10 a month at the start in 2026. The titles mislead in three places above all: "captain" is O-3 in the Army, Marine Corps, Air Force and Space Force but O-6 in the Navy and Coast Guard; "staff sergeant" is E-5 in the Air Force but E-6 in the Army and Marine Corps; and "private first class" is E-2 in the Marine Corps but E-3 in the Army. The table on this page sets every grade side by side.
What is this rank called in another service?
Air Force Technical Sergeant (TSgt) in the Marine Corps
Staff Sergeant
| Pay grade | E-6 |
| Group | Noncommissioned officer |
| Abbreviation | SSgt |
Equivalence follows the pay grade, the rule the services use between them.
Ranks and pay tables read by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method and sources
Every grade, six services
The table lists the main title at each pay grade, the one most members of that grade hold. Positions that share a grade, such as first sergeant or command sergeant major, are on each category page and in the lookup above.
| Grade | Army | Marine Corps | Navy | Air Force | Space Force | Coast Guard |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| E-1 | Private | Private | Seaman Recruit | Airman Basic | Specialist 1 | Seaman Recruit |
| E-2 | Private | Private First Class | Seaman Apprentice | Airman | Specialist 2 | Seaman Apprentice |
| E-3 | Private First Class | Lance Corporal | Seaman | Airman First Class | Specialist 3 | Seaman |
| E-4 | Specialist | Corporal | Petty Officer Third Class | Senior Airman | Specialist 4 | Petty Officer Third Class |
| E-5 | Sergeant | Sergeant | Petty Officer Second Class | Staff Sergeant | Sergeant | Petty Officer Second Class |
| E-6 | Staff Sergeant | Staff Sergeant | Petty Officer First Class | Technical Sergeant | Technical Sergeant | Petty Officer First Class |
| E-7 | Sergeant First Class | Gunnery Sergeant | Chief Petty Officer | Master Sergeant | Master Sergeant | Chief Petty Officer |
| E-8 | Master Sergeant | Master Sergeant | Senior Chief Petty Officer | Senior Master Sergeant | Senior Master Sergeant | Senior Chief Petty Officer |
| E-9 | Sergeant Major | Master Gunnery Sergeant | Master Chief Petty Officer | Chief Master Sergeant | Chief Master Sergeant | Master Chief Petty Officer |
| W-1 | Warrant Officer 1 | Warrant Officer 1 | Warrant Officer 1 | warrant officer | – | – |
| W-2 | Chief Warrant Officer 2 | Chief Warrant Officer 2 | Chief Warrant Officer 2 | warrant officer | – | Chief Warrant Officer 2 |
| W-3 | Chief Warrant Officer 3 | Chief Warrant Officer 3 | Chief Warrant Officer 3 | warrant officer | – | Chief Warrant Officer 3 |
| W-4 | Chief Warrant Officer 4 | Chief Warrant Officer 4 | Chief Warrant Officer 4 | warrant officer | – | Chief Warrant Officer 4 |
| W-5 | Chief Warrant Officer 5 | Chief Warrant Officer 5 | Chief Warrant Officer 5 | warrant officer | – | – |
| O-1 | Second Lieutenant | Second Lieutenant | Ensign | Second Lieutenant | Second Lieutenant | Ensign |
| O-2 | First Lieutenant | First Lieutenant | Lieutenant Junior Grade | First Lieutenant | First Lieutenant | Lieutenant Junior Grade |
| O-3 | Captain | Captain | Lieutenant | Captain | Captain | Lieutenant |
| O-4 | Major | Major | Lieutenant Commander | Major | Major | Lieutenant Commander |
| O-5 | Lieutenant Colonel | Lieutenant Colonel | Commander | Lieutenant Colonel | Lieutenant Colonel | Commander |
| O-6 | Colonel | Colonel | Captain | Colonel | Colonel | Captain |
| O-7 | Brigadier General | Brigadier General | Rear Admiral Lower Half | Brigadier General | Brigadier General | Rear Admiral Lower Half |
| O-8 | Major General | Major General | Rear Admiral Upper Half | Major General | Major General | Rear Admiral Upper Half |
| O-9 | Lieutenant General | Lieutenant General | Vice Admiral | Lieutenant General | Lieutenant General | Vice Admiral |
| O-10 | General | General | Admiral | General | General | Admiral |
Two naming systems for officers
Title 37 of the US Code, which assigns officers to pay grades, has one column for the Army, Air Force and Marine Corps and another for the Navy, Coast Guard and NOAA Corps. The Space Force, added later, follows the first column. That is why a Navy officer climbs from ensign through lieutenant, commander and captain to the admirals, while an Army officer climbs from lieutenant through captain, major and colonel to the generals.
How is this rank abbreviated?
Navy, O-7
RDML
| Rear Admiral Lower Half | RDML |
Abbreviations as printed on the Department of War chart; capitals differ by service.
The traps, one by one
Captain: O-3 on land and in the air, O-6 at sea. Staff sergeant: E-5 in the Air Force, E-6 in the Army and Marine Corps. Private first class: E-2 in the Marine Corps, E-3 in the Army. Sergeant: E-5 in the Army, Marine Corps and Space Force, but no rank of that exact name in the Air Force, which starts its sergeants with staff sergeant. Master sergeant: E-8 in the Army and Marine Corps, E-7 in the Air Force and Space Force. Each of these is resolved by asking for the pay grade.