GS-10 pay scale 2026 by step and locality
Few employees hold GS-10, yet its step 1 rate sets the overtime ceiling for every grade above it. Pick your county to read your rate.
GS-10 step 1, Washington DC, 2026
$77,771
Base $58,064 plus 33.94 % locality pay.
| Base pay (GS table) | $58,064 |
| Locality payment, Washington DC | $19,707 |
| Hourly rate | $37.26 |
| Biweekly paycheck (gross, 80 hours) | $2,980.80 |
| Same cell in 2025 | $77,001 (+$770) |
| Next step (52 weeks in step) | +$2,592 |
Prepared by Radif Partners · How the figures are built · 2026 OPM tables, rebuilt cell by cell
GS-10 is one of the least used grades of the General Schedule. Two-grade-interval careers skip it, going from GS-9 straight to GS-11, so the employees you find here are mostly in one-grade-interval series, such as technical, assistant and some law enforcement positions, where every grade from GS-5 up is a separate rung. In 2026 GS-10 step 1 pays $67,970 in Rest of U.S. on a base of $58,064, $77,771 in Washington DC and $84,971 in San Francisco, the highest area. Step 10 reaches $88,356 in Rest of U.S. The grade matters far beyond its own holders: for FLSA-exempt employees, overtime is limited to 1.5 times the GS-10 step 1 hourly rate of the area. In Rest of U.S. that rate is $32.57, so overtime above GS-10 step 1 is capped at $48.86 an hour, unless your own hourly rate is higher.
Why so few employees are GS-10
The General Schedule has two kinds of series. In two-grade-interval series, the professional and administrative ones, a career ladder climbs 5, 7, 9, 11 and then 12. GS-10 does not appear on that path at all. In one-grade-interval series, the technical, clerical and assistant ones, each grade is a step of its own, and a position classified GS-10 there carries duties a notch above GS-9 but below the full professional level. Some federal law enforcement positions also use GS-10, and law enforcement officers can be paid from special law enforcement tables rather than the regular locality table. Executive Order 14368 let OPM raise certain law enforcement personnel by up to 3.8 % in total in 2026, the 1 % general raise included, so check which table your SF-50 names.
The overtime line drawn at GS-10 step 1
Federal overtime under title 5 is time and a half of your hourly rate, but for employees exempt from the Fair Labor Standards Act it stops growing once your hourly rate passes GS-10 step 1 of your area. Above that line you receive the greater of 1.5 times the GS-10 step 1 rate and your own hourly rate. Here is what that means in Rest of U.S. in 2026:
| Grade and step | Hourly rate | Overtime hour |
|---|---|---|
| GS-9 step 10 | $38.45 | $48.86 |
| GS-10 step 1 | $32.57 | $48.86 |
| GS-11 step 5 | $40.55 | $48.86 |
| GS-13 step 1 | $51.00 | $51.00 |
A GS-11 step 5 earns more per regular hour than a GS-10 step 1, yet both receive the same overtime hour. By GS-13 the hourly rate itself is above the cap, so overtime is paid at straight time. Because the cap follows locality, it is higher in costly areas: in Los Angeles, GS-10 step 1 is $37.97 an hour and the overtime ceiling is $56.96.
Overtime at your grade against the GS-10 cap
GS-11 step 1, hourly
$35.78
| Regular 80 hours | $2,862.40 |
| Overtime, 10 hours | $488.60 |
| Gross for the pay period | $3,351.00 |
| Overtime rule | capped at 1.5 x GS-10 step 1 |
Moving in and out of GS-10
A one-grade promotion from GS-9 step 1 in Houston pays $71,181 before and $78,386 after, at GS-10 step 1. Leaving GS-10 step 3 for GS-11 in Rest of U.S. lands at GS-11 step 2, $77,168, a raise of $4,668. In a one-grade series, the time-in-grade rule asks for 52 weeks at GS-9 before GS-10 until January 18, 2027; OPM removed it from January 19, 2027, while the year of specialized experience in the qualification standard remains. Within the grade, each step adds $2,591 a year in Washington DC. The hourly and overtime page covers premium pay in more detail.
GS-10 in all 58 locality areas
| Locality area | Step 1 | Step 5 | Step 10 |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | $84,971 | $96,298 | $110,456 |
| New York | $80,099 | $90,777 | $104,123 |
| Los Angeles | $79,240 | $89,803 | $103,006 |
| Houston | $78,386 | $88,835 | $101,897 |
| Washington DC | $77,771 | $88,138 | $101,097 |
| San Diego | $77,643 | $87,993 | $100,931 |
| Boston | $76,981 | $87,243 | $100,070 |
| Alaska | $76,854 | $87,098 | $99,904 |
| Hartford | $76,691 | $86,914 | $99,693 |
| Seattle | $76,395 | $86,578 | $99,308 |
| Chicago | $75,983 | $86,111 | $98,772 |
| Denver | $75,785 | $85,887 | $98,515 |
| Sacramento | $75,344 | $85,387 | $97,942 |
| Detroit | $74,972 | $84,966 | $97,458 |
| Philadelphia | $74,897 | $84,881 | $97,360 |
| Minneapolis | $74,101 | $83,979 | $96,326 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth | $73,892 | $83,742 | $96,055 |
| Portland | $73,236 | $82,999 | $95,202 |
| Miami | $72,388 | $82,038 | $94,100 |
| Atlanta | $71,877 | $81,459 | $93,435 |
| Phoenix | $71,099 | $80,577 | $92,424 |
| Milwaukee | $71,082 | $80,557 | $92,401 |
| Buffalo | $71,076 | $80,551 | $92,394 |
| Richmond | $71,001 | $80,465 | $92,296 |
| Raleigh | $70,977 | $80,439 | $92,266 |
| Cleveland | $70,972 | $80,432 | $92,258 |
| Hawaii | $70,960 | $80,419 | $92,243 |
| Columbus | $70,925 | $80,380 | $92,198 |
| Cincinnati | $70,797 | $80,235 | $92,032 |
| Huntsville | $70,786 | $80,222 | $92,016 |
| Laredo | $70,600 | $80,011 | $91,775 |
| Dayton | $70,501 | $79,899 | $91,647 |
| Pittsburgh | $70,275 | $79,643 | $91,352 |
| Albany | $70,124 | $79,471 | $91,156 |
| Austin | $69,880 | $79,195 | $90,839 |
| Colorado Springs | $69,764 | $79,064 | $90,688 |
| St. Louis | $69,694 | $78,985 | $90,597 |
| Charlotte | $69,485 | $78,748 | $90,326 |
| Las Vegas | $69,427 | $78,682 | $90,250 |
| Burlington | $69,357 | $78,603 | $90,160 |
| Harrisburg | $69,346 | $78,590 | $90,145 |
| Tucson | $69,259 | $78,491 | $90,031 |
| Kansas City | $69,079 | $78,287 | $89,797 |
| Davenport | $69,056 | $78,261 | $89,767 |
| Virginia Beach | $68,980 | $78,175 | $89,669 |
| San Antonio | $68,968 | $78,162 | $89,654 |
| Albuquerque | $68,707 | $77,866 | $89,314 |
| Birmingham | $68,655 | $77,807 | $89,246 |
| Omaha | $68,649 | $77,800 | $89,239 |
| Indianapolis | $68,603 | $77,747 | $89,178 |
| Des Moines | $68,521 | $77,655 | $89,073 |
| Palm Bay | $68,475 | $77,603 | $89,012 |
| Rochester | $68,446 | $77,570 | $88,975 |
| Spokane | $68,324 | $77,432 | $88,816 |
| Fresno | $68,312 | $77,418 | $88,801 |
| Corpus Christi | $68,301 | $77,405 | $88,786 |
| Reno | $68,237 | $77,333 | $88,703 |
| Rest of U.S. | $67,970 | $77,030 | $88,356 |