Hawaii locality pay 2026: GS pay table
Oahu, Maui, the Big Island and Kauai share one table: 22.21 % above the GS base rates in 2026.
GS-12 step 1, Hawaii, 2026
$93,445
Base $76,463 plus 22.21 % locality pay.
| Base pay (GS table) | $76,463 |
| Locality payment, Hawaii | $16,982 |
| Hourly rate | $44.77 |
| Biweekly paycheck (gross, 80 hours) | $3,581.60 |
| Same cell in 2025 | $92,520 (+$925) |
| Next step (52 weeks in step) | +$3,116 |
Prepared by Radif Partners · How the figures are built · OPM table HI and the 2026 locality definitions
The State of Hawaii is one of the 58 General Schedule locality pay areas, and it covers every island with a single percentage: 22.21 % in 2026, unchanged from 2025 because Executive Order 14368 froze all localities and raised the base table by 1 %. That places Hawaii 27th of the 58 areas, in the middle of the ranking and well below Alaska at 32.36 %. A GS-6 step 1 earns $47,406, a GS-8 $58,341, a GS-10 $70,960, a GS-11 $77,964, a GS-12 $93,445 and a GS-13 $111,119. Only 1 cell of the table, GS-15 step 10, stops at the $197,200 cap. Hawaii received locality pay through the Non-Foreign Area Retirement Equity Assurance Act of 2009, which phased it in for the nonforeign areas while the old nonforeign cost-of-living allowance was phased out.
One rate from Kauai to the Big Island
Hawaii's definition in OPM's 2026 list is the whole state. An office in Honolulu, a base on Oahu, a facility in Hilo and a park on Maui all pay the same 22.21 % locality. Nothing in your county choice changes it, which is why the calculator above offers a single option for Hawaii. Pacific worksites outside the state are a different matter: Guam and the other Pacific nonforeign areas are part of Rest of U.S., at 17.06 %.
Where Hawaii sits in the ranking
Hawaii does not pay close to the top. Locality percentages measure the gap between federal and non-federal salaries for similar work, using Bureau of Labor Statistics surveys, and that gap in Hawaii is moderate. Its percentage is within a fraction of a point of Phoenix, Milwaukee, Buffalo, Richmond, Raleigh, Cleveland, Columbus and Cincinnati. Los Angeles, the nearest mainland area across the Pacific, pays 36.47 %, so the same GS-12 step 5 earns $12,358 more there. Alaska, the other state-wide area, pays $8,796 more at the same cell.
Hourly pay and overtime
Hourly figures matter to shift workers and to anyone paid overtime. The hourly rate is the annual rate divided by 2,087 hours, to the cent. A GS-7 step 5 in Hawaii earns $59,704 a year, or $28.61 an hour and $2,288.80 per 80-hour pay period. Overtime for an FLSA-exempt employee is time and a half, up to a ceiling of 1.5 times the Hawaii rate of GS-10 step 1, $34.00 an hour.
Hourly and overtime pay in Hawaii
GS-7 step 5, hourly
$28.61
| Regular 80 hours | $2,288.80 |
| Overtime, 8 hours | $343.36 |
| Gross for the pay period | $2,632.16 |
| Overtime rule | time and a half |
The lowest grades
At GS-1 to GS-3, the nationwide special rate table 001M pays more than the Hawaii locality rate in every one of the 30 cells, so those employees are paid the 001M figure. At GS-4 the Hawaii locality rate is already higher, so it applies at no step: GS-4 step 1 earns $38,011, the base plus 22.21 %. From GS-5 upward every cell is the base rate plus the locality percentage, rounded to the dollar.
Moving to or from the islands
Your grade and step travel with you; the locality percentage does not. On the first day at a Hawaii duty station you switch to the Hawaii table. For teleworkers the official worksite rule of 5 CFR 531.605 decides: report to the agency office at least twice each biweekly pay period and the office counts; otherwise your approved home location sets the area. The hourly pay page has the other areas.
2026 GS pay table for Hawaii
| Grade | Step 1 | Step 2 | Step 3 | Step 4 | Step 5 | Step 6 | Step 7 | Step 8 | Step 9 | Step 10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GS-1 | $35,048 | $35,772 | $36,496 | $37,220 | $37,944 | $38,668 | $39,392 | $40,116 | $40,840 | $41,564 |
| GS-2 | $35,749 | $36,568 | $37,387 | $38,206 | $39,025 | $39,844 | $40,663 | $41,482 | $42,301 | $43,120 |
| GS-3 | $36,464 | $37,388 | $38,312 | $39,236 | $40,160 | $41,084 | $42,008 | $42,932 | $43,856 | $44,780 |
| GS-4 | $38,011 | $39,278 | $40,546 | $41,813 | $43,080 | $44,348 | $45,615 | $46,882 | $48,150 | $49,417 |
| GS-5 | $42,528 | $43,945 | $45,363 | $46,781 | $48,198 | $49,616 | $51,034 | $52,451 | $53,869 | $55,287 |
| GS-6 | $47,406 | $48,987 | $50,567 | $52,147 | $53,727 | $55,307 | $56,888 | $58,468 | $60,048 | $61,628 |
| GS-7 | $52,680 | $54,436 | $56,192 | $57,948 | $59,704 | $61,461 | $63,217 | $64,973 | $66,729 | $68,485 |
| GS-8 | $58,341 | $60,285 | $62,229 | $64,174 | $66,118 | $68,062 | $70,007 | $71,951 | $73,895 | $75,840 |
| GS-9 | $64,438 | $66,586 | $68,735 | $70,883 | $73,031 | $75,180 | $77,328 | $79,477 | $81,625 | $83,774 |
| GS-10 | $70,960 | $73,325 | $75,690 | $78,054 | $80,419 | $82,784 | $85,149 | $87,513 | $89,878 | $92,243 |
| GS-11 | $77,964 | $80,563 | $83,163 | $85,762 | $88,361 | $90,961 | $93,560 | $96,160 | $98,759 | $101,359 |
| GS-12 | $93,445 | $96,561 | $99,676 | $102,791 | $105,906 | $109,021 | $112,136 | $115,251 | $118,366 | $121,482 |
| GS-13 | $111,119 | $114,824 | $118,528 | $122,232 | $125,936 | $129,640 | $133,345 | $137,049 | $140,753 | $144,457 |
| GS-14 | $131,310 | $135,687 | $140,065 | $144,442 | $148,820 | $153,198 | $157,575 | $161,953 | $166,330 | $170,708 |
| GS-15 | $154,454 | $159,603 | $164,751 | $169,900 | $175,049 | $180,197 | $185,346 | $190,495 | $195,644 | $197,200 |
Counties and cities in this area
Hawaii: State of Hawaii.