Los Angeles locality pay 2026: GS pay table
Southern California's largest area adds 36.47 % to GS base pay and reaches far past Los Angeles County. Select a county to check.
GS-12 step 1, Los Angeles, 2026
$104,349
Base $76,463 plus 36.47 % locality pay.
| Base pay (GS table) | $76,463 |
| Locality payment, Los Angeles | $27,886 |
| Hourly rate | $50.00 |
| Biweekly paycheck (gross, 80 hours) | $4,000.00 |
| Same cell in 2025 | $103,316 (+$1,033) |
| Next step (52 weeks in step) | +$3,479 |
Prepared by Radif Partners · How the figures are built · OPM table LA and the 2026 locality definitions
In 2026 the Los Angeles-Long Beach locality pay area pays 36.47 % above the General Schedule base table, which places it third of 58 areas, after San Francisco and New York. The figure is unchanged from 2025; only the base rates moved, by 1 %. A GS-4 step 1 earns $42,446, GS-7 $58,827, GS-9 $71,957, GS-11 $87,061, GS-12 $104,349, GS-13 $124,085 and GS-14 $146,632. Nine is the number to remember: the area spans 9 counties, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino and Ventura, but also Kern, Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo and Imperial. The cap of $197,200 limits 5 GS-15 steps. San Diego County, the neighbor to the south, has its own area at 33.72 %, so a GS-12 step 1 earns $2,103 less there than in Los Angeles.
From Bakersfield to El Centro
The OPM list for this area is short but wide. Alongside the core counties of Los Angeles and Orange, it includes the Inland Empire (Riverside and San Bernardino), the coast north to Ventura, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo, Kern County in the southern Central Valley, and Imperial County on the Mexican border. That makes a federal office in Bakersfield, Lompoc or El Centro part of the Los Angeles table.
Imperial County is the one that trips people up. On the map it sits east of San Diego County, yet it is not in the San Diego area: it is listed with Los Angeles, at 36.47 % rather than 33.72 %. Kern is the other surprise, because Kings and Tulare counties next to it belong to Fresno at 17.65 %.
Your pay at a Kern or Imperial County worksite
GS-9 step 1, Los Angeles, 2026
$71,957
| Base pay (GS table) | $52,727 |
| Locality payment, Los Angeles | $19,230 |
| Hourly rate | $34.48 |
| Biweekly paycheck (gross, 80 hours) | $2,758.40 |
Two Orange Counties
If you search the county list, you will find an Orange County in California and another in New York. The California one is in this area. The New York one belongs to New York, at 37.95 %. The calculator asks for the state first for this reason; the same name in a different state can mean a different table.
How far a step goes here
At 36.47 %, each within-grade increase is worth more than in most areas. Moving from GS-11 step 1 to step 2 adds $2,903 a year; from GS-13 step 1 to step 2, $4,137. Promotions follow the same rule: the two-step test is applied to base pay, then the Los Angeles percentage is added, so the dollar raise is larger than the base-table raise.
The upper end flattens. GS-15 step 6 and every step after it pay $197,200. GS-14 never reaches the cap here; its step 10 pays $190,627. Above GS-14, a promotion can therefore add less than people expect. The pay cap guide lists each capped cell.
Bay Area and San Diego offices compared
For the same GS-12 step 1, the San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland area at 46.34 % pays $111,896, Los Angeles $104,349 and San Diego $102,246. These percentages come from salary surveys of non-federal employers, which is why they do not line up with rents or home prices.
Telework across county lines
A worker based in a downtown Los Angeles office who lives in San Diego County keeps the Los Angeles rate when scheduled to report at least twice per biweekly pay period, as 5 CFR 531.605 requires. A fully remote arrangement moves the worksite to the home, and the home county sets the pay.
2026 GS pay table for Los Angeles
| 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 | $42,489 | $43,606 |
| GS-3 | $37,813 | $39,074 | $40,335 | $41,596 | $42,857 | $44,118 | $45,379 | $46,640 | $47,901 | $49,162 |
| GS-4 | $42,446 | $43,861 | $45,277 | $46,692 | $48,107 | $49,522 | $50,937 | $52,353 | $53,768 | $55,183 |
| GS-5 | $47,490 | $49,073 | $50,656 | $52,239 | $53,822 | $55,405 | $56,989 | $58,572 | $60,155 | $61,738 |
| GS-6 | $52,938 | $54,703 | $56,467 | $58,232 | $59,996 | $61,761 | $63,525 | $65,290 | $67,055 | $68,819 |
| GS-7 | $58,827 | $60,788 | $62,749 | $64,710 | $66,671 | $68,632 | $70,593 | $72,554 | $74,515 | $76,476 |
| GS-8 | $65,148 | $67,319 | $69,491 | $71,662 | $73,833 | $76,004 | $78,175 | $80,347 | $82,518 | $84,689 |
| GS-9 | $71,957 | $74,356 | $76,755 | $79,154 | $81,553 | $83,952 | $86,351 | $88,751 | $91,150 | $93,549 |
| GS-10 | $79,240 | $81,881 | $84,521 | $87,162 | $89,803 | $92,443 | $95,084 | $97,725 | $100,365 | $103,006 |
| GS-11 | $87,061 | $89,964 | $92,866 | $95,769 | $98,672 | $101,575 | $104,477 | $107,380 | $110,283 | $113,185 |
| GS-12 | $104,349 | $107,828 | $111,306 | $114,785 | $118,264 | $121,742 | $125,221 | $128,699 | $132,178 | $135,657 |
| GS-13 | $124,085 | $128,222 | $132,358 | $136,495 | $140,631 | $144,767 | $148,904 | $153,040 | $157,177 | $161,313 |
| GS-14 | $146,632 | $151,520 | $156,408 | $161,297 | $166,185 | $171,073 | $175,962 | $180,850 | $185,738 | $190,627 |
| GS-15 | $172,476 | $178,226 | $183,975 | $189,725 | $195,474 | $197,200 | $197,200 | $197,200 | $197,200 | $197,200 |
Counties and cities in this area
California: Imperial County, Kern County, Los Angeles County, Orange County, Riverside County, San Bernardino County, San Luis Obispo County, Santa Barbara County, Ventura County.