Seattle locality pay 2026: GS pay table
Puget Sound, the Olympic Peninsula and the coast share a 31.57 % rate. Choose your county to see which side of the line you are on.
GS-12 step 1, Seattle, 2026
$100,602
Base $76,463 plus 31.57 % locality pay.
| Base pay (GS table) | $76,463 |
| Locality payment, Seattle | $24,139 |
| Hourly rate | $48.20 |
| Biweekly paycheck (gross, 80 hours) | $3,856.00 |
| Same cell in 2025 | $99,606 (+$996) |
| Next step (52 weeks in step) | +$3,354 |
Prepared by Radif Partners · How the figures are built · OPM table SEA and the 2026 locality definitions
Seattle-Tacoma is a one-state locality pay area: 15 Washington counties paid 31.57 % above the General Schedule base table in 2026, a percentage carried over from 2025. Only 9 areas pay more, which puts Seattle 10th of 58. On the 2026 table a GS-5 step 1 earns $45,785, a GS-7 $56,715, a GS-9 $69,373, a GS-11 $83,935, a GS-12 $100,602 and a GS-13 $119,630. The list goes well beyond King, Pierce and Snohomish: it takes in Kitsap, Thurston, Island, Skagit, Whatcom and San Juan, the Olympic Peninsula counties of Clallam, Jefferson, Mason and Grays Harbor, and Lewis and Pacific to the south. Southwest Washington is not included; Clark County, Cowlitz County, Skamania County, Wahkiakum County belong to Portland at 26.13 %. At GS-15, steps 7 through 10 are capped at $197,200. Next to Rest of U.S., a GS-12 step 1 in Seattle earns $11,094 more each year.
Three areas in one state
Washington has 24 counties named in the 2026 definitions, split among three areas. Seattle-Tacoma takes the 15 counties of the Puget Sound basin, the islands, the Olympic Peninsula and the outer coast. Portland-Vancouver-Salem, OR-WA reaches north across the Columbia River into 4 Washington counties. Spokane-Spokane Valley-Coeur d'Alene, WA-ID takes Spokane and four counties around it in the northeast, at 17.67 %. Everything else, including Yakima, the Tri-Cities and Wenatchee, is Rest of U.S. at 17.06 %.
Pay at a Washington State worksite
GS-11 step 1, Seattle, 2026
$83,935
| Base pay (GS table) | $63,795 |
| Locality payment, Seattle | $20,140 |
| Hourly rate | $40.22 |
| Biweekly paycheck (gross, 80 hours) | $3,217.60 |
The southern edge: Lewis and Pacific versus Cowlitz
Lewis and Pacific counties are in the Seattle area, though they lie well south of Tacoma and Olympia. Their neighbors Cowlitz and Wahkiakum are in Portland. A move between Chehalis and Longview at GS-9 step 5 changes the rate from $78,625 to $75,374. The calculator settles any doubt from the county alone.
Island and peninsula worksites
Federal offices on the islands of San Juan and Island counties, at Port Angeles in Clallam County or in Bellingham in Whatcom County are on the Seattle table even though some of them are a ferry ride or several hours from Seattle. The list reflects commuting and employment tests in 5 CFR 531.603, not travel time.
What a step is worth here
Within-grade increases at 31.57 % are sizable. At GS-12, step 1 to step 2 adds $3,354 a year; reaching step 10 brings the rate to $130,786. At GS-14 step 10 the rate is $183,782, still under the cap. At GS-15 the cap stops 4 steps, so a GS-15 step 7 and a GS-15 step 10 are paid the same $197,200. The step increase page shows the waiting periods.
Living in Oregon or eastern Washington
Your official worksite, as defined in 5 CFR 531.605, decides. If your position is in a Seattle office and you are scheduled to report there at least twice each biweekly pay period, you keep 31.57 % even if you live elsewhere. If your agency approves full remote work from a home in Spokane or Yakima, the home becomes the worksite and the pay drops to that county's area. Compared with Denver at 30.52 %, the Seattle table is 1.05 points higher.
2026 GS pay table for Seattle
| 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 | $37,671 | $38,887 | $40,103 | $41,318 | $42,534 | $43,750 | $44,965 | $46,181 | $47,397 |
| GS-4 | $40,922 | $42,287 | $43,651 | $45,015 | $46,380 | $47,744 | $49,109 | $50,473 | $51,837 | $53,202 |
| GS-5 | $45,785 | $47,311 | $48,837 | $50,364 | $51,890 | $53,416 | $54,942 | $56,469 | $57,995 | $59,521 |
| GS-6 | $51,037 | $52,739 | $54,440 | $56,141 | $57,842 | $59,543 | $61,245 | $62,946 | $64,647 | $66,348 |
| GS-7 | $56,715 | $58,605 | $60,496 | $62,387 | $64,277 | $66,168 | $68,059 | $69,949 | $71,840 | $73,731 |
| GS-8 | $62,809 | $64,902 | $66,995 | $69,089 | $71,182 | $73,275 | $75,369 | $77,462 | $79,555 | $81,648 |
| GS-9 | $69,373 | $71,686 | $73,999 | $76,312 | $78,625 | $80,938 | $83,251 | $85,564 | $87,877 | $90,190 |
| GS-10 | $76,395 | $78,941 | $81,487 | $84,032 | $86,578 | $89,124 | $91,670 | $94,216 | $96,762 | $99,308 |
| GS-11 | $83,935 | $86,734 | $89,532 | $92,331 | $95,129 | $97,928 | $100,726 | $103,525 | $106,323 | $109,122 |
| GS-12 | $100,602 | $103,956 | $107,310 | $110,664 | $114,017 | $117,371 | $120,725 | $124,078 | $127,432 | $130,786 |
| GS-13 | $119,630 | $123,618 | $127,606 | $131,594 | $135,582 | $139,569 | $143,557 | $147,545 | $151,533 | $155,521 |
| GS-14 | $141,367 | $146,080 | $150,792 | $155,505 | $160,218 | $164,931 | $169,644 | $174,357 | $179,069 | $183,782 |
| GS-15 | $166,283 | $171,826 | $177,370 | $182,913 | $188,456 | $193,999 | $197,200 | $197,200 | $197,200 | $197,200 |
Counties and cities in this area
Washington: Clallam County, Grays Harbor County, Island County, Jefferson County, King County, Kitsap County, Lewis County, Mason County, Pacific County, Pierce County, San Juan County, Skagit County, Snohomish County, Thurston County, Whatcom County.