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Updated November 7, 2018
Defense Primer: Military Officers
Grade and Rank
Company-grade or junior-grade officers (pay grades O-1
The armed forces are hierarchical organizations with clearly
to O-3) typically lead units with several dozen to several
defined levels of authority. The different levels for officers
hundred personnel, or serve as junior staff officers. They
are defined in law and called grades, while rank refers to
make up about 56% of the officer corps. There is no
the order of precedence among those in different grades and
statutory limit on the number of officers in these grades.
within the same grade (e.g., someone who has been a Major
for three years outranks someone who has been a Major for
Field-grade or mid-grade officers (pay grades O-4 to O-6)
two years; see 10 U.S.C. §741). However, it is common for
typically lead units with several hundred to several
the term rank to be used as a synonym for grade. Pay grade
thousand personnel, or serve as senior staff officers. They
is an administrative classification that determines certain
make up about 35% of the officer corps. There are statutory
rates of pay, but it is sometimes used to indicate grade as
limits on the number of officers in these grades (10 U.S.C.
well. For example, a Lieutenant Commander in the Navy
§523).
may be referred to as an O-4. See Figure 1.
General or flag officers (pay grades O-7 to O-10) may
Numbers and Roles
lead units or organizations with several thousand to
Officers make up about 19% of the armed forces, with
hundreds of thousands of personnel or serve as staff for the
enlisted personnel making up the other 81%. Officers
largest military organizations. General and flag officers
outrank all enlisted personnel. Table 1 below lists the
make up just under 0.4% of the officer corps. There are
number of active duty officers in each pay grade.
statutory limits on the number of officers in these grades
(10 U.S.C. §525-526a).
Warrant officers (pay grades W-1 to W-5) perform highly
Insignia
technical or specialized work within their career field and
As shown in Figure 1, each officer grade in the armed
also, in the case of the Army, serve as helicopter pilots.
forces has distinctive insignia, typically worn on the sleeve,
Warrant officers constitute about 8% of the officer corps.
shoulder, collar, and/or headgear (caps, berets, etc.).
Table 1. Active Duty Military Officers by Pay Grade (as of September 30, 2018)
Services
Pay Grade
Total
Army
Navy
Marine Corps
Air Force
O-10
15
8
4
13
40
O-9
44
38
21
44
147
O-8
118
61
27
90
296
O-7
141
107
41
149
438
O-6
3,990
3,125
643
3,241
10,999
O-5
8,793
6,668
1,901
9,764
27,126
O-4
15,077
10,592
3,883
13,593
43,145
O-3
28,421
18,726
6,122
20,851
74,120
O-2
11,259
6,659
3,337
6,995
28,250
O-1
9,881
7,018
3,203
7,900
28,002
W-5
589
87
107
0
783
W-4
2,070
394
297
0
2,761
W-3
3,949
647
629
0
5,225
W-2
5,300
607
830
0
6,737
W-1
2,352
0
287
0
2,639
Source: Department of Defense, Defense Manpower Data Center.
https://crsreports.congress.gov
Defense Primer: Military Officers
Figure 1. Pay Grade, Grade, and Insignia of Officers
Source: CRS adaption of Department of Defense webpage: https://dod.defense.gov/About/Insignias/Officers/ .
Relevant Statutes
CRS Report R44389, General and Flag Officers in the U.S. Armed
10 U.S.C. §§101(b), 523, 525-526a, 741, 742.
Forces: Background and Considerations for Congress, by Lawrence
Kapp
Other Resources
Department of Defense Instruction 1310.01, Rank and
CRS Products
Seniority of Commissioned Officers, August 23, 2013.
CRS Report R44496, Military Officer Personnel Management: Key
Concepts and Statutory Provisions, by Lawrence Kapp
Lawrence Kapp, Specialist in Military Manpower Policy
IF10685
https://crsreports.congress.gov
Defense Primer: Military Officers
Disclaimer
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congressional committees and Members of Congress. It operates solely at the behest of and under the direction of Congress.
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