What is the 2026 locality pay for Buffalo?

Buffalo-Cheektowaga-Olean, NY has a 22.41% locality payment in 2026, ranked 23 of 58 areas. A GS-13 step 1 earns $111,301; a GS-7 step 1 earns $52,766.

How much more is Buffalo than Rest of U.S.?

22.41% vs 17.06% — a GS-12 step 1 makes $93,598 in Buffalo versus $89,508 in Rest of U.S., a difference of $4,090.

Buffalo GS Pay Scale 2026

Locality pay area Buffalo-Cheektowaga-Olean, NY — 22.41% locality payment, ranked #23 of 58. Rates below include the 2026 1% general increase and locality adjustment.

Source: OPM Salary Table 2026-BU · area definition. Cells marked * are limited to EX-IV ($197,200).

Grade	Step 1	Step 2	Step 3	Step 4	Step 5	Step 6	Step 7	Step 8	Step 9	Step 10
GS-1	27,645	28,572	29,491	30,407	31,323	31,861	32,770	33,686	33,724	34,578
GS-2	31,084	31,823	32,854	33,724	34,101	35,104	36,106	37,109	38,111	39,114
GS-3	33,917	35,048	36,179	37,311	38,442	39,573	40,704	41,835	42,966	44,097
GS-4	38,073	39,343	40,612	41,881	43,151	44,420	45,690	46,959	48,228	49,498
GS-5	42,597	44,017	45,437	46,857	48,277	49,697	51,117	52,537	53,957	55,377
GS-6	47,484	49,067	50,650	52,232	53,815	55,398	56,981	58,563	60,146	61,729
GS-7	52,766	54,525	56,284	58,043	59,802	61,561	63,320	65,079	66,838	68,597
GS-8	58,436	60,384	62,331	64,279	66,226	68,174	70,121	72,069	74,016	75,964
GS-9	64,543	66,695	68,847	70,999	73,151	75,303	77,455	79,607	81,759	83,911
GS-10	71,076	73,445	75,813	78,182	80,551	82,919	85,288	87,657	90,025	92,394
GS-11	78,091	80,695	83,299	85,902	88,506	91,110	93,713	96,317	98,921	101,524
GS-12	93,598	96,719	99,839	102,959	106,079	109,200	112,320	115,440	118,560	121,680
GS-13	111,301	115,012	118,722	122,432	126,142	129,853	133,563	137,273	140,983	144,694
GS-14	131,525	135,909	140,294	144,679	149,064	153,448	157,833	162,218	166,602	170,987
GS-15	154,707	159,864	165,021	170,178	175,335	180,492	185,649	190,807	195,964	197,200*

Hourly rates (step 1 / step 10)

GS-1

$13.25 – $16.57/hr

GS-2

$14.89 – $18.74/hr

GS-3

$16.25 – $21.13/hr

GS-4

$18.24 – $23.72/hr

GS-5

$20.41 – $26.53/hr

GS-6

$22.75 – $29.58/hr

GS-7

$25.28 – $32.87/hr

GS-8

$28.00 – $36.40/hr

GS-9

$30.93 – $40.21/hr

GS-10

$34.06 – $44.27/hr

GS-11

$37.42 – $48.65/hr

GS-12

$44.85 – $58.30/hr

GS-13

$53.33 – $69.33/hr

GS-14

$63.02 – $81.93/hr

GS-15

$74.13 – $94.49/hr

Other locality areas

San Francisco Bay Area 46.34%New York 37.95%Los Angeles 36.47%Houston 35%Washington DC 33.94%San Diego 33.72%Boston 32.58%Alaska 32.36%Hartford 32.08%Seattle 31.57%Chicago 30.86%Denver 30.52%Sacramento 29.76%Detroit 29.12%Philadelphia 28.99%Minneapolis 27.62%Dallas-Fort Worth 27.26%Portland 26.13%Miami 24.67%Atlanta 23.79%Phoenix 22.45%Milwaukee 22.42%Richmond 22.28%Raleigh 22.24%Cleveland 22.23%Hawaii 22.21%Columbus 22.15%Cincinnati 21.93%Huntsville 21.91%Laredo 21.59%Dayton 21.42%Pittsburgh 21.03%Albany 20.77%Austin 20.35%Colorado Springs 20.15%St. Louis 20.03%Charlotte 19.67%Las Vegas 19.57%Burlington 19.45%Harrisburg 19.43%Tucson 19.28%Kansas City 18.97%Davenport 18.93%Virginia Beach 18.8%San Antonio 18.78%Albuquerque 18.33%Birmingham 18.24%Omaha 18.23%Indianapolis 18.15%Des Moines 18.01%Palm Bay 17.93%Rochester 17.88%Spokane 17.67%Fresno 17.65%Corpus Christi 17.63%Reno 17.52%Rest of U.S. 17.06%