San Diego GS Pay Scale 2026
Locality pay area San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA — 33.72% locality payment, ranked #6 of 58. Rates below include the 2026 1% general increase and locality adjustment.
Source: OPM Salary Table 2026-SD · 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 | 30,199 | 31,212 | 32,216 | 33,216 | 34,218 | 34,805 | 35,798 | 36,798 | 36,840 | 37,773 |
| GS-2 | 33,956 | 34,763 | 35,889 | 36,840 | 37,252 | 38,347 | 39,442 | 40,537 | 41,632 | 42,728 |
| GS-3 | 37,051 | 38,287 | 39,522 | 40,758 | 41,993 | 43,229 | 44,465 | 45,700 | 46,936 | 48,171 |
| GS-4 | 41,591 | 42,978 | 44,364 | 45,751 | 47,138 | 48,524 | 49,911 | 51,298 | 52,684 | 54,071 |
| GS-5 | 46,533 | 48,084 | 49,636 | 51,187 | 52,738 | 54,289 | 55,840 | 57,391 | 58,942 | 60,494 |
| GS-6 | 51,871 | 53,600 | 55,329 | 57,058 | 58,787 | 60,516 | 62,245 | 63,974 | 65,703 | 67,432 |
| GS-7 | 57,641 | 59,563 | 61,484 | 63,406 | 65,328 | 67,249 | 69,171 | 71,092 | 73,014 | 74,935 |
| GS-8 | 63,835 | 65,963 | 68,090 | 70,218 | 72,345 | 74,473 | 76,600 | 78,728 | 80,855 | 82,983 |
| GS-9 | 70,507 | 72,857 | 75,208 | 77,559 | 79,910 | 82,261 | 84,611 | 86,962 | 89,313 | 91,664 |
| GS-10 | 77,643 | 80,231 | 82,818 | 85,406 | 87,993 | 90,581 | 93,168 | 95,756 | 98,343 | 100,931 |
| GS-11 | 85,307 | 88,151 | 90,995 | 93,839 | 96,684 | 99,528 | 102,372 | 105,216 | 108,060 | 110,905 |
| GS-12 | 102,246 | 105,655 | 109,063 | 112,472 | 115,880 | 119,289 | 122,697 | 126,106 | 129,515 | 132,923 |
| GS-13 | 121,585 | 125,638 | 129,691 | 133,744 | 137,797 | 141,850 | 145,903 | 149,956 | 154,009 | 158,062 |
| GS-14 | 143,677 | 148,467 | 153,256 | 158,046 | 162,836 | 167,626 | 172,416 | 177,206 | 181,996 | 186,785 |
| GS-15 | 169,001 | 174,634 | 180,268 | 185,902 | 191,535 | 197,169 | 197,200* | 197,200* | 197,200* | 197,200* |
Hourly rates (step 1 / step 10)
GS-1
$14.47 – $18.10/hr
GS-2
$16.27 – $20.47/hr
GS-3
$17.75 – $23.08/hr
GS-4
$19.93 – $25.91/hr
GS-5
$22.30 – $28.99/hr
GS-6
$24.85 – $32.31/hr
GS-7
$27.62 – $35.91/hr
GS-8
$30.59 – $39.76/hr
GS-9
$33.78 – $43.92/hr
GS-10
$37.20 – $48.36/hr
GS-11
$40.88 – $53.14/hr
GS-12
$48.99 – $63.69/hr
GS-13
$58.26 – $75.74/hr
GS-14
$68.84 – $89.50/hr
GS-15
$80.98 – $94.49/hr
Private-sector pay in this area
BLS metro wage data for the same region:
Other locality areas
San Francisco Bay Area 46.34%New York 37.95%Los Angeles 36.47%Houston 35%Washington DC 33.94%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%Buffalo 22.41%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%