How much the air force pay?

Every US service, including the Air Force and Space Force, uses the same pay table set each year by Congress. Basic pay depends only on pay grade and time in service. With the January 2025 table, which included a 4.5 percent general raise and an extra increase for junior enlisted grades, an E-1 with more than four months of service received about $2,320 a month, an E-5 staff sergeant with six years about $3,450, a second lieutenant about $4,180 and a major with ten years' service about $8,600 (all data of January 2025).

Basic pay is only part of the package. Members living off base receive a Basic Allowance for Housing that varies by location, rank and dependants, from under $1,000 in rural areas to more than $4,000 in expensive cities, and it is not taxed. The Basic Allowance for Subsistence adds about $465 for enlisted members and $320 for officers. Pilots receive aviation incentive pay of up to $1,000 a month, and retention bonuses for experienced fighter and mobility pilots have reached $50,000 a year. Health care, a pension after 20 years combined with a matched savings plan, and tuition benefits are usually the largest hidden part of total compensation.

Other air forces publish their own scales. A Royal Air Force recruit starts on about £26,000 a year, rising once trained; a French aviateur begins near the national minimum wage with lodging and food provided; Spanish airmen start around €1,100 a month net plus allowances (data of 2025). In every case the published figure understates real income because housing, medical care and pensions are provided in kind, and because flying and hazardous-duty supplements are paid on top of the base scale.