GS pay scale 2026
Colorado Springs, CO

58 locality pay areasPage last changed 2026-10-22

Colorado Springs, CO GS pay scale 2026: 20.15% locality pay

In 2026 a GS-12 step 5 here earns $104,121 with 20.15% locality pay; local prices are within 2% of the national average, so at U.S. prices it is worth close to that, $103,390.

#36 on paper, #48 after prices

−12Places lost, of 57 priced areas.

Buys at U.S. prices

$103,390BEA price level 100.7, for Colorado Springs, CO.

Ceiling watch

1 of 150GS-15 step 10 is held to $197,200.

Key facts

Locality pay change since 2016: +5.63 points
Pay gap, latest council estimate: 50.31%
Rate the 1990 formula would set: 43.15%
Federal civilian jobs, 2025: 14,882
Share of all jobs here: 3.79%
Largest county by federal jobs: El Paso County, CO: 13,016

Sources and methods

Every 2026 rate

A yearAn hourEvery two weeks

▲ marks the one cell cut to the $197,200 statutory ceiling. Reading these tables.
Grade	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
GS-1	27,135	28,044	28,947	29,845	30,745	31,273	32,165	33,064	33,101	33,940
GS-2	30,510	31,235	32,247	33,101	33,471	34,455	35,439	36,423	37,408	38,392
GS-3	33,291	34,401	35,512	36,622	37,732	38,842	39,952	41,062	42,173	43,283
GS-4	37,370	38,616	39,862	41,108	42,354	43,600	44,846	46,092	47,338	48,584
GS-5	41,811	43,205	44,598	45,992	47,386	48,780	50,173	51,567	52,961	54,355
GS-6	46,607	48,161	49,714	51,268	52,822	54,375	55,929	57,482	59,036	60,589
GS-7	51,792	53,518	55,245	56,972	58,698	60,425	62,151	63,878	65,604	67,331
GS-8	57,357	59,269	61,180	63,092	65,004	66,915	68,827	70,738	72,650	74,561
GS-9	63,351	65,464	67,576	69,688	71,800	73,913	76,025	78,137	80,249	82,362
GS-10	69,764	72,089	74,414	76,739	79,064	81,388	83,713	86,038	88,363	90,688
GS-11	76,650	79,205	81,761	84,316	86,872	89,428	91,983	94,539	97,094	99,650
GS-12	91,870	94,933	97,996	101,058	104,121	107,183	110,246	113,309	116,371	119,434
GS-13	109,246	112,888	116,530	120,172	123,813	127,455	131,097	134,739	138,380	142,022
GS-14	129,096	133,400	137,704	142,008	146,311	150,615	154,919	159,223	163,527	167,830
GS-15	151,850	156,912	161,974	167,036	172,098	177,160	182,222	187,284	192,346	197,200

Annual rate divided by 2,087 hours (5 U.S.C. 5504(b)), as in OPM’s hourly table.
Grade	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
GS-1	13.00	13.44	13.87	14.30	14.73	14.98	15.41	15.84	15.86	16.26
GS-2	14.62	14.97	15.45	15.86	16.04	16.51	16.98	17.45	17.92	18.40
GS-3	15.95	16.48	17.02	17.55	18.08	18.61	19.14	19.68	20.21	20.74
GS-4	17.91	18.50	19.10	19.70	20.29	20.89	21.49	22.09	22.68	23.28
GS-5	20.03	20.70	21.37	22.04	22.71	23.37	24.04	24.71	25.38	26.04
GS-6	22.33	23.08	23.82	24.57	25.31	26.05	26.80	27.54	28.29	29.03
GS-7	24.82	25.64	26.47	27.30	28.13	28.95	29.78	30.61	31.43	32.26
GS-8	27.48	28.40	29.31	30.23	31.15	32.06	32.98	33.89	34.81	35.73
GS-9	30.36	31.37	32.38	33.39	34.40	35.42	36.43	37.44	38.45	39.46
GS-10	33.43	34.54	35.66	36.77	37.88	39.00	40.11	41.23	42.34	43.45
GS-11	36.73	37.95	39.18	40.40	41.63	42.85	44.07	45.30	46.52	47.75
GS-12	44.02	45.49	46.96	48.42	49.89	51.36	52.83	54.29	55.76	57.23
GS-13	52.35	54.09	55.84	57.58	59.33	61.07	62.82	64.56	66.31	68.05
GS-14	61.86	63.92	65.98	68.04	70.11	72.17	74.23	76.29	78.36	80.42
GS-15	72.76	75.19	77.61	80.04	82.46	84.89	87.31	89.74	92.16	94.49

Hourly rate times 80 (5 U.S.C. 5504(b)).
Grade	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
GS-1	1,040.00	1,075.20	1,109.60	1,144.00	1,178.40	1,198.40	1,232.80	1,267.20	1,268.80	1,300.80
GS-2	1,169.60	1,197.60	1,236.00	1,268.80	1,283.20	1,320.80	1,358.40	1,396.00	1,433.60	1,472.00
GS-3	1,276.00	1,318.40	1,361.60	1,404.00	1,446.40	1,488.80	1,531.20	1,574.40	1,616.80	1,659.20
GS-4	1,432.80	1,480.00	1,528.00	1,576.00	1,623.20	1,671.20	1,719.20	1,767.20	1,814.40	1,862.40
GS-5	1,602.40	1,656.00	1,709.60	1,763.20	1,816.80	1,869.60	1,923.20	1,976.80	2,030.40	2,083.20
GS-6	1,786.40	1,846.40	1,905.60	1,965.60	2,024.80	2,084.00	2,144.00	2,203.20	2,263.20	2,322.40
GS-7	1,985.60	2,051.20	2,117.60	2,184.00	2,250.40	2,316.00	2,382.40	2,448.80	2,514.40	2,580.80
GS-8	2,198.40	2,272.00	2,344.80	2,418.40	2,492.00	2,564.80	2,638.40	2,711.20	2,784.80	2,858.40
GS-9	2,428.80	2,509.60	2,590.40	2,671.20	2,752.00	2,833.60	2,914.40	2,995.20	3,076.00	3,156.80
GS-10	2,674.40	2,763.20	2,852.80	2,941.60	3,030.40	3,120.00	3,208.80	3,298.40	3,387.20	3,476.00
GS-11	2,938.40	3,036.00	3,134.40	3,232.00	3,330.40	3,428.00	3,525.60	3,624.00	3,721.60	3,820.00
GS-12	3,521.60	3,639.20	3,756.80	3,873.60	3,991.20	4,108.80	4,226.40	4,343.20	4,460.80	4,578.40
GS-13	4,188.00	4,327.20	4,467.20	4,606.40	4,746.40	4,885.60	5,025.60	5,164.80	5,304.80	5,444.00
GS-14	4,948.80	5,113.60	5,278.40	5,443.20	5,608.80	5,773.60	5,938.40	6,103.20	6,268.80	6,433.60
GS-15	5,820.80	6,015.20	6,208.80	6,403.20	6,596.80	6,791.20	6,984.80	7,179.20	7,372.80	7,559.20

Source: OPM 2026 General Schedule salary table for this area, Salary Table 2026-CS, matched cell by cell; compare with Rest of U.S..

After local prices

Its neighbors by what it buys (how; all 57).
#	Locality	On paper	Price level	What it buys
45	Portland-Vancouver-Salem, OR-WA	$109,303	105.4	$103,682
46	San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA	$115,880	111.9	$103,569
47	Las Vegas-Henderson, NV-AZ	$103,618	100.2	$103,396
48	Colorado Springs, CO	$104,121	100.7	$103,390
49	Phoenix-Mesa, AZ	$106,114	103.3	$102,708
50	Seattle-Tacoma, WA	$114,017	111.1	$102,595
51	Burlington-South Burlington-Barre, VT	$103,514	100.9	$102,541

Rent here runs well ahead of prices overall: BEA puts housing 15.5% above the U.S. level, at 116.2, while all prices together, at 100.7, are within 2% of 100.

BEA price levels, 2024, for the Colorado Springs, CO metro area (how to read this table).
Kind of spending	Here	U.S.	Rank of 57
Goods	96.1	99.6	#41 (tied)
Housing (rent)	116.2	100.6	#17
Utilities	83.2	98.4	#50
Other services	99.8	100.1	#20 (tied)
All items	100.7	100.0	#23

Locality pay since 2016

Dashed: the Rest of U.S. rate.

Percent, from OPM’s tables for 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025, 2026. Sources and caveats; every area since 2016: ten years of locality pay.
Locality pay, %	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024	2025	2026
Colorado Springs, CO	14.52	15.99	16.59	17.19	17.78	17.78	18.42	19.11	19.73	20.15	20.15
Rest of U.S.	14.35	15.06	15.37	15.67	15.95	15.95	16.20	16.50	16.82	17.06	17.06

Colorado Springs, CO has had a locality pay table of its own only since 2016; before that its counties were paid the Rest of U.S. rate.

The 1990 pay law’s formula

Formula 43.15%, paid 20.15%: 23.00 points apart (median 18.40); nine editions: table

The editions checked here, the memos for pay in 2018 to 2026. Sources: memo of January 10, 2025, Attachment 1, and the council’s earlier memos; the President’s Pay Agent on 2026; what these estimates are and are not; every area against the formula: how far pay is from the 1990 law.
Edition, for pay in	Data as of	Listed as	Pay gap, %	Formula rate, %	Rate paid that year, %
2026	March 2024	Locality pay area	50.31	43.15	20.15
2025	March 2023	Locality pay area	51.48	44.27	20.15
2024	March 2022	Locality pay area	48.71	41.63	19.73
2023	March 2021	Locality pay area	45.97	39.02	19.11
2022	March 2020	Locality pay area	44.01	37.15	18.42
2021	March 2019	Locality pay area	47.22	40.21	17.78
2020	March 2018	Locality pay area	49.31	42.20	17.78
2019	March 2017	Locality pay area	51.49	44.28	17.19
2018	March 2016	Locality pay area	51.30	44.10	16.59

Federal jobs

In this area’s 4 counties, Postal Service in, military out; BLS, 2023, 2024, 2025. BLS has another 901 federal jobs in Colorado with no county; the states page counts them with the state, not with any area. Sources and caveats; every area: where the federal jobs are.
Year	Federal civilian jobs	Share of all jobs, %	Average pay per job
2023	14,904	3.79	$90,004
2024	15,758	3.99	$93,774
2025	14,882	3.79	$95,425

Federal jobs here fell from 2024 to 2025, 876 fewer than in 2024, down 5.56%, the third-steepest drop of the 55 areas where they fell, and the 2025 average still counts staff on paid administrative leave until 30 September.

Counties

4 counties paid at this rate

Colorado, 4 counties

El Paso County
Fremont County
Pueblo County
Teller County

Source: OPM 2026 locality pay area definitions.