Other ranks pay ladder — 2026/27
| Rank | Scale minimum | Scale maximum |
|---|---|---|
| Private (OR-2) | £27,282 | £39,423 |
| Lance Corporal (OR-3) | £36,009 | £39,423 |
| Corporal (OR-4) | £42,100 | £45,383 |
| › Sergeant (OR-6) | £47,689 | £52,602 |
| Warrant Officer 1 (OR-9) | £65,323 | £67,795 |
| Source: AFPRB 55th Report 2026, pay year 1 April 2026 – 31 March 2027. Supplements 2–3 are interpolated between the published Supplement 1 and 4 anchors. | ||
Progression up the scale depends on time served and trade. Promotion to the next rank is the biggest single pay jump — compare the minimum of the rank above with the maximum of your current rank.
At a glance
At Sergeant (OR-6) on Supplement 2, the scale runs £47,689–£52,602 a year — promotion to Warrant Officer 1 starts at £65,323.
How reliable is this figure?
This is an estimate, not a payslip preview. It runs on the 2026/27 tax model (Personal Allowance £12,570; employee National Insurance at 8% up to £50,270, then 2%) and the pay dataset named on this page, reviewed 23 September 2026.
Your actual take-home depends on your tax code, contract terms, overtime patterns and any benefits or deductions your employer applies. If a figure here looks surprising, check it against your latest payslip and the HMRC guidance linked under Sources below.
Assumptions and pay data
- England tax rates; Scotland’s bands differ.
- No pension contributions or student loan deductions.
- Supplement 1 and 4 are verified; Supplement 2 and 3 are interpolated estimates.
- Increment progression assumes satisfactory service; timing varies by service and trade.
- Full 2026/27 tax bands are in our UK tax guide.
Where the big jumps are
Promotion vs increments: what actually moves the needle
Each promotion lifts you onto a new pay band, but the bands are wide and they overlap. A Lance Corporal on Supplement 1 tops out at £38,553; a Corporal on Supplement 1 starts at £40,989 — a promotion gain of barely £2,400 at the boundary. Compare that with staying put and climbing increments, or with the supplement gap: a Sergeant on Supplement 4 starts at £51,024, a full £5,002 above the top of Sergeant Supplement 1 (£46,022–£50,598 range).
The pattern across the ladder is consistent: the early promotions (Private to Lance Corporal to Corporal) deliver modest uplifts, while the step to Sergeant and then to Warrant Officer opens up materially wider bands — WO1 runs £64,704–£67,201 on Supplement 1 and £66,560–£68,982 on Supplement 4. Seniority compounds: each increment is small, but five years of them across a promotion boundary is not.
The calculator lets you test the trade-offs directly. Model staying at Corporal for three more increments against promoting to Sergeant now; the answer depends on your supplement, and it is rarely as obvious as the rank slides suggest.
Supplement choice by trade: the quiet pay decision
Your supplement is set by your trade’s job weight, and for most people it is fixed — but not for everyone. Re-trading, transferring to a higher-weighted role, or gaining qualifications that move you between supplements can shift your entire band. The gap between Supplement 1 and Supplement 4 at Corporal is £3,333 at the bottom of the band and £4,671 at the top; at Sergeant it runs from £5,002 to £6,013.
Those are annual, pensionable, X-Factor-included figures — worth more over a career than most allowances. If you have any route to a higher supplement, the calculator shows you exactly what it is worth in take-home terms before you commit to the course or the transfer paperwork.
Be honest with yourself about which figures you are reading: Supplement 1 and 4 are verified from the AFPRB report; Supplement 2 and 3 are our interpolated estimates. The ladder marks them clearly.
The tax reality of climbing
Every rung you climb is taxed at the margin. The 20% band runs to £50,270, which means a Sergeant’s pay straddles the boundary: the lower half of Sergeant Supplement 1 is taxed at 20%, the upper half — and all of Supplement 4 — at 40%. Promotion into the 40% band feels smaller than the gross figures suggest, because each extra pound above £50,270 keeps only 58p after tax and NI (at 40% plus 2% NI).
This is fiscal drag in action: tax thresholds are frozen until April 2031 while pay rises 3.6% a year, so each award pushes more of the ladder into higher bands. The calculator shows take-home, not just gross, precisely so the real value of the next rung is visible.
Reading the ladder like a career plan
Use the ladder backwards from where you want to be. Pick the rank and supplement you are aiming for in five years, note the take-home, then step down to today’s position. The gap is your target — and you can see how much of it comes from promotion, how much from increments, and how much from a supplement move.
Then layer allowances on top with the allowances stacker. A posting that attracts Longer Separation Allowance at level 8 (£10,979.20 a year) can be worth more than a promotion; the ladder shows you the rank structure, the stacker shows you the circumstances. Together they are the full picture.
About the other-ranks ladder
What the ladder shows — and what it does not
The ladder covers OR-2 (Private) through OR-9 (Warrant Officer Class 1) on all four supplements, with annual increments and take-home after 2026/27 income tax and employee National Insurance. Every figure includes the 14.5% X-Factor, and interpolated Supplement 2 and 3 values are flagged.
It does not model specialist or flying pay beyond the standard allowances, and it does not deduct AFPS pension contributions — the pension guide explains what to check in the meantime. For allowances, use the dedicated stacker; for the officer ladder, the companion calculator covers OF-1 to OF-6.
Other ranks pay ladder FAQs
What is the pay range for a Private in 2026/27?
A Private (OR-2) earns £27,282–£38,553 on Supplement 1 and £27,282–£41,164 on Supplement 4. The range reflects annual increments: the bottom is the new entrant, the top the experienced soldier awaiting promotion.
How much does promotion from Corporal to Sergeant pay?
It depends on your supplement and increment. A Corporal on Supplement 1 runs £40,989–£43,826; a Sergeant on Supplement 1 runs £46,022–£50,598. At the top of Corporal to the bottom of Sergeant the gain is around £2,200 gross — modest — but a Sergeant further up the band earns far more. Use the calculator with your actual increment for the real figure.
What is the top pay for other ranks?
£68,982 a year: Warrant Officer Class 1 at the top increment of Supplement 4. On Supplement 1 the WO1 range is £64,704–£67,201. All figures include the 14.5% X-Factor.
Which matters more: promotion or supplement?
Over a career, both — but supplement is the underrated one. Moving from Supplement 1 to Supplement 4 at Sergeant is worth £5,002–£6,013 a year, every year, which rivals or beats a single promotion step. If re-trading to a higher-weighted trade is open to you, model it in the calculator before deciding.
Are Supplement 2 and 3 figures official?
No. Supplement 1 and Supplement 4 have verified published anchors. Supplement 2 and 3 are interpolated estimates between them, and the calculator labels them as estimates wherever they appear.
When do I start paying 40% tax as other ranks?
The higher rate starts at £50,271. Sergeant pay straddles it: the lower half of Supplement 1 (£46,022–£50,598) is mostly basic-rate, while Supplement 4 (£51,024–£56,611) is largely higher-rate. WO1 pay is higher-rate throughout.
Do increments happen automatically every year?
Increments are awarded annually subject to satisfactory service, but exact timing and rules vary by service and trade. The ladder shows the full band so you can see your ceiling; your unit admin office can confirm your current increment.
How does the 3.6% 2026 award affect the ladder?
Every rung rose 3.6% from 1 April 2026 — the third consecutive uplift after 6% in 2024 and 4.5% in 2025. Because tax thresholds are frozen until 2031, part of each rise is absorbed by fiscal drag, which is why the ladder shows take-home alongside gross.
Other-ranks pay-rise alerts
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Sources
- Armed Forces Pay Review Body, 55th Report (2026). Other-ranks pay scales by supplement, 3.6% award and X-Factor rate for 2026/27; accessed 23 September 2026.
- HMRC: 2026/27 income tax and National Insurance. Personal Allowance, bands and NI thresholds applied to take-home figures; accessed 23 September 2026.
These are estimates for guidance only, not financial advice. Figures are taken from the sources listed above and were correct when this page was reviewed. Your actual pay depends on your contract, hours and tax code — check your payslip and HMRC guidance if anything looks off.