What is E-4 BAH at Cape May in 2026?

$2,523 per month with dependents ($30,276 per year), effective 01 JAN 2026. Without dependents it is $1,968 per month.

Does BAH count as taxable income?

No. BAH is excluded from federal taxable income, so a given BAH amount is worth more than the same figure in basic pay.

What happens if my BAH rate drops this year?

BAH rate protection holds you at the prior year's amount as long as your duty location, pay grade and dependency status stay the same. The lower rate applies to members arriving on new orders.

E-4 BAH at Cape May 2026 — $2,523 with dependents, $1,968 without

Basic Allowance for Housing by duty station, pay grade and dependency status. Official DoD rates, no login, no email.

Cape May, NJ

E-4 · with dependents

$2,523/ month

$30,276 / year

At E-4, this is #69 of 338 stations loaded · high New York City $5,067 · low Youngstown $1,134

MHA NJ198 · ZIPs 08202 08204 08210 08212 08214 08218 +15 more

Your grade is calledARMYSPC / CPLUSMCCplNAVYPO3USAFSrA

Untaxed — matching it with taxable pay takes$3,235 / mo gross

Without dependents here$1,968 / mo

In government quarters, no dependents$50.10 / mo partial

Cape May — full sheetTap a row

Grade	With dep.	Without
Enlisted
E-1	$2,523	$1,968
E-2	$2,523	$1,968
E-3	$2,523	$1,968
E-4	$2,523	$1,968
E-5	$2,754	$2,172
E-6	$3,072	$2,313
E-7	$3,114	$2,532
E-8	$3,159	$2,823
E-9	$3,312	$2,913
Warrant officer
W-1	$3,093	$2,451
W-2	$3,132	$2,820
W-3	$3,189	$2,925
W-4	$3,360	$3,078
W-5	$3,570	$3,123
Officer — prior enlisted
O-1E	$3,117	$2,751
O-2E	$3,177	$2,892
O-3E	$3,390	$3,066
Officer
O-1	$2,799	$2,289
O-2	$3,069	$2,682
O-3	$3,186	$2,955
O-4	$3,639	$3,108
O-5	$3,969	$3,129
O-6	$4,002	$3,165
O-7	$4,032	$3,222

What this rate means

E-4 with dependents, nearest stations0 – $5,067 / month

New York City$5,067

Boulder$2,565

Atlantic City$2,559

Denver$2,556

Fort Myers Beach$2,553

Cape May$2,523

Tampa$2,520

Fort Pierce$2,499

County Cost Group 870$2,478

Edwards AFB$2,475

Youngstown$1,134

Cape May is #69 of 338. The spread between the dearest and cheapest station at this grade is $3,933 a month — $47,196 a year, untaxed.

Every pay grade at Cape May0 – $4,032 / month

E-1$2,523

E-2$2,523

E-3$2,523

E-4$2,523

E-5$2,754

E-6$3,072

E-7$3,114

E-8$3,159

E-9$3,312

W-1$3,093

W-2$3,132

W-3$3,189

W-4$3,360

W-5$3,570

O-1E$3,117

O-2E$3,177

O-3E$3,390

O-1$2,799

O-2$3,069

O-3$3,186

O-4$3,639

O-5$3,969

O-6$4,002

O-7$4,032

Promoting to E-5 here adds $231 a month. The pay chart moves this allowance far less than the map does.

Where you are stationed outweighs what you are paid. Moving from Cape May to New York City at E-4 is worth $2,544 a month — about 11 promotions worth of housing allowance, at $231 per grade here.

Dependency status is worth 28% here. That is a status your finance office determines, not a box you tick — and it is the single largest lever on this page that is not a change of address.

None of it is taxed. $2,523 a month of BAH takes more than $2,523 of basic pay to match, which is why comparing a civilian salary against military base pay alone understates the gap.

Things the rate table doesn't tell you

“With dependents” is a dependency status, not a marital status. A single member paying child support can be authorized BAH-Diff; a married dual-military couple with no children is not automatically the with-dependents rate for both. If your situation is unusual, your finance office decides — not this table.

O-8, O-9 and O-10 draw the same BAH as O-7. The table stops there for a reason, not because it is missing rows.

This is CONUS BAH only. Overseas is OHA, which works differently — it reimburses actual rent up to a cap, with separate utility and move-in allowances. Alaska and Hawaii are BAH; Germany, Japan and Korea are OHA.

E-4 at Cape May draws $2,523 per month with dependents in 2026, $1,968 without

What this rate means

Things the rate table doesn't tell you