What is E-5 BAH at Charleston in 2026?

$1,404 per month with dependents ($16,848 per year), effective 01 JAN 2026. Without dependents it is $1,149 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-5 BAH at Charleston 2026 — $1,404 with dependents, $1,149 without

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

Charleston, WV

E-5 · with dependents

$1,404/ month

$16,848 / year

At E-5, this is #306 of 338 stations loaded · high San Francisco $5,127 · low Anniston $1,185

MHA WV323 · ZIPs 25003 25011 25015 25025 25026 25033 +85 more

Your grade is calledARMYSGTUSMCSgtNAVYPO2USAFSSgt

Untaxed — matching it with taxable pay takes$1,800 / mo gross

Without dependents here$1,149 / mo

In government quarters, no dependents$50.10 / mo partial

Charleston — full sheetTap a row

Grade	With dep.	Without
Enlisted
E-1	$1,308	$1,056
E-2	$1,308	$1,056
E-3	$1,308	$1,056
E-4	$1,308	$1,056
E-5	$1,404	$1,149
E-6	$1,764	$1,323
E-7	$1,800	$1,350
E-8	$1,833	$1,479
E-9	$1,956	$1,581
Warrant officer
W-1	$1,785	$1,338
W-2	$1,812	$1,476
W-3	$1,863	$1,596
W-4	$1,992	$1,767
W-5	$2,157	$1,806
Officer — prior enlisted
O-1E	$1,803	$1,401
O-2E	$1,851	$1,560
O-3E	$2,016	$1,758
Officer
O-1	$1,452	$1,209
O-2	$1,761	$1,377
O-3	$1,860	$1,632
O-4	$2,208	$1,791
O-5	$2,463	$1,848
O-6	$2,481	$1,860
O-7	$2,496	$1,872

What this rate means

E-5 with dependents, nearest stations0 – $5,127 / month

San Francisco$5,127

County Cost Group 630$1,425

County Cost Group 620$1,419

County Cost Group 610$1,410

Frankfort$1,410

Charleston$1,404

County Cost Group 600$1,404

Columbus AFB$1,398

Hattiesburg$1,395

Sparta$1,395

Anniston$1,185

Charleston is #306 of 338. The spread between the dearest and cheapest station at this grade is $3,942 a month — $47,304 a year, untaxed.

Every pay grade at Charleston0 – $2,496 / month

E-1$1,308

E-2$1,308

E-3$1,308

E-4$1,308

E-5$1,404

E-6$1,764

E-7$1,800

E-8$1,833

E-9$1,956

W-1$1,785

W-2$1,812

W-3$1,863

W-4$1,992

W-5$2,157

O-1E$1,803

O-2E$1,851

O-3E$2,016

O-1$1,452

O-2$1,761

O-3$1,860

O-4$2,208

O-5$2,463

O-6$2,481

O-7$2,496

Promoting to E-6 here adds $360 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 Charleston to San Francisco at E-5 is worth $3,723 a month — about 10 promotions worth of housing allowance, at $360 per grade here.

Dependency status is worth 22% 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. $1,404 a month of BAH takes more than $1,404 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-5 at Charleston draws $1,404 per month with dependents in 2026, $1,149 without

What this rate means

Things the rate table doesn't tell you