What is O-3 BAH at Charleston in 2026?

$1,860 per month with dependents ($22,320 per year), effective 01 JAN 2026. without dependents it is $1,632 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.

O-3 BAH at Charleston 2026 — $1,860/mo with dependents

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

Charleston, WV

O-3 · with dependents

$1,860/ month

$22,320 / year

At O-3, this is #323 of 338 stations loaded · high Westchester County $6,633 · low Anniston $1,686

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

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Untaxed — matching it with taxable pay takes$2,385 / mo gross

Other dependency status here$1,632 without dependents

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

O-3 with dependents, nearest stations0 – $6,633 / month

Westchester County$6,633

Cannon AFB$1,875

Erie$1,872

County Cost Group 580$1,869

Hattiesburg$1,866

Charleston$1,860

County Cost Group 570$1,857

County Cost Group 560$1,848

Saginaw$1,842

County Cost Group 550$1,836

Anniston$1,686

Charleston is #323 of 338. The spread between the dearest and cheapest station at this grade is $4,947 a month — $59,364 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 O-4 here adds $348 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 Westchester County at O-3 is worth $4,773 a month — about 14 promotions worth of housing allowance, at $348 per grade here.

Dependency status is worth 14% 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. $1,860 a month of BAH takes more than $1,860 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.

O-3 with dependents at Charleston draws $1,860 per month in 2026

What this rate means

Things the rate table doesn't tell you