What is E-6 BAH at Columbus AFB in 2026?

$1,998 per month with dependents ($23,976 per year), effective 01 JAN 2026. Without dependents it is $1,500 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-6 BAH at Columbus AFB 2026 — $1,998 with dependents, $1,500 without

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

Columbus AFB, MS

E-6 · with dependents

$1,998/ month

$23,976 / year

At E-6, this is #241 of 338 stations loaded · high San Francisco $5,454 · low Youngstown $1,335

MHA MS169 · ZIPs 39701 39702 39703 39704 39705 39710 +8 more

Your grade is calledARMYSSGUSMCSSgtNAVYPO1USAFTSgt

Untaxed — matching it with taxable pay takes$2,562 / mo gross

Without dependents here$1,500 / mo

In government quarters, no dependents$50.10 / mo partial

Columbus AFB — full sheetTap a row

Grade	With dep.	Without
Enlisted
E-1	$1,302	$1,098
E-2	$1,302	$1,098
E-3	$1,302	$1,098
E-4	$1,302	$1,098
E-5	$1,398	$1,158
E-6	$1,998	$1,500
E-7	$2,067	$1,551
E-8	$2,136	$1,602
E-9	$2,232	$1,701
Warrant officer
W-1	$2,019	$1,515
W-2	$2,094	$1,572
W-3	$2,184	$1,722
W-4	$2,250	$2,010
W-5	$2,337	$2,079
Officer — prior enlisted
O-1E	$2,076	$1,557
O-2E	$2,169	$1,659
O-3E	$2,265	$1,992
Officer
O-1	$1,476	$1,203
O-2	$1,992	$1,554
O-3	$2,181	$1,779
O-4	$2,361	$2,061
O-5	$2,493	$2,097
O-6	$2,511	$2,160
O-7	$2,526	$2,196

What this rate means

E-6 with dependents, nearest stations0 – $5,454 / month

San Francisco$5,454

Shreveport$2,028

Sioux Falls$2,025

Marquette$2,010

Grand Forks$2,004

Columbus AFB$1,998

Scott AFB$1,998

County Cost Group 760$1,995

Lexington$1,995

Lansing$1,983

Youngstown$1,335

Columbus AFB is #241 of 338. The spread between the dearest and cheapest station at this grade is $4,119 a month — $49,428 a year, untaxed.

Every pay grade at Columbus AFB0 – $2,526 / month

E-1$1,302

E-2$1,302

E-3$1,302

E-4$1,302

E-5$1,398

E-6$1,998

E-7$2,067

E-8$2,136

E-9$2,232

W-1$2,019

W-2$2,094

W-3$2,184

W-4$2,250

W-5$2,337

O-1E$2,076

O-2E$2,169

O-3E$2,265

O-1$1,476

O-2$1,992

O-3$2,181

O-4$2,361

O-5$2,493

O-6$2,511

O-7$2,526

Promoting to E-7 here adds $69 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 Columbus AFB to San Francisco at E-6 is worth $3,456 a month — about 50 promotions worth of housing allowance, at $69 per grade here.

Dependency status is worth 33% 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. $1,998 a month of BAH takes more than $1,998 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-6 at Columbus AFB draws $1,998 per month with dependents in 2026, $1,500 without

What this rate means

Things the rate table doesn't tell you