What is O-2E BAH at New Orleans in 2026?

$2,541 per month with dependents ($30,492 per year), effective 01 JAN 2026. Without dependents it is $2,109 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-2E BAH at New Orleans 2026 — $2,541 with dependents, $2,109 without

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

New Orleans, LA

O-2E · with dependents

$2,541/ month

$30,492 / year

At O-2E, this is #169 of 338 stations loaded · high Westchester County $6,564 · low Anniston $1,671

MHA LA116 · ZIPs 39520 39522 39529 39572 39576 70001 +125 more

Your grade is calledARMY1LTUSMC1stLtNAVYLTJGUSAF1st Lt

Untaxed — matching it with taxable pay takes$3,258 / mo gross

Without dependents here$2,109 / mo

In government quarters, no dependents$50.10 / mo partial

New Orleans — full sheetTap a row

Grade	With dep.	Without
Enlisted
E-1	$1,779	$1,473
E-2	$1,779	$1,473
E-3	$1,779	$1,473
E-4	$1,779	$1,473
E-5	$1,905	$1,581
E-6	$2,373	$1,779
E-7	$2,439	$1,830
E-8	$2,508	$2,004
E-9	$2,634	$2,139
Warrant officer
W-1	$2,394	$1,797
W-2	$2,466	$2,001
W-3	$2,556	$2,157
W-4	$2,664	$2,385
W-5	$2,805	$2,454
Officer — prior enlisted
O-1E	$2,448	$1,902
O-2E	$2,541	$2,109
O-3E	$2,688	$2,367
Officer
O-1	$1,968	$1,650
O-2	$2,370	$1,866
O-3	$2,553	$2,202
O-4	$2,847	$2,436
O-5	$3,060	$2,472
O-6	$3,084	$2,532
O-7	$3,105	$2,574

What this rate means

O-2E with dependents, nearest stations0 – $6,564 / month

Westchester County$6,564

Tallahassee$2,550

Carlisle Barracks$2,547

Dahlonega$2,547

Grand Haven$2,547

New Orleans$2,541

Chattanooga$2,511

Myrtle Beach$2,511

Provo$2,511

Durham$2,508

Anniston$1,671

New Orleans is #169 of 338. The spread between the dearest and cheapest station at this grade is $4,893 a month — $58,716 a year, untaxed.

Every pay grade at New Orleans0 – $3,105 / month

E-1$1,779

E-2$1,779

E-3$1,779

E-4$1,779

E-5$1,905

E-6$2,373

E-7$2,439

E-8$2,508

E-9$2,634

W-1$2,394

W-2$2,466

W-3$2,556

W-4$2,664

W-5$2,805

O-1E$2,448

O-2E$2,541

O-3E$2,688

O-1$1,968

O-2$2,370

O-3$2,553

O-4$2,847

O-5$3,060

O-6$3,084

O-7$3,105

Promoting to O-3E here adds $147 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 New Orleans to Westchester County at O-2E is worth $4,023 a month — about 27 promotions worth of housing allowance, at $147 per grade here.

Dependency status is worth 20% 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. $2,541 a month of BAH takes more than $2,541 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-2E at New Orleans draws $2,541 per month with dependents in 2026, $2,109 without

What this rate means

Things the rate table doesn't tell you