What is O-4 BAH at Norfolk in 2026?

$3,054 per month with dependents ($36,648 per year), effective 01 JAN 2026. without dependents it is $2,601 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-4 BAH at Norfolk 2026 — $3,054/mo with dependents

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

Norfolk/Portsmouth, VA

O-4 · with dependents

$3,054/ month

$36,648 / year

At O-4, this is #6 of 17 stations loaded · high Camp Pendleton $5,085 · low Fort Riley $2,169

MHA VA298 · ZIPs 23511 23505 23503

Your grade is calledARMYMAJUSMCMajNAVYLCDRUSAFMaj

Untaxed — matching it with taxable pay takes$3,915 / mo gross

Other dependency status here$2,601 without dependents

In government quarters, no dependents$50.10 / mo partial

Norfolk — full sheetTap a row

Grade	With dep.	Without
Enlisted
E-1	$2,229	$1,707
E-2	$2,229	$1,707
E-3	$2,229	$1,707
E-4	$2,229	$1,707
E-5	$2,430	$1,908
E-6	$2,559	$2,043
E-7	$2,604	$2,235
E-8	$2,661	$2,463
E-9	$2,796	$2,487
Warrant officer
W-1	$2,574	$2,166
W-2	$2,628	$2,460
W-3	$2,697	$2,496
W-4	$2,832	$2,562
W-5	$3,000	$2,616
Officer — prior enlisted
O-1E	$2,613	$2,427
O-2E	$2,685	$2,481
O-3E	$2,859	$2,547
Officer
O-1	$2,454	$2,022
O-2	$2,556	$2,367
O-3	$2,694	$2,505
O-4	$3,054	$2,601
O-5	$3,318	$2,625
O-6	$3,342	$2,673
O-7	$3,366	$2,718

What this rate means

O-4 with dependents, every station0 – $5,085 / month

Camp Pendleton$5,085

San Diego$5,082

Honolulu County$4,737

JB Elmendorf-Richardson$3,789

JB Lewis-McChord$3,324

Norfolk$3,054

Fort Stewart$2,904

Fort Campbell$2,793

Fort Carson$2,778

Fort Drum$2,655

Fort Hood$2,577

Fort Bragg$2,427

Camp Lejeune$2,355

Fort Bliss$2,352

San Antonio (JBSA)$2,307

Fort Benning$2,295

Fort Riley$2,169

Norfolk is #6 of 17. The spread between the dearest and cheapest station at this grade is $2,916 a month — $34,992 a year, untaxed.

Every pay grade at Norfolk0 – $3,366 / month

E-1$2,229

E-2$2,229

E-3$2,229

E-4$2,229

E-5$2,430

E-6$2,559

E-7$2,604

E-8$2,661

E-9$2,796

W-1$2,574

W-2$2,628

W-3$2,697

W-4$2,832

W-5$3,000

O-1E$2,613

O-2E$2,685

O-3E$2,859

O-1$2,454

O-2$2,556

O-3$2,694

O-4$3,054

O-5$3,318

O-6$3,342

O-7$3,366

Promoting to O-5 here adds $264 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 Norfolk to Camp Pendleton at O-4 is worth $2,031 a month — about 8 promotions worth of housing allowance, at $264 per grade here.

Dependency status is worth 17% 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. $3,054 a month of BAH takes more than $3,054 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-4 with dependents at Norfolk draws $3,054 per month in 2026

What this rate means

Things the rate table doesn't tell you