What is O-3 BAH at Paducah in 2026?

$2,031 per month with dependents ($24,372 per year), effective 01 JAN 2026. Without dependents it is $1,689 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 Paducah 2026 — $2,031 with dependents, $1,689 without

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

Paducah, KY

O-3 · with dependents

$2,031/ month

$24,372 / year

At O-3, this is #281 of 338 stations loaded · high Westchester County $6,633 · low Anniston $1,686

MHA KY430 · ZIPs 42001 42002 42003 42053 42086

Your grade is calledARMYCPTUSMCCaptNAVYLTUSAFCapt

Untaxed — matching it with taxable pay takes$2,604 / mo gross

Without dependents here$1,689 / mo

In government quarters, no dependents$50.10 / mo partial

Paducah — full sheetTap a row

Grade	With dep.	Without
Enlisted
E-1	$1,293	$1,029
E-2	$1,293	$1,029
E-3	$1,293	$1,029
E-4	$1,293	$1,029
E-5	$1,365	$1,143
E-6	$1,875	$1,407
E-7	$1,932	$1,449
E-8	$1,992	$1,494
E-9	$2,136	$1,623
Warrant officer
W-1	$1,896	$1,422
W-2	$1,956	$1,470
W-3	$2,034	$1,641
W-4	$2,175	$1,884
W-5	$2,355	$1,944
Officer — prior enlisted
O-1E	$1,941	$1,455
O-2E	$2,019	$1,587
O-3E	$2,205	$1,869
Officer
O-1	$1,434	$1,215
O-2	$1,872	$1,452
O-3	$2,031	$1,689
O-4	$2,415	$1,929
O-5	$2,694	$2,022
O-6	$2,712	$2,034
O-7	$2,730	$2,049

What this rate means

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

Westchester County$6,633

Gulfport$2,040

Lafayette$2,040

Peoria$2,040

Morgantown$2,031

Paducah$2,031

Fort Leonard Wood$2,028

County Cost Group 710$2,016

St Mary And Terrebonne$2,007

Moody AFB$2,004

Anniston$1,686

Paducah is #281 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 Paducah0 – $2,730 / month

E-1$1,293

E-2$1,293

E-3$1,293

E-4$1,293

E-5$1,365

E-6$1,875

E-7$1,932

E-8$1,992

E-9$2,136

W-1$1,896

W-2$1,956

W-3$2,034

W-4$2,175

W-5$2,355

O-1E$1,941

O-2E$2,019

O-3E$2,205

O-1$1,434

O-2$1,872

O-3$2,031

O-4$2,415

O-5$2,694

O-6$2,712

O-7$2,730

Promoting to O-4 here adds $384 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 Paducah to Westchester County at O-3 is worth $4,602 a month — about 12 promotions worth of housing allowance, at $384 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. $2,031 a month of BAH takes more than $2,031 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 at Paducah draws $2,031 per month with dependents in 2026, $1,689 without

What this rate means

Things the rate table doesn't tell you