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OPM salary table 2026-DM

2026 Des Moines-Ames-West Des Moines, IA GS pay scale

Full grades 1–15 and steps 1–10, the published locality percentage, official worksite coverage, and a same-cell 2025 comparison.

Data review
Reviewed
Primary sources
Official OPM 2025–2026 salary tables and 2026 locality definitions
Coverage
17 counties · 1 jurisdictions
2026 locality payment
18.01%
Salary-table code
2026-DM
Official table cells
15 grades × 10 steps
Effective period
January 2026

2026 Des Moines-Ames-West Des Moines, IA GS salary table

Official scheduled annual rates by grade and step. These are gross salary figures before taxes, retirement, TSP, insurance, and other payroll deductions.

Calculate a DM rate
2026 Des Moines-Ames-West Des Moines, IA General Schedule annual salary by grade and step
GradeStep 1Step 2Step 3Step 4Step 5Step 6Step 7Step 8Step 9Step 10
GS-1$26,651$27,545$28,431$29,314$30,198$30,716$31,592$32,475$32,512$33,335
GS-2$29,966$30,679$31,673$32,512$32,875$33,842$34,808$35,775$36,741$37,708
GS-3$32,698$33,789$34,879$35,969$37,060$38,150$39,241$40,331$41,422$42,512
GS-4$36,705$37,928$39,152$40,376$41,600$42,823$44,047$45,271$46,495$47,719
GS-5$41,066$42,435$43,804$45,173$46,542$47,911$49,280$50,649$52,018$53,387
GS-6$45,777$47,303$48,829$50,355$51,881$53,407$54,932$56,458$57,984$59,510
GS-7$50,869$52,565$54,261$55,957$57,653$59,348$61,044$62,740$64,436$66,132
GS-8$56,336$58,213$60,091$61,968$63,846$65,723$67,601$69,478$71,356$73,233
GS-9$62,223$64,298$66,372$68,447$70,522$72,596$74,671$76,745$78,820$80,895
GS-10$68,521$70,805$73,088$75,372$77,655$79,939$82,222$84,506$86,789$89,073
GS-11$75,284$77,795$80,305$82,815$85,325$87,835$90,345$92,855$95,365$97,875
GS-12$90,234$93,242$96,250$99,258$102,266$105,274$108,282$111,291$114,299$117,307
GS-13$107,301$110,877$114,454$118,031$121,608$125,185$128,762$132,339$135,916$139,493
GS-14$126,797$131,024$135,251$139,478$143,705$147,933$152,160$156,387$160,614$164,841
GS-15$149,146$154,118$159,089$164,061$169,033$174,005$178,976$183,948$188,920$193,892

The table scrolls horizontally on narrow screens. Salary cells come directly from OPM’s 2026 XML table DM.

A statutory pay cap can cause several upper-grade cells to show the same annual rate. Position-specific special rates are not included.

Areas covered by table DM

OPM’s 2026 locality definitions and the checked county mapping assign 17 counties or county equivalents across 1 state or district to this salary table.

Locality pay generally follows the official worksite on the employee record—not a home address, mailing address, or ZIP code by itself. Use your SF-50 and agency HR office when the worksite assignment is uncertain.

OPM locality definitions

Iowa (IA)

17 counties or equivalents

Adair County, Boone County, Clarke County, Dallas County, Greene County, Guthrie County, Hamilton County, Jasper County, Lucas County, Madison County, Mahaska County, Marion County, Monroe County, Polk County, Poweshiek County, Story County, Warren County

2025 versus 2026

Each row holds locality, grade, and step constant. That keeps a promotion or within-grade increase out of the comparison.

2025 locality
18.01%
2026 locality
18.01%
Point change
0.00 percentage points
Representative annual salary cells for 2025 and 2026 at the same locality, grade, and step
Grade and step20252026Dollar changePercent change
GS-5, step 1$40,659$41,066+$4071.00%
GS-9, step 1$61,607$62,223+$6161.00%
GS-12, step 1$89,341$90,234+$8931.00%
GS-15, step 1$147,669$149,146+$1,4771.00%

OPM reports a 1.00% total increase for table DM. Across all 150 published cells, annual dollar changes range from +$264 to +$1,923. Percentage changes can differ slightly because OPM publishes whole-dollar cells and applies statutory caps where required.

Des Moines–Ames–West Des Moines GS pay questions

What is the 2026 Des Moines–Ames–West Des Moines locality pay percentage?

OPM’s 2026 salary table DM uses a 18.01% locality payment. The annual cells shown on this page are OPM’s published locality rates, not a percentage reconstructed from an older base table.

Which worksites use the Des Moines-Ames-West Des Moines, IA pay table?

OPM’s 2026 locality definitions and the checked county mapping assign 17 counties or county equivalents across 1 state or district to this salary table. Locality generally follows the official worksite recorded by the agency, so employees should confirm an uncertain assignment with their SF-50 or agency HR office.

How did this GS locality table change from 2025 to 2026?

The locality percentage changed by 0.00 percentage points. OPM reports a 1.00% total increase for this 2026 table; individual salary-cell percentages can vary slightly because OPM publishes whole-dollar annual rates and applies statutory caps where required.

Does this table include every federal special salary rate?

No. It shows the ordinary OPM GS locality table. A position-specific special rate, law-enforcement schedule, wildland-firefighter schedule, retained rate, or another pay system may control instead. OPM special rate table 001M can also replace a lower locality cell for covered GS-1 through GS-4 employees.