Start with the fund source
Appropriated-fund and nonappropriated-fund positions use separate DCPAS schedule directories.
Find your WG or NAF pay schedule
Choose the fund source and duty station to get the matching DCPAS path.
- Rule snapshot
- Reviewed
- Primary sources
- Official OPM policy and live DCPAS schedule directories
- Privacy
- No rate or location data is sent to FedUp.work
Schedule path
Why wage rates need a lookup
An FWS label alone is not enough to identify an hourly rate.
Follow the correct location path
AF domestic searches use the installation county. NAF domestic searches use the state or area and wage area; Guam is in the NAF domestic selector but the AF overseas directory.
Match regular or special coverage
A special document can replace a regular rate only when its position and area notes apply.
Check the effective document
Schedules are released through the year. Match the issue or effective date needed for the personnel or payroll action.
Read the official wage schedule
Treat the DCPAS document as a record to verify, not a generic table to browse.
1. Area and date
Confirm the schedule name, area definition, issue date and effective date.
2. Pay plan
Choose the exact code shown in the personnel record: WG, WL or WS for AF, or NA, NL, NS or NF for NAF.
3. Grade, step, level or range
Match the structure shown in the controlling document. Some NAF NF schedules use levels and pay ranges rather than steps.
4. Coverage notes
Check regular, special, retained-rate and position-specific notes before using the number.
No rate is stored or estimated here
DCPAS updates schedule files outside FedUp.work. The downloaded official document and the agency’s personnel record control the payable rate.
WG pay scale questions
Is there one national WG pay scale for 2026?
No. Federal Wage System rates are issued for local wage areas, and schedules can be released at different times. Use the latest official DCPAS schedule effective for your exact fund source, duty location, pay plan, and applicable grade, step, level or pay range.
Do WG employees use the GS locality pay table?
No. OPM describes the Federal Wage System and the General Schedule as separate pay systems. FWS rates reflect local prevailing wages in a wage area; a nearby GS locality label does not identify the controlling WG schedule.
Why does the finder ask for the installation county?
DCPAS asks for the installation county only in its domestic appropriated-fund search. A home county can point to the wrong schedule. The NAF domestic search instead asks for the state or area and wage area.
Which pay-plan codes use AF or NAF schedules?
Appropriated-fund schedules contain WG, WL and WS pay-plan families. Nonappropriated-fund schedules use families such as NA, NL, NS and NF. Match the exact code on the official personnel record to the controlling schedule.
How do five-step FWS schedules work?
When a schedule uses five steps, OPM's FWS fact sheet describes the full prevailing rate at step 2 and step 5 as 12 percent above that rate. The official schedule and agency personnel action still control, especially when a special schedule or retained rate applies.
Should I choose a regular or special wage schedule?
Use the schedule named by your position or agency. DCPAS publishes both regular and special documents, and a special schedule can have separate coverage notes. If the record is unclear, compare the documents and confirm the applicable schedule with agency HR.
Official sources
- OPM Federal Wage System overviewOfficial scope, wage-area structure, operating manuals and direction to DCPAS for wage schedules.
- OPM facts about the Federal Wage SystemPrevailing-rate purpose, separation from GS locality pay and ordinary five-step structure.
- OPM pay-plan fact sheetGovernmentwide explanation of pay-plan codes, including WG, WL and WS.
- DCPAS Federal Wage System schedule directoryOfficial links for appropriated-fund, nonappropriated-fund, special and overseas schedules.
Comparing a white-collar position instead? Read the 2026 GS pay scale.