Captain/Lieutenant corresponds to which pay grade?

• A. O-2
• B. O-3
• C. O-4
• D. O-1

Answer: (B)

Think of officer ranks as built on a common pay-grade ladder that spans all services. The names of ranks differ by branch, but the pay grade labels stay consistent. A Captain in the Army/Air Force/Marine Corps and a Lieutenant in the Navy/Coast Guard both sit at the same pay grade, which is O-3. That is why the correct pay grade for Captain/Lieutenant is O-3.

To place it in context, the lower junior officer level is O-1, then O-2, and one step higher is O-4, so O-3 sits in the early officer tier.