Posted on Sep 5, 2015
How Much Did You Get Paid When You Joined The Military? My Take Home Pay Was $457 a Month as a (Army) Private in 1990?
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How much did you make when you joined the military? Back then I got paid on FRIDAY AND BROKE ON MONDAY!! (was not making too much-no family but me, myself and I). Times have changed since the days of your era. Who remembers the Green JUMPs Statement?(DA 3681-6) and getting once a month pay out the finance cage. Yes you had to salute the payroll officer. I remember in Basic Training getting American Travels checks and the Senior Drill Sergeant/1SG keeping it in a safe. Getting once a month pay(cold hard cash), this was before surepay, it was known as casual pay before direct deposit kicked in before the internet. I am referring to 1989-1990. Much respect to all the Army Veterans (Private Pay) who got $75 dollars a month in 1949. The Private in 2015 makes about $1430 a month(under 4 months). Use the link below if you served in the DOD since 1949.
http://www.militarypay.com/MilitaryPayCharts.php
http://www.militarypay.com/MilitaryPayCharts.php
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Military Pay
Money Military Pay
Edited 5 y ago
Posted >1 y ago
Responses: 282
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MSgt Mayo Sifford
Pay charts for 1966 show an E-1 under 2 years service at $97/month. Over 2 years = 129/month.
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SFC Joe S. Davis, Jr. , When I went in as an E-2 back in 1985 my gross pay was $695.40 and when I got out in 2012 an incoming E-2 was making $1,671.30 which is over double what I paid for my first car after I graduated Basic ($800, I also lived at home & had no bills so I was able to pay cash). It’s hard to believe that inflation is so bad that Service People today make about three times what we did (Even a E-5, my highest rank, went from making $1192.80 to making $3,012.90 with 24 years of service) and yet most still can’t even do what I did & pay cash for a vehicle.
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Back in 1966 as a Private E-1, the pay was $97 a month, as an E-5 in 1968 I was paid $380 a month, paid one time a month.
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In 1966 I got paid $70.00 dollars a month and 75 cents for a haircut. Also had to buy my own toiletries. As a PFC e-3 I got paid $105.00 a month. As a specialist 4 E-4 in Nam I was making about $400.00 a month. That included overseas and combat pay.
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It’s funny how one can get nostalgic from seeing a little piece of paper like that. I believe entering as a PFC I was somewhere around $400.
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1963 E 1 $ 78 net $72 gross ,net for an E 3 $99 E4 under 2 years $120 E 4 over 2years big bucks $180
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