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Military Ranks at a Glance

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Military personnel have ranks that indicate their pay grade and level of responsibility within the armed forces. If you're considering a career in the military, you should be familiar with these ranks. This information helps you decide whether you want to enter the service immediately or earn a degree first and set goals for your career.

Understanding military ranks is helpful even if you're not in the military. If you're researching your family history, you're better prepared to read the military service records of your ancestors. This knowledge also gives you a deeper understanding of what's happening in books about military history or war novels.

Enlisted

When men and women join a branch of the military, they become part of the enlisted rank. This rank requires at least a high school diploma. In the Army, the enlisted ranks range from private to specialist. Enlisted ranks in the Navy and Coast Guard start at seaman recruit and go through petty officer third class. Marine Corps enlisted ranks include private to corporal. In the Air Force, the enlisted ranks go from airman basic to senior airman.

Noncommissioned Officer

Noncommissioned officers (NCO) enter the military at the enlisted rank and earn promotions based on service and performance. These individuals train troops and serve in a leadership and management capacity. In the Army, the NCO rank starts at the corporal level and stops at sergeant major of the Army. The NCO class for the Navy goes from petty officer second class to master chief petty officer of the Navy. The lowest NCO rank in the Marine Corps is sergeant, and the top rank is sergeant major of the Marine Corps. Air Force NCO ranks range from staff sergeant to chief master sergeant of the Air Force.

Warrant Officer

Warrant officers are highly trained specialists who enter the military at the enlisted rank. They earn this rank through a recommendation from a commander and a review by a selection board. Army and Marine Corps warrant officers have the title warrant officer or chief warrant officer. In the Navy, personnel with this rank have the title USN warrant officer. There are no warrant officers in the Air Force.

Commissioned Officer

Commissioned officers have the highest rankings in the military. These individuals have at least a bachelor's degree and may need advanced degrees to earn promotions. Commissioned officers may also enter the service immediately after attending military school. They serve as direct representatives of the president. In the Army, Marine Corps and Air Force, commissioned officer ranks start at second lieutenant and continue to general. The first commissioned officer rank in the Navy is Ensign and continues to admiral.

Where to Find Rank Insignia

If you're looking at photos of service members, you can identify their rank by looking at their uniforms. All branches of the military have combat and dress uniforms, and they put patches, pins and boards on the uniforms to show their ranks.

On an Army uniform, the insignia for enlisted personnel goes on the center of the combat uniform and the sleeves of the service uniform. Enlisted marines place the insignia on the collars of their combat uniforms and the sleeves of their service uniforms. Air Force uniforms have enlisted insignia on the sleeves of combat and service uniforms. Officers in the Marines and Air Force wear pins on the shoulders of their service dress uniforms. In the Army and Navy, they have shoulder boards.

Navy Insignia Placement

Navy uniforms are more complex than the rest of the military branches because they have four different uniforms. On working uniforms, insignia for enlisted personnel and officers goes on the center of the chest. The service uniform has the insignia on the collars. Enlisted personnel wear insignia on the left sleeve of their full dress uniforms. Chief petty officers have insignia on the left sleeve of blue full dress uniforms and the collars of white full dress uniforms. Officers wear stripes on the bottom of blue full dress uniforms and boards on the shoulders of white full dress uniforms.