| NAVY | MARINE CORPS | ARMY | AIR FORCE | COAST GUARD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fleet Admiral | General of the Army | General of the Air Force | ||
| Admiral | General | General | General | Admiral |
| Vice Admiral | Lieutenant General | Lieutenant General | Lieutenant General | Vice Admiral |
| Rear Admiral (upper half) | Major General | Major General | Major General | Rear Admiral (upper half) |
| Rear Admiral (lower half) and Commodore | Brigadier General | Brigadier General | Brigadier General | Rear Admiral (lower half) and Commodore |
| Captain | Colonel | Colonel | Colonel | Captain |
| Commander | Lieutenant Colonel | Lieutenant Colonel | Lieutenant Colonel | Commander |
| Lieutenant Commander | Major | Major | Major | Lieutenant Commander |
| Lieutenant | Captain | Captain | Captain | Lieutenant |
| Lieutenant (Junior Grade) | First Lieutenant | First Lieutenant | First Lieutenant | Lieutenant (Junior Grade) |
| Ensign | Second Lieutenant | Second Lieutenant | Second Lieutenant | Ensign |
| Commissioned Warrant Officer | Commissioned Warrant Officer | Chief Warrant Officer | Chief Warrant Officer | Commissioned Warrant Officer |
| Midshipman | Cadet | Cadet | Cadet | |
| Warrant Officer | Warrant Officer | Warrant Officer Junior Grade | Warrant Officer Junior Grade | Warrant Officer |
| Aviation Cadet | Aviation Cadet |
Officers of all the fighting service, whether regular or reserve, take precedence among themselves according to their dates of rank. Officers take command in their respective services in accordance with their dates of rank in the line, the senior, unless otherwise ordered, taking command, whether regular or reserve. The command of a task force or group composed of commands from two or more services devolves upon the senior commanding officer present in the force or group unless otherwise designated by the appropriate common senior, acting for the President.
The obvious exceptions to this are that officers outside the line (that is, commissioned in specialized branches or corps) cannot command line organizations. They may, however, in the Army and Air Force, command organizations within the structure of their own corps. Non-rated officers in the Air Force and Navy are not eligible to command tactical flying units. As a specialized case of command, the assigned first pilot and airplane commander of any aircraft continues in command even though a pilot senior in rank may be aboard.
Retired officers of the Army rank at the foot of active officers of the same grade; those of the Navy according to date of rank.
Changing personnel policies have been reflected by frequent revisions of the scale and grade given noncommissioned leadership. This subject should therefore be checked against current regulations. But as a rough guide, the following can be taken as the corresponding noncommissioned grades and rates in the services:
| PAY GRADE | NAVY AND COAST GUARD | ARMY | AIR FORCE | MARINE CORPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| E-7 | Chief Petty Officer | Master Sergeant | Master Sergeant | Master Sergeant |
| E-6 | Petty Officer First Class | Sergeant First Class | Technical Sergeant | Technical Sergeant |
| E-5 | Petty Officer Second Class | Sergeant | Staff Sergeant | Staff Sergeant |
| E-4 | Petty Officer Third Class | Corporal | Sergeant | Sergeant |
| E-3 | [A]Airman [A]Constructionman First Class [A]Dentalman Fireman Hospitalman Seaman Stewardsman | Private First Class | Corporal | Corporal |
| E-2 | Apprentice | Private | Private First Class | Private First Class |
| E-1 | Recruit | Recruit | Private | Private |
[A] Does not apply to Coast Guard.
Enlisted insignia of rank are of cloth, sewn on the sleeve of the outer garment. Army chevrons are worn on both sleeves with the point up, and special devices may be incorporated within the chevron to indicate specialties. Chevrons for combat soldiers are blue on a gold background, and all others are gold on a blue background. Naval chevrons are worn point down. Air Force chevrons have no point, but are a compound reverse curve with the deepest part of the curve worn down; over this is imposed a star within a circle. Marine Corps chevrons are worn on both sleeves with the point up and are gold on a crimson background for the dress blue uniform, green on a red background for the forest green uniform, green on a khaki background for the khaki uniform, and for combat uniforms the chevrons are stenciled on the sleeves in black ink.
| ARMY AND MARINE CORPS | NAVY AND COAST GUARD | AIR FORCE |