Alaska COLA 2026: Anchorage, Fairbanks, Juneau and Every Paid Location
Military COLA in Alaska for 2026: the DTMO index for Anchorage, Fairbanks, Eielson, Juneau, Kodiak and 20 more locations, what it pays per month by rank, and which ones dropped in 2025.
Alaska pays some of the largest cost of living allowances in the military, and the gap between locations is wide. An E-5 with one dependent draws about $889 a month in Anchorage and about $1,524 a month in Bethel, on the same base pay.
Like Hawaii, Alaska is on the overseas (OCONUS) COLA program run by the Defense Travel Management Office (DTMO), not on stateside COLA. That means the rates are set per location, they are generally much higher than stateside COLA, and they are not taxed.
Where most service members are stationed
These are the main duty stations, with the index and the monthly COLA for a full 30-day month in DTMO's table effective 16 September 2026:
| Location | Index | E-3, 2 yrs, no deps | E-5, 6 yrs, 1 dep | E-7, 14 yrs, 2 deps | O-3, 6 yrs, 2 deps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anchorage (incl. Eagle River) | 128 | $739.20 | $888.88 | $1,045.33 | $1,173.67 |
| Fairbanks | 132 | $844.80 | $1,015.87 | $1,194.67 | $1,341.33 |
| Eielson AFB | 132 | $844.80 | $1,015.87 | $1,194.67 | $1,341.33 |
| Delta Junction (incl. Ft. Greely) | 134 | $897.60 | $1,079.36 | $1,269.33 | $1,425.17 |
| Kodiak | 134 | $897.60 | $1,079.36 | $1,269.33 | $1,425.17 |
| Juneau | 136 | $950.40 | $1,142.85 | $1,344.00 | $1,509.00 |
Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson falls under Anchorage. Fairbanks and Eielson AFB carry the same index, and Coast Guard members in Kodiak and Juneau use those rows. For your exact grade, years and family size, use the overseas COLA calculator.
Every paid Alaska location
DTMO lists 26 Alaska locations. All of them pay COLA; the index runs from 128 to 148:
| Index | Locations |
|---|---|
| 148 | Bethel, Cordova |
| 144 | Seward |
| 140 | Barrow, Homer (incl. Anchor Point), Kenai (incl. Soldotna), King Salmon, Nome, Petersburg, Wainwright, Other |
| 138 | Sitka-Mt. Edgecombe, Valdez |
| 136 | Juneau |
| 134 | Clear AFS, Delta Junction, Ketchikan, Kodiak, Tok |
| 132 | College, Eielson AFB, Fairbanks, Spruce Cape, Unalaska |
| 128 | Anchorage, Wasilla |
"Other" is DTMO's catch-all for Alaska locations it does not list by name.
Which Alaska rates went down
Unlike Hawaii, where every paid island held or rose, Alaska moved in both directions. Compared with January 2025:
- Down: Anchorage and Wasilla (132 to 128, in two steps in Sep and Nov 2025), Sitka (142 to 138), Juneau (138 to 136), Clear AFS, Delta Junction and Tok (136 to 134), and College, Eielson AFB and Fairbanks (134 to 132).
- Up: Bethel and Cordova (144 to 148), Valdez (134 to 138), Ketchikan (130 to 134), and Seward (142 to 144).
- Unchanged: the rest.
For an E-5 with one dependent in Anchorage, the four-point drop from 132 to 128 is worth about $127 a month. If your LES went down and you did not move, a new index is the most likely reason.
How the amount is calculated
The formula is in the DoD Financial Management Regulation, Volume 7A, Chapter 68:
- Take the annual compensation for your grade and years of service from DTMO's table.
- Convert it to spendable income for a household of your size. More dependents means a larger spendable figure, so a bigger family gets more COLA at the same grade.
- Multiply by (index minus 100) / 100 for the annual COLA, divide by 360 for the daily rate, and pay that for each day you are at the location.
That is why an index of 148 does not pay "48% more" than 128 does. It pays 48 against 28 on the part above 100, which is about 71% more.
Common questions
Is Alaska COLA taxable? No. Overseas COLA, including Alaska and Hawaii, is non-taxable. Stateside COLA is taxable. See the military tax guide for the full list.
Do I get it in the dorms or barracks? Yes, at a reduced rate. DTMO assumes a member without dependents in government quarters buys fewer goods locally. The calculator shows the off-base rate, so the barracks figure on your LES will be lower.
Is COLA the same as the Alaska Permanent Fund Dividend? No. The dividend is a state payment with its own residency rules. COLA is a military allowance tied to your duty station, paid on your LES.
Does BAH cover this? No. BAH covers rent and utilities and you draw it separately; look it up in the BAH calculator. COLA is for groceries, fuel, clothing and the other everyday costs.
Source
Indexes come from DTMO's published OCONUS COLA table and the pay tables are the ones DTMO uses in its own calculator. MilitaryCalc checks DTMO daily and moves to the new period the day it is posted. We checked these figures against DTMO's own calculator and they match to the cent; the methodology page lists the sources. For Hawaii rates, see Hawaii COLA 2026.