They say AGRs make more money than Technicians. Well...the devil is in the details. This calculator shows you the whole picture — the difference monthly, annually, and over your entire career into retirement. And here's the part they always skip: even though the technician comes out ahead over a career and a retirement, technicians cost the U.S. taxpayer less than AGRs — the full-time military package prices every AGR seat higher. Better for you, cheaper for the country. Fill in your info and judge for yourself.
It looks forward, not backward. It starts from what you've already banked — your years of service and your retirement points — based on the information you provide, and projects from today to retirement. The results are only as accurate as what you enter.
What's counted: official 2026 pay tables, both pensions, tax-free BAH and BAS, federal and state taxes, TSP matching from here forward, and health insurance — working years and retirement.
What's not counted: your current TSP balance (it's yours and goes with you on every path), TSP investment growth, Social Security (you earn it on every path), future raises, promotions, and inflation. Also not counted: special pays and allowances your particular job or career field may draw — hazardous duty pay, environmental differentials, incentive pays, or bonuses. Everything is in today's dollars.
Career-length assumptions: projections follow the traditional career path for each status — federal civilian employees typically work to their Minimum Retirement Age, and AGRs typically retire at 20 years of active service. Full details on every assumption are in the methodology at the bottom of the page.
Civilian calculations are based on your Minimum Retirement Age (shown in the title above). AGR calculations are based on the standard 20 years of active service, then pension checks — serve past 20 and the AGR numbers would climb. No promotions assumed.
| Dual-Status | Title 5 | AGR |
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| Dual-Status | Title 5 | AGR |
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| Dual-Status | Title 5 | AGR |
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