Tool Methodology and Data Sources

Use this guide to understand how this site's tools work across compensation, location, PCS, career, fitness, and transition planning.

What this page helps you do

Estimate monthly income and compare scenarios for active duty, reserve, and guard
Compare affordability and purchasing power across locations and family-status assumptions
Plan PCS cashflow, deployment timelines, promotion impacts, fitness thresholds, and transition runway

What to verify before acting

Compare with your LES, local finance office guidance, and the latest official rates
Confirm special-pay eligibility, duty status, and one-time entitlements
Re-run your scenario when pay tables or assignment details change

Guardrails used across tool pages

Inputs are validated before calculation. If something is invalid, the tool stops and tells you what to fix.
Tool pages surface confidence level, data date, and included/not-included assumptions in the trust panel.
Single-service tools stay on their own service context and ignore cross-service overrides.
Comparison outputs include a plain-language winner summary with monthly and annualized difference values.

Total Military Income Stack Method

Starts with monthly base pay, BAS, BAH, and any special pay you enter.
Then adjusts for deduction rate and cost-of-living factor so you can compare usable buying power.
If paygrade, years of service, ZIP, or dependency combination is invalid, the tool blocks calculation and shows the issue.

Net Usable Income Estimator Method

Uses the same starting pay stack as the Total Military Income Stack tool.
When you do not provide a deduction rate, the tool estimates one from federal, state, and FICA planning tables.
BAS and BAH are treated as non-taxable in this estimate model.
If you provide a deduction rate, your value takes priority.
Invalid paygrade, years-of-service, or ZIP inputs are blocked with clear errors.

BAH ZIP-to-ZIP Comparator Method

Builds two adjusted monthly outcomes from the same pay profile: current ZIP and comparison ZIP.
Shows both sides and the monthly difference between them.
Includes a plain-language summary plus annualized difference for easier decision-making.
Invalid paygrade, years-of-service, or ZIP inputs are blocked instead of guessed.

Duty Station Purchasing Power Index Method

Compares two ZIP outcomes using a standardized purchasing-power assumption set.
Shows current location adjusted outcome, comparison location adjusted outcome, and the difference.
Designed for a quick "stay vs move" affordability check using consistent assumptions.
Invalid critical inputs are blocked with explicit corrections.

Army Assignment Affordability Compare Method

Uses Army-focused affordability comparison defaults for current ZIP vs comparison ZIP.
Shows adjusted monthly outcomes and the monthly delta under the same pay profile.
Useful for duty-station affordability checks with consistent assumptions.
Invalid critical inputs are blocked with explicit corrections.

Navy Homeport Affordability Index Method

Uses Navy homeport affordability defaults for side-by-side ZIP comparison planning.
Shows adjusted monthly outcomes and monthly difference for the same pay profile.
Useful for homeport cost-of-living tradeoff planning.
Invalid critical inputs are blocked with explicit corrections.

Air Force Assignment Income Compare Method

Uses Air Force assignment affordability defaults for current ZIP vs comparison ZIP planning.
Shows adjusted monthly outcomes and monthly difference under one pay profile.
Useful for assignment-location affordability tradeoff planning.
Invalid critical inputs are blocked with explicit corrections.

Air Force Installation Cost Gap Method

Compares two ZIP outcomes with a standard installation cost-gap assumption set.
Shows adjusted outcomes and monthly difference for the same pay profile.
Useful when comparing installation-area living-cost pressure.
Invalid critical inputs are blocked with explicit corrections.

Active vs Reserve/Guard Income Equivalent Method

Compares active-duty adjusted monthly income to a reserve/guard monthly equivalent built from your duty-status assumptions.
Reserve/guard equivalent combines drill pay, annual training pay, and active-order pay using paygrade and years of service.
BAS and BAH are included only when active-order thresholds are met under federal policy assumptions.
Duty-status rules enforce realistic drill, annual training, and active-order input ranges.
Scope is federal compensation only; state-funded and Title 32-specific pay elements are not included.

Navy Sea vs Shore Income Compare Method

Compares sea vs shore-style assumptions from the same baseline pay profile.
Shows current adjusted monthly, comparison adjusted monthly, and difference values.
Useful for quick scenario planning under one consistent assumption set.
Invalid paygrade, years-of-service, or ZIP inputs are blocked with explicit corrections.

Coast Guard Cutter vs Shore Income Compare Method

Compares cutter vs shore-style assumptions from the same baseline pay profile.
Shows current adjusted monthly, comparison adjusted monthly, and difference values.
Useful for quick location/duty posture tradeoff planning.
Invalid paygrade, years-of-service, or ZIP inputs are blocked with explicit corrections.

Deployment Income Scenario Planner Method

Builds a month-by-month planning timeline from adjusted monthly baseline income.
Applies deployment-focused default horizon and monthly adjustment assumptions.
Total is timeline sum minus one-time costs.
Invalid paygrade, years-of-service, or ZIP inputs are blocked with explicit corrections.

PCS 90-Day Cashflow Estimator Method

Builds a 90-day PCS cashflow timeline from your adjusted monthly baseline.
Uses source-backed DLA and MALT entitlements by paygrade, dependent status, and move profile inputs.
Can include optional PPM incentive when selected in move assumptions.
Net one-time PCS cost is estimated moving cost minus eligible offsets, never below zero.
Total timeline combines monthly values and one-time PCS impact.
Invalid paygrade, years-of-service, ZIP, miles, or authorized POV inputs are blocked with explicit corrections.

Family Status Compensation Delta Method

Compares your selected dependent-status outcome to the alternate family-status baseline.
Shows monthly and percent difference to make household impact easier to read.
Useful for family-status sensitivity checks in compensation planning.
Invalid paygrade, years-of-service, ZIP, or dependency combinations are blocked with explicit corrections.

Promotion Delta Tools Method

Compares current adjusted monthly outcome with the next mapped paygrade for your service.
Service-specific promotion maps are enforced for branch-specific tools.
If a grade is terminal or unmapped, the comparison remains at current grade (zero delta).
Shows both monthly and percent difference for promotion impact planning.
Invalid paygrade, years-of-service, or ZIP inputs are blocked with explicit corrections.

Army AFT Impact Planner Method

Uses source-backed Army AFT thresholds, not proxy scoring.
Inputs are event points plus selected standard (general or combat).
Pass requires both event minimums and total-score minimums.
Invalid standard choices or out-of-range points are blocked with explicit corrections.

Marine PFT/CFT Progress Impact Planner Method

Uses source-backed Marine PFT/CFT class thresholds.
Inputs are total PFT and CFT scores.
Shows class results and overall pass/fail status based on standards.
Out-of-range score inputs are blocked with explicit corrections.

Space Force HPA Readiness Impact Planner Method

Uses source-backed Space Force HPA category thresholds.
Inputs are cardio, muscular, and body-composition points.
Shows category outcome and next-assessment cadence from current standards.
Out-of-range component inputs are blocked with explicit corrections.

Tax Impact Toggle Method

Uses the same tax-aware monthly stack logic as the Net Usable Income Estimator tool.
Estimates deduction rate when not provided, while honoring your custom rate when entered.
BAS and BAH are treated as non-taxable in this planning estimate.
Invalid paygrade, years-of-service, or ZIP inputs are blocked with explicit corrections.

Comparison And Trust Presentation Rules

Comparison tools show winner context plus monthly and annualized differences in plain language.
Tool cards include quick intent labels and one-line "Best for" guidance to speed tool selection.
Runway outputs are grouped into risk bands so decision urgency is easier to interpret.

Last data update: 2026-02-27T20:26:55.918Z