r/financialindependence • u/fidgit86 • 9d ago

What do you do that you earn six figures?

It seems like a lot of people make a lot of money and it seems like I’m missing out on something. So those of you that do, whats your occupation that pays so well?

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58

u/Project_Spazm 9d ago

Military. Barely 6 figs but yea.

18

u/TheBlackGuru 9d ago

Yep! An older Captain can easily clear 6 figures especially with special duty pay and taking into account tricare and that BAH/BAS aren’t taxed you’re spending power is 6 figures even if it is slightly less

8

u/Project_Spazm 9d ago

Taxes are a huge factor. Compared to friends who make a similar pretax amount, I take home considerably more.

5

u/TheBlackGuru 9d ago

They used to have a thing they sent every year showing your tax benefit and what your “equivalent” salary for the same take home would be. Also nice that many states exempt military income. I think if you google “regular military compensation” that calculator shows it as well, but won’t include flight pay or other bonuses like that.

2

u/abl0ck0fch33s3 9d ago

Depending on where you live, you can break 6 figs as an LT. European assignments especially due to COLA, OHA, and utility pay.

1

u/TheBlackGuru 9d ago

True story. I knew a E-4 who was close to that after per diem and Travis AFB BAH. He volunteered for every TDY and didn’t have a house/apt. Couch surfed when he was home which was only 30ish days a year, lol

2

u/KYVet 9d ago

Edit: sorry didn't see the part about the per diem so he's probably telling the truth. Some assignments can pay up to $350 in per diem.

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u/TheBlackGuru 9d ago

Yeah supposedly his per diem was actually as much or more than his "normal" pay, crazy stuff. He took a massive pay cut when he made E-5 and came to altus to instruct (C-17 load master)

2

u/KYVet 9d ago

I was jealous of my friends that went NAOC when we all get shipped off from our previous assignment. They were getting two week trips to a certain island in the Indian Ocean getting $350 a day for two weeks every 3 months, just to sit there on standby for two weeks. Meanwhile I went RJ and made dog shit working long hours. 😄

1

u/TheBlackGuru 9d ago

At least Omaha is nice 🤷

1

u/KYVet 9d ago

It wasn't bad. I was disappointed when the orders dropped but ended up being a pretty good place to be. City was nice, base was nice, and the squadron was good, the job and the winters sucked though.

2

u/KYVet 9d ago

The E to O Captains especially rake in the dough.

2

u/TheBlackGuru 9d ago

Yeah that E is everything

1

u/man2112 9d ago

Uhhh, O-6s makes a lottttt more than that.

1

u/davidblanken2 9d ago

captain is 0-3 in the other branches

0

u/man2112 9d ago

I know that, but “old captain” implies a navy captain.

1

u/Duck_Walker 9d ago

Not to other branches. It means an O-3 older than 30

1

u/man2112 9d ago

Uhh, I dunno about other branches, but 30 for an O-3 ain’t that old, at least in the navy

1

u/TheBlackGuru 9d ago

Lol yes. Should have said O-3.

Friend of mine was doing an exchange with the Navy. Racquetball was popular but he never had trouble getting a court. Turns out they will displace other people for a "Captain" when they make a reservation hahaha.

2

u/coffeeandpastry 9d ago

E-6 and in the same boat. My salary is a little inflated due to higher BAH from a HCOL area, but I’m also in a career with a lot of special pay.

1

u/meinnamsistjeff 9d ago

About to pin O1 (hopefully) in less than a year. This is pleasant surprise…although given you have 10+ years in and I won’t be making much for the first few years as ENS/JG. Glad to see that it is possible with time in/BAH

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u/[deleted] 9d ago edited 4d ago

[deleted]

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u/Project_Spazm 9d ago

O3 w/ 10+ years. Base pay doesn’t clear 6 but w/ BAH it does. So it’s heavily dependent on time in service and where you happen to get stationed.

3

u/TpetArmy 9d ago

O6, now it’s all coming together

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u/[deleted] 9d ago edited 4d ago

[deleted]

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u/Globalscree 9d ago

My O7 lives in a different country and commutes.....

-4

u/Knee_High_Cat_Beef 9d ago

I wouldn't call 150k at 20 years of service "making bank." That's an awful lot of responsibility and time commitment for pretty meager pay.

3

u/SpecialKindOfGuy 9d ago

Flag officers basically get house slaves, treated like minor royalty, and all expense paid trips to anywhere they can reasonably make up a reason for needing to go. It's ridiculous.

1

u/Knee_High_Cat_Beef 9d ago

Maybe so, but O6 don't get that privilege.

1

u/dino0713 9d ago

That’s GO only and above.

1

u/SpecialKindOfGuy 9d ago

That's why I said flag officers...

1

u/dino0713 9d ago

Hey man your getting allot of down votes. But your right.

1

u/axotls 9d ago

It is a shit load of money when you factor in $0 housing debt, $0 monthly health insurance costs for yourself and your family, $0 education expense. You can also retire after 20 years of service and draw a pension.

1

u/taws34 9d ago

The pension is a bit more than "pension". There are so many benefits to retiring from the military.

At 20 years, you get 50% of your base salary as a taxable pension. Every year after 20, the percentage will increase.

You'll also be eligible for VA disability which can range from 0% to 100% and bring an extra few hundred to few thousand dollars a month in tax free money.

There are tons of special programs. Reduced costs for comprehensive healthcare. Vocational training. School benefits. The list goes on, and on.

1

u/Duck_Walker 9d ago

The education expense comes in before you pin the butter bar. And very, very few people make O-6 and beyond in 20 years.

1

u/Infinite_Speed_431 9d ago

I feel like it's less about the actual pay when you're in the military... Granted everyone is trying to get those Nice assignments with high BAH or other financial benefits, but pretty much all the talk is just about retirement. Get your 20 and punch.

You do 20 you get that pension! My husband and I are on the enlisted side and he's about to retire this coming year at 41. The retirement and disability pay that he will continue to get as a awesome bass line for us for the rest of our lives including the free health care to go along with it. Should be 50k+/year which really allows us to take the jobs that we care about or love and allow us more time with our kids more than chasing some money for the next high-stress high-paid job.

150k at 20 years isn't super impressive, But then they get to make about 75k/year for the rest of their life doing nothing so that's nice.

2

u/taws34 9d ago

I'm punching that 20 year clock next spring. I'll just turn 38.