Enlisted rank


An enlisted rank is, in some armed services, any rank below that of a commissioned officer. The term can be inclusive of non-commissioned officers or warrant officers, except in United States military usage where warrant officers/chief warrant officers are a separate officer category ranking above enlisted grades and below commissioned officer grades. In most cases, enlisted service personnel perform jobs specific to their own occupational specialty, as opposed to the more generalized command responsibilities of commissioned officers. The term "enlistment" refers solely to a military commitment whereas the terms "taken on strength" and "struck off strength" refer to a servicemember being carried on a given unit's roll.

Canadian Forces

In the Canadian Forces, the term non-commissioned member is used.

North Atlantic Treaty Organization

For the ranks used by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, non-commissioned ranks are coded OR1–OR9, OR being an abbreviation for Other Ranks.

United States Armed Forces

The five branches of the U.S. Armed Forces all use the same "E-" designation for enlisted pay grades, with service-specific names applied to each. Each branch incorporates it as part of a service member's job specialty designator. In the United States Air Force, this job specialty designator is known as an Air Force Specialty Code, in the United States Army and United States Marine Corps, a Military Occupational Specialty, and in the United States Navy and United States Coast Guard, a rating.