Help & Reference
Background reading on Foreign Service pay, allowances, and retirement — useful context for getting the most out of the calculators.
Foreign Service Pay
Foreign Service Salary: How Diplomatic Pay Actually Works
Base salary, Overseas Comparability Pay, post allowances, and what actually drives total compensation overseas.
Post Allowances
Foreign Service Post Allowances: Hardship Pay, Danger Pay, and COLA Explained
How hardship differential, danger pay, and Post Allowance (COLA) work — what each is, how each is calculated, and how they interact.
Foreign Service Retirement
Foreign Service Retirement: How the FSPS Pension Formula Works
The FSPS pension formula, what counts toward your High-3, and why hardship and danger pay don't build your retirement base.