Military Ranks of the World

The NATO military ranks system is a standardized system used by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization to compare the ranks of armed forces among its member nations. The system has two broad categories: enlisted personnel and officers.

The NATO ranks system was codified in the NATO Standardization Agreement (STANAG) 2116. The original version was first promulgated in 1956, and it has been revised several times since then to accommodate changes and updates. The purpose was to provide a common set of ranks for better interoperability among armed forces of NATO member nations.

These ranks are a common standard for comparison but aren’t necessarily directly translatable between each member nation’s military, as each has its own traditions and variations. Nonetheless, the NATO system offers a general framework for understanding relative military hierarchy.

🪖 Enlisted Ranks are coded OR (Other Ranks) from OR-1 to OR-9
🧑‍✈️ Officer Ranks are coded OF (Officer) from OF-D to OF-10

NATO Rank Comparison Table

NATO rank code	Insignia	US Army equivalent
OF-10		Marshal / General of the Army
OF-9		General
OF-8		Lieutenant General
OF-7		Major General
OF-6		Brigadier General
OF-5		Colonel
OF-4		Lieutenant Colonel
OF-3		Major / Commandant
OF-2		Captain / 1st Lieutenant
OF-1		Lieutenant
OF-D		Student Officer
OR-9		Sergeant Major
OR-8		1st Sergeant
OR-7		Sergeant 1st Class
OR-6		Staff Sergeant
OR-5		Sergeant
OR-4		Corporal
OR-3		Private 1st Class
OR-2		Private
OR-1		Private