Please see "Captain" for other versions of this rank

Captain is a rank in the United States armed forces that ranks between a First Lieutenant and Major (in the United States Army, U.S. Air Force, and United States Marines) and a rank in the United States Navy between a Commander and Rear Admiral.

Captains in the United States Army and Marine Corps generally command and control company-sized units (62 to 190 Soldiers), together with a principal Non Commissioned Officer assistant. They instruct at service schools and combat training centers and are often staff officers at the battalion level. In medical units, captain is the entry-level rank for doctors. In Judge Advocate General units, captain is the entry-level rank for lawyers who already have their academic degree and are members of a Bar.

Captains in the United States Marine Corps are sometimes referred to as "skipper" in informal situations. This term for a captain is most often used by very senior staff non-commissioned officers.

United States uniformed services commissioned officer and officer candidate ranks
Pay grade / branch of service Officer
candidate 		O-1 O-2 O-3 O-4 O-5 O-6 O-7 O-8 O-9 O-10 Wartime
grade 		Special
grade
Insignia [1] alt=alt=Second lieutenant / Ensign alt=alt=First lieutenant / Lieutenant (junior grade) alt=alt=alt=Captain / Lieutenant alt=alt=Major / Lieutenant commander alt=alt=Lieutenant colonel / Commander alt=alt=Colonel / Captain alt=alt=Brigadier general / Rear admiral (lower half) alt=alt=Major General / Rear admiral alt=alt=Lieutenant general / Vice admiral alt=alt=General / Admiral alt=alt=General of the Air Force / General of the Army / Fleet Admiral [2]
Army CDT / OC 2LT 1LT CPT MAJ LTC COL BG MG LTG GEN GA[3] GAS[2]
Marine Corps Midn / Cand 2ndLt 1stLt Capt Maj LtCol Col BGen MajGen LtGen Gen [5] [5]
Navy MIDN / OC ENS LTJG LT LCDR CDR CAPT RDML RADM VADM ADM FADM[3] [5]
Air Force Cdt / OT 2nd Lt 1st Lt Capt Maj Lt Col Col Brig Gen Maj Gen Lt Gen Gen GAF[3] [5]
Space Force Cdt / OT 2nd Lt 1st Lt Capt Maj Lt Col Col Brig Gen Maj Gen Lt Gen Gen [5] [5]
Coast Guard CDT / OC ENS LTJG LT LCDR CDR CAPT RDML RADM VADM ADM [5] [5]
PHS Corps OC ENS LTJG LT LCDR CDR CAPT RDML RADM VADM ADM [5] [5]
NOAA Corps OC ENS LTJG LT LCDR CDR CAPT RDML RADM VADM [4] [5] [5]
[1] No universal insignia for officer candidate rank
[2] No official insignia and not currently listed by the Army as an obtainable rank. John J. Pershing's GAS insignia: General of the Armies (collar) General of the Armies (epaulettes)
[3] These ranks are reserved for wartime use only, and are still listed as ranks within their respective services
[4] Grade is authorized by the U.S. Code for use but has not been created
[5] Grade has never been created or authorized
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