Master sergeant (E-8)
Three chevrons above three arcs, with nothing between them, are the insignia of a master sergeant (MSG), pay grade E-8 in the US Army.
Easily confused with
How to read it
DA Pamphlet 670-1 describes the master sergeant insignia as three chevrons above three arcs. The First sergeant (E-8) wears the same chevrons and arcs with a diamond (a pierced lozenge, in the pamphlet’s words) between them, and both are E-8, according to the Department of Defense. Army Regulation 600-20 lists the master sergeant immediately below the first sergeant and above the Sergeant first class (E-7), who has two arcs. The Army’s ranks page calls the master sergeant the principal NCO at the battalion level and often higher.
Also searched as: E-8 army, MSG.
Ranks and insignia as the US Army’s own regulations and pages set them out. Pay grades are the Department of Defense’s.
Master sergeant or first sergeant?
The space between the chevrons and the arcs tells them apart: it is empty on a master sergeant and holds a diamond on a first sergeant. The Army Recruiting Command’s customs training says first sergeants, like master sergeants, are E-8s, but first sergeants serve in a leadership position. They are addressed differently too: Army Regulation 600-20 gives “Sergeant” for a master sergeant and “First Sergeant” for a first sergeant.
Master sergeant in the Air Force
The same title is a grade lower in the Air Force: the Department of Defense’s chart lists an Air Force master sergeant at E-7.
Read next
- Next in Army ranksFirst sergeant (E-8)Three chevrons above three arcs with a diamond between them are the insignia of a first sergeant (1SG), pay grade E-8 in the US Army and the senior NCO of a company.
- The same shape in Accessibility symbolsAssistive listening symbol (ear)An ear with a diagonal bar across it is the International Symbol of Access for Hearing Loss. It marks an assistive listening system: a loop, infrared or FM system that sends sound to hearing aids or headsets.
More army ranks
The same shape elsewhere
Browse symbols drawn with curves and waves or lines.
Sources
- DA Pamphlet 670-1, Guide to the Wear and Appearance of Army Uniforms and Insignia, DA PAM 670-1, 26 January 2021, Headquarters, Department of the Army (Army Publishing Directorate), para 21–7a(7), 21–7a(6), 21–7a(5)
- U.S. Military Rank Insignia, Resources: U.S. Military Rank Insignia (enlisted and officer insignia by paygrade), U.S. Department of Defense (defense.gov), Insignia chart: sergeant-first-class, master-sergeant, first-sergeant; Enlisted insignia, E-7 (Air Force) and E-8
- U.S. Army Ranks, army.mil ranks page (enlisted, warrant officer and officer ranks), U.S. Army, Enlisted ranks: Master Sergeant
- Army Regulation 600-20, Army Command Policy, AR 600-20, 6 February 2025 (administrative revision 20 February 2025), Headquarters, Department of the Army (copy hosted by the Army Transportation Corps, transportation.army.mil), para 1–7b; table 1–1
- Military Customs and Courtesies (Initial Soldier Training), U.S. Army Recruiting Command, Future Soldier training slides, 14 April 2020, U.S. Army Recruiting Command, Enlisted ranks, slide 14
Researched, edited and approved by Rory Hansen before publishing. Last reviewed September 30, 2026. How we research
Added . Last updated .