Sergeant major of the Army (E-9)
Three chevrons above three arcs with an eagle between two stars in the middle are the insignia of the Sergeant Major of the Army (SMA), the Army’s single most senior enlisted soldier, at pay grade E-9.
Easily confused with
- Command sergeant major (E-9)Three chevrons above three arcs with a star inside a wreath between them are the insignia of a command sergeant major (CSM), pay grade E-9 in the US Army.
- Sergeant major of the Marine Corps (E-9)The sergeant major of the Marine Corps (SMMC) is the senior enlisted Marine of the whole Marine Corps, pay grade E-9. The insignia is three chevrons over the eagle, globe and anchor between two stars, over four rockers.
How to read it
DA Pamphlet 670-1 describes the SMA insignia as three chevrons above three arcs with the eagle from the Great Seal of the United States centred between two five-pointed stars. There is only one sergeant major of the Army at a time, according to the Army’s ranks page, which describes the post as the senior enlisted adviser to the chief of staff of the Army and the soldier who oversees all NCOs. The Department of Defense lists the grade as E-9 and calls the senior enlisted members of each service the spokespersons of the enlisted force at the highest levels of their services. Army Regulation 600-20 puts the SMA first among the enlisted grades, above the Command sergeant major (E-9), with the title of address “Sergeant Major”.
Also searched as: SMA.
Ranks and insignia as the US Army’s own regulations and pages set them out. Pay grades are the Department of Defense’s.
Two stars or four
DA Pamphlet 670-1 describes a second insignia with an eagle between the chevrons and arcs: the one worn by the Senior Enlisted Advisor to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, which has a gold eagle between four five-pointed stars. The Sergeant Major of the Army’s eagle sits between two.
The other services’ senior enlisted posts
The Department of Defense names the equivalents as the sergeant major of the Marine Corps, the master chief petty officer of the Navy and the chief master sergeant of the Air Force.
More army ranks
Browse symbols drawn with curves and waves, lines or stars.
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(3), 21–7a(2), 21–6a(11); para 21–7a(1)
- 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: command-sergeant-major, sergeant-major-of-the-army, warrant-officer-1; Enlisted insignia, E-9
- U.S. Army Ranks, army.mil ranks page (enlisted, warrant officer and officer ranks), U.S. Army, Enlisted ranks: Sergeant Major of the Army
- 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
Last reviewed September 29, 2026 by Rory Hansen. How we research