Sergeant (E-5)
Sergeant (Sgt) is the fifth enlisted rank in the US Marine Corps, pay grade E-5. Its insignia is three chevrons above crossed rifles.
How to read it
Sergeant comes after Corporal (E-4) (E-4) and before staff sergeant (E-6), and is the senior of the two noncommissioned officer grades, E-4 and E-5. It is the last rank without a rocker: from staff sergeant up, rockers are added under the rifles. A Marine Corps news headline puts the insignia in one line: three stripes up, crossed rifles in center. Sergeant is also the lowest rank from which the Marine Corps appoints warrant officers; the secretary of the Navy approves a warrant for a sergeant or a staff NCO.
Also searched as: E-5 marines, Sgt.
Ranks and insignia as the Marine Corps’ own orders and pages set them out. Pay grades are the Department of Defense’s.
Marine or Army sergeant?
The Army’s sergeant is also E-5 and also wears three chevrons, with nothing beneath them. The crossed rifles are what mark the Marine version.
More marine Corps ranks
Browse symbols drawn with crosses or lines.
Sources
- Marine Corps Ranks, marines.mil, Ranks, United States Marine Corps, Enlisted; Warrant Officer
- Officer Knowledge (Officer Development School), Officer Training Command Newport, ODS Knowledge Book, Naval Service Training Command, U.S. Navy, Marine Corps Enlisted Rank Structure
- Three stripes up, crossed rifles in center: sergeants keep Corps tough, marines.mil news article 548963, United States Marine Corps, headline
- U.S. Military Rank Insignia, Resources: U.S. Military Rank Insignia (enlisted and officer insignia by paygrade), U.S. Department of Defense (defense.gov), Enlisted insignia, E-5
- 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(9), p. 179
Last reviewed September 29, 2026 by Rory Hansen. How we research