Staff sergeant (E-6)
Staff sergeant (SSgt) is the sixth enlisted rank in the US Marine Corps, pay grade E-6, and the first staff noncommissioned officer rank. Its insignia is three chevrons over crossed rifles over one rocker.
How to read it
The one rocker under the crossed rifles separates it from the insignia of a Sergeant (E-5) (E-5); the gunnery sergeant (E-7) above has two. The Marine Corps calls grades E-6 to E-9 staff NCOs, career Marines who, with the NCOs, are responsible to the commanding officer for the welfare, morale, discipline and efficiency of the Marines in their charge.
Also searched as: E-6 marines, SSgt.
Ranks and insignia as the Marine Corps’ own orders and pages set them out. Pay grades are the Department of Defense’s.
Staff sergeant in other services
The title means different things in different services. The Army’s staff sergeant is also E-6, with three chevrons above one arc and no rifles. In the Air Force, staff sergeant is E-5, one grade lower.
Read next
- Next in Marine Corps ranksGunnery sergeant (E-7)Gunnery sergeant (GySgt) is the seventh enlisted rank in the US Marine Corps, pay grade E-7. Its insignia is three chevrons over crossed rifles over two rockers.
- 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 marine Corps ranks
The same shape elsewhere
Browse symbols drawn with crosses, curves and waves or lines.
Sources
- Marine Corps Ranks, marines.mil, Ranks, United States Marine Corps, Enlisted
- Officer Knowledge (Officer Development School), Officer Training Command Newport, ODS Knowledge Book, Naval Service Training Command, U.S. Navy, Marine Corps Enlisted Rank Structure
- 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 and E-6
- 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(8), p. 178
Researched, edited and approved by Rory Hansen before publishing. Last reviewed September 30, 2026. How we research
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