Admiral (O-10)
Admiral is the highest active-duty rank in the US Navy, pay grade O-10. On khakis the insignia is four silver stars.
Easily confused with
How to read it
The Congressional Research Service lists admiral as a four-star rank, the equivalent of a general. On the blue coat sleeve it is a 5 cm (2 in) gold stripe with three 13 mm (½ in) stripes above it. It sits above Vice admiral (O-9). Navy.com calls admiral the highest active duty rank in the Navy; the five-star Fleet admiral was a wartime rank, and none has been appointed since William H. Halsey in 1945.
Also searched as: ADM, four-star admiral.
Ranks and insignia as the US Navy’s own uniform regulations and pages set them out. Pay grades are the Department of Defense’s.
The first admiral
The Naval History and Heritage Command says the Navy had no admirals until 1862, because many felt the title too reminiscent of royalty, and that Farragut was appointed the first admiral in 1866.
Read next
- Next in Navy ranksFleet admiralFleet admiral is a five-star US Navy rank created in the Second World War. The Department of Defense lists it as reserved for wartime only, and nobody holds it today.
- The same shape in Asian flagsFlag of ChinaA red flag with one large and four small yellow stars in the top corner by the pole. The official explanation, as Hong Kong’s Education Bureau gives it, is that the red stands for revolution and the five stars for the unity of the revolutionary people under the leadership of the Communist Party of China.
More navy ranks
The same shape elsewhere
Browse symbols drawn with stars.
Sources
- U.S. Military Rank Insignia, Resources: U.S. Military Rank Insignia (enlisted and officer insignia by paygrade), U.S. Department of Defense (defense.gov), Officer insignia; officer introduction
- 37 U.S.C. § 201: Pay grades, 37 U.S. Code § 201, Pay grades: assignment to; general rules, Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School, § 201(a)
- Navy Uniform Regulations, article 4101: Officer sleeve insignia, United States Navy Uniform Regulations (NAVPERS 15665J), art. 4101, Navy Personnel Command (MyNavy HR), art. 4101.3a
- Navy Uniform Regulations, article 4103: Shoulder insignia, United States Navy Uniform Regulations (NAVPERS 15665J), art. 4103, Navy Personnel Command (MyNavy HR), art. 4103.2c, 4103.4a
- U.S. Navy Ranks & Insignia, U.S. Navy Ranks & Insignia (navy.com), U.S. Navy Recruiting Command (navy.com), Commissioned Officer Ranks
- Statutory Framework for Congressional Management of DOD General and Flag Officers (CRS R44389), Congressional Research Service, R44389, updated 29 May 2026 (EveryCRSReport.com copy), Congressional Research Service, Table 1
- Naval Traditions: Names of Rank, “Admiral”, Naval Traditions: Names of Rank, Officer, “Admiral”, Naval History and Heritage Command, para. 3; para. 4
- Navy Uniform Regulations, article 4104: Collar grade insignia, United States Navy Uniform Regulations (NAVPERS 15665J), art. 4104, Navy Personnel Command (MyNavy HR), art. 4104.2–3
Researched, edited and approved by Rory Hansen before publishing. Last reviewed September 29, 2026. How we research
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