Chief warrant officer 4 (W-4)
Chief warrant officer 4 is a US Navy warrant officer rank, pay grade W-4. On khakis the insignia is a silver bar enamelled blue with two silver bands across it, so it shows three blue sections.
Easily confused with
- Chief warrant officer 2 (W-2)Chief warrant officer 2 is a US Navy warrant officer rank, pay grade W-2. On khakis the insignia is a gold bar enamelled blue with two gold bands across it, so it shows three blue sections.
- Chief warrant officer 3 (W-3)Chief warrant officer 3 is a US Navy warrant officer rank, pay grade W-3. On khakis the insignia is a silver bar enamelled blue with one silver band across the middle, so it shows two blue sections.
How to read it
The uniform regulations describe a blue background with two 6 mm (¼ in) silver breaks across it. A Chief warrant officer 2 (W-2) wears the same pattern in gold, so the metal colour is what separates W-2 from W-4. On the sleeve of the blue coat a W-4 wears one 13 mm (½ in) gold stripe with a single blue break. It sits above Chief warrant officer 3 (W-3) and below Chief warrant officer 5 (W-5). Navy.com calls a chief warrant officer 4 an authority within their specialty.
Also searched as: CWO4.
Ranks and insignia as the US Navy’s own uniform regulations and pages set them out. Pay grades are the Department of Defense’s.
Gold or silver
Three blue sections on a gold bar are a W-2; on a silver bar, a W-4.
More navy ranks
Browse symbols drawn with lines.
Sources
- Navy Uniform Regulations, article 4103: Shoulder insignia, United States Navy Uniform Regulations (NAVPERS 15665J), art. 4103, Navy Personnel Command (MyNavy HR), art. 4103.4a(8)(b); art. 4103.4a(8)(d)
- Navy Uniform Regulations, article 4101: Officer sleeve insignia, United States Navy Uniform Regulations (NAVPERS 15665J), art. 4101, Navy Personnel Command (MyNavy HR), art. 4101.3b(1)(b), 4101.3b(2)
- 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
- 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, W-4
- 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(b)
- U.S. Navy Ranks & Insignia, U.S. Navy Ranks & Insignia (navy.com), U.S. Navy Recruiting Command (navy.com), Warrant Officers: W-1 to W-5
Last reviewed September 29, 2026 by Rory Hansen. How we research