Military Consumer

Military Consumer Welcome to the Military Consumer page, the Federal Trade Commission's official military consumer education page! Just a click adds one to your profile.

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We welcome your comments and thoughts about the information on this page. If you do have something to say, please be courteous and respectful to others. We won’t review or edit any comments before they are posted, but we will delete any comments that:

- contain spam or are off-topic
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are sales pitches, promotions or links to commercial sites
- spread clearly misleading or false information
- include personal information, like home addresses

The FTC deals with issues that touch the economic life of every American. It is the only federal agency with both consumer protection and competition jurisdiction in broad sectors of the economy. The FTC pursues vigorous and effective law enforcement; advances consumers’ interests by sharing its expertise with federal and state legislatures and U.S. and international government agencies; develops policy and research tools through hearings, workshops, and conferences; and creates practical and plain-language educational programs for consumers and businesses in a global marketplace with constantly changing technologies. We created this page as a way to share information about topics related to online safety and security. If you want to file a complaint with the FTC, see www.ftc.gov/complaint. PRIVACY POLICY

You are on the Federal Trade Commission’s Military Consumer page, not the official FTC or Military Consumer website. Facebook is controlled and operated by a third party, and is not a government website or application. By using Facebook and its application providers, you may be providing non-government third parties access to your personal information, which can be used to distinguish or trace your identity. In addition, Facebook and its application providers may use persistent tracking technology throughout their sites. Please read Facebook's Privacy Policy to learn more. The FTC will not collect, maintain, or disseminate personal information from individuals who visit the FTC page. The FTC may, however, read, review, or rely upon information that individuals make available to the public or to the FTC on Facebook, including comments on the pages created by the FTC, as authorized or required by law. To learn how the FTC safeguards personal information we collect, please read our Privacy Policy. Third Party Applications May Access and Share Your Information

EXTERNAL LINKS - Links posted by the FTC may lead to third-party, nongovernment websites that may have different privacy policies than Facebook or ftc.gov. EMBEDDED APPLICATIONS - Embedded applications on the FTC page may be provided by a third party, and may have different privacy policies than Facebook or ftc.gov. Countless applications are available on the web and through social networking sites, with more coming every day. Downloading an app may allow access to your personal information, or your friends’ – information that's not related to the purpose of the app. The app’s developers may share your information with marketers or other companies. Some social networking sites let you adjust your privacy settings to limit an app’s access to your personal information – whether it’s an app you use, or one your friends use. Check that your privacy settings reflect your preferences. Before downloading an app, take a look at the privacy policy to see what information it will access, how they'll use it, and with whom they'll share it. Then you can make a decision about adding it. If you’ve downloaded an app and think it has collected or used your personal information in a way you didn’t expect, report it to the FTC. We created this page as a way to share information about topics related to the FTC and its work. (OPTIONAL) Feedback regarding the FTC page may also be sent to [email protected].

These last days of summer can present opportunities to spend more time with your kids. If you’re talking with your 8-12 ...
08/05/2026

These last days of summer can present opportunities to spend more time with your kids. If you’re talking with your 8-12 year-olds about making good decisions while they’re online, the FTC has a free tool called Youville to help:

These last days of summer can present opportunities to spend more time with your kids. If you’re talking with your 8-12 year-olds about making good decisions while they’re online, the FTC has a free tool called Youville to help.

They’re the worst of the absolute worst: scams that target people who have already lost money to a scam. If you or someo...
08/04/2026

They’re the worst of the absolute worst: scams that target people who have already lost money to a scam. If you or someone you know paid a scammer, here’s what to know to avoid scammers who pretend to be helpers:

They’re the worst of the absolute worst: scams that target people who have already lost money to a scam. If you or someone you know paid a scammer, here’s what to know to avoid scammers who pretend to be helpers.

Today marks the last day of Military Consumer Month 2026. But the work to help protect those who've served doesn't stop ...
07/31/2026

Today marks the last day of Military Consumer Month 2026. But the work to help protect those who've served doesn't stop in July!

☑️Subscribe to the Military Consumer blog at https://www.militaryconsumer.gov/blog to get the latest on scams sent straight to your inbox all year long.

☑️And continue to share what you know to help everyone in your community spot and avoid scams.


One of the best ways to fight fraud is to talk about it. As we wrap up Military Consumer Month, here are some facts abou...
07/30/2026

One of the best ways to fight fraud is to talk about it. As we wrap up Military Consumer Month, here are some facts about fraud to help you start the conversation: https://www.militaryconsumer.gov/blog/talk-your-friends-and-family-fight-fraud

One of the best ways to fight fraud is to talk about it. When you know scammers’ tactics, they’re easier to spot and avoid. The FTC has some facts about fraud to help you start the conversation.

07/30/2026

SpouseWorks brings trusted career and education resources for military spouses together in one place.

Powered by the War Department, SpouseWorks offers:

✔️ Personalized career coaching
✔️ Scholarship opportunities through the SpouseWorks Scholarship (formerly MyCAA)
✔️ Job search support through more than 1,000 employer partners
✔️ Paid fellowship opportunities through the SpouseWorks Fellowship (formerly the Career Accelerator)
✔️ Skill-building tools, including Udemy, Traitify, FlexJobs and more.

07/30/2026
Have you been following Department of Defense Office of Financial Readiness and the   series? If not, give them a follow...
07/29/2026

Have you been following Department of Defense Office of Financial Readiness and the series? If not, give them a follow and check out all of the posts. They're taking you beyond the basics to really understand how military compensation works!

Ever look at your family's military paycheck and wonder, "Is this really the full picture?" 🧐💼

If you are building your household budget or planning for the future using only the "Basic Pay" line on the LES, you are actually underestimating your true earning power!

True financial readiness starts with knowing your total compensation—also known as your Regular Military Compensation (RMC).

Because a massive portion of your military pay (your housing and food allowances) is completely tax-free, your actual take-home value is significantly higher than a comparable civilian salary. RMC combines:
💰 Basic Pay (your base salary)
🏡 BAH (tax-free housing allowance)
🍽️ BAS (tax-free food allowance)
📈 The Tax Advantage (the extra value of having tax-free allowances)

Ready to find your true number?
The official RMC Calculator does the math for you in under a minute. It is 100% anonymous, safe, and no personal data is ever saved.

All you need to plug in is:
🎖️ Rank & Years of Service
📊 Tax Filing Status
👨‍👩‍👧 Family Size
📍 Location (OCONUS or BAH status)

Stop guessing your actual buying power. Use this tool to get the real numbers so you can budget smarter, save better, and make the best financial decisions for your family's future. 💸

🔗 Click here to run your numbers and unlock your RMC: https://militarypay.defense.gov/Calculators/RMC-Calculator/

👇 Spouse & Family Check-in: Have you used the RMC calculator before? Share this post with a fellow military family or tag a friend who is planning their budget!


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