In the Army, what is the difference between a SPC and a CPL? Which one is better to be promoted to?

LCpl Sandy Moran — Fri, 07 Feb 2020 12:17:18 -0500

E4 Spec. or Cpl

Response by SGM Erik Marquez made Feb 7 at 2020 12:21 PM

SGM Erik Marquez — Fri, 07 Feb 2020 12:21:00 -0500

One is a pay grade, the other a leadership position

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 7 at 2020 1:47 PM

SSG Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 07 Feb 2020 13:47:20 -0500

Which is better is really a matter of perspective. Both SPC and CPL are in the E-4 Pay grade. A SPC is a jr. enlisted Soldier the same as a private or PFC, it is similar to LCpl in the USMC, but with better pay. Corporal is a lateral promotion, to my knowledge no positions are organically a CPL slot; CPLs are usually used to fill an E-5 SGT vacancy when there is no SGT available. It should be a mark of pride to be selected to a leadership position early in your career. The reality of being a CPL is that lower ranking Soldiers typically see you through the lens of pay grade and slack on the respect given. CPL also typically find themselves in charge of many of the worst details as they are likely to be the single lowest ranking NCO in a Company, this is a frustrating experience, however it is a great experience to grow as a leader.

Response by SFC Kelly Fuerhoff made Feb 7 at 2020 4:22 PM

SFC Kelly Fuerhoff — Fri, 07 Feb 2020 16:22:17 -0500

A CPL is a NCO - a SPC is not. They're just the same pay grade. So you get promoted to CPL you get more responsibility without a pay increase.

People don't really take CPLs too seriously in the Army. Not that I've seen and there aren't many of them.

Response by SGM Bill Frazer made Feb 7 at 2020 4:45 PM

SGM Bill Frazer — Fri, 07 Feb 2020 16:45:24 -0500

Look SP4 can and normally are Team Leaders, but are NOT NCO's and normally are treated as such. CPL is an NCO, and deserves to be treated as such. Same grade/same pay. Little more paperwork to bust a CPL compared to a SP4 and it looks worse on records. Unfortunately here are damn few CPL positions left in the Army which is why you on;ly see them in Cbt Arms and damn few then.

Response by SPC Stewart Smith made Feb 7 at 2020 6:09 PM

SPC Stewart Smith — Fri, 07 Feb 2020 18:09:48 -0500

Specialists are privates with more money. Corporals are NCOs with less money.

Response by SGM Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 7 at 2020 9:51 PM

SGM Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 07 Feb 2020 21:51:44 -0500

In the Army, you are not promoted from PFC to CPL, you are advanced to SPC.
As a SPC, if you are on the promotion list for SGT but do not yet have BLC complete, when you are selected you are moved to an E5 position and laterally appointed to CPL until you complete BLC and promote to SGT.

Response by 1LT Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 7 at 2020 11:20 PM

1LT Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 07 Feb 2020 23:20:52 -0500

You’ve gotten some good responses, so I’ll just share my experience :

I was a CPL for a little under 3 years. Before I was “laterally promoted” I was a SPC. My leadership gave me stripes because they felt that even though I hadn’t made SGT cutoff that I was ready to join the NCO Corps.

Immediately after I was promoted, expectations for me ratcheted up. I spent the day of my promotion working late to help the other NCOs in the company tighten down the loads on all of our vehicles for the upcoming FTX. The following day, I was assigned a solider to be responsible for. This soldier (SPC) was just my peer 24 hours earlier. You might here from others that CPLs aren’t treated as “real NCOs” but that wasn’t my experience. My CSM made it a point to state in front of the entire battalion that he expects his CPLs to be treated and work as NCOs and that anything less than that was unacceptable.

The SGTs in the company is embraced me as a peer. CPL allowed me to understand a bit more about how our unit plans and it also gave me more flexibility (and creditability) in my section.
I learned many leadership lessons as a CPL and that’s the rank where I honed my leadership style. I’m grateful that I was given the opportunity to lead.

I may be in the minority but I much preferred my time as a CPL than my time as a SPC. My CPL time allowed me to show more of my leadership potential. This led to me being on the command’s radar for the right reasons. This taste of leadership ultimately led me to where I am now.

Response by SSG Brian G. made Feb 8 at 2020 9:56 AM

SSG Brian G. — Sat, 08 Feb 2020 09:56:20 -0500

E-4 is the pay grade. Specialist is a leadership position below Sergeant. Corporal is a leadership position considered an optional lowest NCO.

Response by LCpl Sandy Moran made Feb 9 at 2020 1:57 PM

LCpl Sandy Moran — Sun, 09 Feb 2020 13:57:17 -0500

I want to thank everyone for there response