Accountants and auditors represent a large U.S. profession with projected employment growth, substantial annual openings, and wages above the all-occupation median. The latest figures also show where accountants work, how compensation varies by industry and location, what workplace conditions look like, and how many candidates pursued the CPA credential.
Contents
- Employment outlook
- Wages and education
- Industries employing accountants
- States and metropolitan areas
- Work conditions in 2025
- CPA Exam participation
Employment outlook
The Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook (BLS OOH) projects 1,579,800 accountants and auditors employed in 2024. Its 2034 projection is 1,652,600, an increase of 72,800 jobs. That represents projected growth of 5% from 2024 to 2034.
The outlook includes about 124,200 openings for accountants and auditors each year over the decade. Openings are not the same as net new jobs: they reflect opportunities arising as organizations expand and as workers leave or move through the occupation. For small businesses, this volume indicates a substantial labor market for bookkeeping, reporting, tax, audit, and financial-control expertise.
The BLS OOH links demand for accountancy and audit work to globalization, economic growth, and a complex tax and regulatory environment. Those factors affect both large organizations and smaller companies that need reliable financial records, compliance support, and business reporting.
The BLS OOH identifies a bachelor’s degree as the typical entry-level education in 2024. It lists no related work experience and no on-the-job training as requirements for entry in that profile. Separately, the BLS Occupational Requirements Survey (BLS ORS) reports that in 2025, 91.3% of accountants and auditors required a bachelor’s degree, 70.7% required prior work experience, and 74.1% required on-the-job training. These measures describe different statistical frameworks and should not be treated as contradictory one-for-one definitions of entry requirements.
Wages and education
According to the BLS OOH, the 2024 median annual wage for accountants and auditors was $81,680, while the median hourly wage was $39.27. The lowest 10% earned less than $52,780 in May 2024, and the highest 10% earned more than $141,420.
For context, the 2024 median annual wage across all occupations was $49,500. Financial specialists had a median annual wage of $82,140, just above the accountant and auditor median in the BLS OOH comparison.
The BLS OEWS May 2023 national estimate provides a more detailed wage distribution. It counted 1,435,770 accountants and auditors and reported a mean hourly wage of $43.65 and a mean annual wage of $90,780. The employment relative standard error was 0.4%, and the wage relative standard error was 0.3%.
| May 2023 wage point | Hourly wage | Annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $24.25 | $50,440 |
| 25th percentile | $30.15 | $62,720 |
| Median | $38.41 | $79,880 |
| 75th percentile | $49.99 | $103,990 |
| 90th percentile | $66.00 | $137,280 |
The percentile figures show why a single average can hide meaningful differences across the occupation. The May 2023 median was $38.41 per hour and $79,880 annually, while the 90th percentile reached $66.00 per hour and $137,280 annually. The BLS OOH figures are measured for 2024, whereas the OEWS distribution is measured for May 2023, so the series should be kept distinct.
Industries employing accountants
The BLS OEWS May 2023 industry table counted 349,320 accountants and auditors in accounting, tax preparation, bookkeeping, and payroll services. That industry reported accountants and auditors as 31.73% of its own employment. Management of companies and enterprises employed 106,420, followed by local government excluding schools and hospitals with 47,580.
Other industries with notable employment included real estate, with 44,950 accountants and auditors, and management, scientific, and technical consulting services, with 43,020. These figures illustrate that accounting careers are distributed beyond dedicated accounting firms. Employers in property, government, corporate management, and consulting also represent sizable sources of work.
Some industries had especially high shares of their own employment in this occupation. Other investment pools and funds reported an 8.77% share, land subdivision 4.97%, office administrative services 4.35%, and oil and gas extraction 4.23%.
The highest annual and hourly industry wages in the supplied May 2023 table were concentrated in information, manufacturing, and technology-related industries:
- Manufacturing and reproducing magnetic and optical media paid $64.01 per hour and $133,140 annually.
- Web search portals, libraries, archives, and other information services paid $63.68 per hour and $132,450 annually.
- Software publishers paid $60.70 per hour and $126,250 annually.
- Media streaming distribution services, social networks, and other media networks and content providers paid $59.00 per hour and $122,720 annually.
- Computer and peripheral equipment manufacturing paid $56.77 per hour and $118,090 annually.
These are industry-specific mean wages from the BLS OEWS May 2023 table, not guaranteed salaries for every accountant in those industries.
States and metropolitan areas
The BLS OEWS May 2023 state table shows large employment concentrations and substantial wage differences. California employed 166,020 accountants and auditors and reported an annual mean wage of $100,560. New York employed 119,150 and reported an annual mean wage of $113,310, with a $54.48 hourly mean wage. New Jersey employed 46,860 and reported an annual mean wage of $110,700. Massachusetts employed 42,420 and reported an annual mean wage of $99,360.
New York’s employment density was 12.69 accountants and auditors per thousand jobs, with a location quotient of 1.34. The District of Columbia had 11,310 accountants and auditors, 16.12 per thousand jobs, and a location quotient of 1.70. Its annual mean wage was $113,190 and its hourly mean wage was $54.42.
| Location | Employment | Annual mean wage |
|---|---|---|
| California | 166,020 | $100,560 |
| New York | 119,150 | $113,310 |
| New Jersey | 46,860 | $110,700 |
| Massachusetts | 42,420 | $99,360 |
| District of Columbia | 11,310 | $113,190 |
The metro-level BLS OEWS May 2023 table places the largest reported employment in the New York-Newark-Jersey City area, with 127,360 accountants and auditors and annual pay of $119,050. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim employed 63,940 and paid $96,620 annually. Washington-Arlington-Alexandria employed 45,080 and paid $104,850.
Other large metro labor markets included Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, with 41,820 accountants and auditors and annual pay of $89,490; Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, with 39,500 and $90,130; Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, with 34,950 and $101,120; and Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, with 30,350 and $94,330.
The table also reported 29,580 accountants and auditors in Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, earning $93,710 annually; 28,910 in Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, earning $87,860; and 27,410 in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, earning $95,520.
Work conditions in 2025
The BLS ORS provides a snapshot of work organization and physical conditions in 2025. Work was self-paced for 73.5% of accountants and auditors, while work was controlled by people for 26.2%. A varying work schedule applied to 34.9%.
Telework was routinely allowed for 68.4%. A supervisor was present in the immediate work area for 50.2%, and 21.3% supervised others. More than 99.5% could pause work for brief unscheduled breaks, while fewer than 0.5% worked around crowds.
The occupation was predominantly sedentary. Accountants and auditors spent 96.2% of the workday sitting on average and 3.8% standing. More than 99.5% could choose to sit or stand for tasks, and low postures were required for 2.0%.
Noise exposure was generally limited: 38.3% experienced quiet noise exposure and 61.7% moderate noise exposure. Fewer than 0.5% experienced loud noise, and fewer than 0.5% experienced very loud noise. Fewer than 0.5% used personal protective equipment to mitigate noise exposure, while greater than 99.5% did not.
Speaking was required for greater than 99.5% of accountants and auditors. Speaking was occasionally required for 89.1%, frequently required for 6.1%, and constantly required for fewer than 0.5%. These categories describe the reported frequency of the requirement, not the amount of conversation in every individual job.
CPA Exam participation
The NASBA 2024 report says 74,165 candidates sat for the CPA Exam in 2024. Of those candidates, 27,994 were new candidates, and 13,070 completed their final section.
Pass rates differed by jurisdiction. Nebraska led the reported 2024 CPA Exam pass rates at 61.9%, followed by Utah at 58.6% and Montana at 57.4%.
The NASBA 2024 report also identified colleges with large numbers of first-time CPA candidates. The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign had 524 first-time candidates, Baruch College CUNY had 502, and California State University-Fullerton had 472.
Together, these figures describe a profession with a broad employment base, multiple routes into different industries, significant geographic concentration, and a credential pipeline that continued to attract tens of thousands of exam candidates in 2024.