Salary database
CPA Salary by Industry
Where an accountant works matters as much as where they live. Compare verified BLS pay for accountants and auditors across every industry BLS measures — then open any industry for the full picture.
Top-paying industry
$110,940
Oil & gas extraction
Lowest industry
$64,990
Accommodation
National median
$83,680
All industries
Above national
23
of 52 industry cuts
Direct BLS OEWS May 2025 measurements · Accountants & Auditors (SOC 13-2011) · reviewed June 2026
Which industries pay accountants the most?
Direct BLS OEWS May 2025 measurements of national wages for accountants and auditors within each NAICS industry — verified, not modeled.
Read this first
What “by industry” means — and why it matters
Two accountants with the same title, the same license, and the same city can be paid very differently because of the industry they sit in. This is the cut that explains it.
It is the same job, measured in different places
Every figure here is the same occupation — accountants and auditors — measured inside a different industry. The spread from Oil & gas extraction to Accommodation is about 71%, wider than the spread between most states.
Specialization is what pays
The top of this list is technical: oil and gas revenue accounting, fund and partnership accounting, regulated bank reporting. These are skills that are hard to hire and do not transfer easily, and they price accordingly.
Industry and location are entangled
Securities concentrates in New York, energy in Houston, technology on the coasts. Part of a high industry median is the industry itself, and part is the expensive metros it lives in. The state and metro guides isolate the location half.
Verified, with one honest limit
BLS measures accountants and auditors, not CPAs specifically — there is no BLS CPA-by-industry wage. These medians include unlicensed staff, so a licensed CPA typically sits above them.
Best ways to use this page
- 1Jump to the ranking
Find your industry
Filter the table to the industry you work in — or the one you are thinking about moving to.
- 2See an industry guide
Open the full guide
Every industry opens into percentiles, employment, role-level estimates, and how it compares to the rest.
- 3Compare states
Separate industry from location
A high industry median is partly the expensive metros it concentrates in. Check your state before treating it as a raise.
- 4Open the calculator
Model your own number
Set your role, experience, and license in the calculator for a tailored estimate against the verified benchmark.
All 52 industries
Sectors and subsectors overlap. BLS publishes broad NAICS sectors and narrower subsectors that sit inside them, so this list is not a clean split of the workforce — an accountant in Oil and Gas Extraction is also counted in Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas Extraction. Use the tabs to see one depth at a time.
| # | 25th–75th | vs U.S. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oil and Gas Extraction$96.1K–$134.3K typical+32.6% vs U.S. | $110,940 | +32.6% | |
| 2 | Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas Extraction$82.2K–$132.1K typical+26.7% vs U.S. | $106,050 | +26.7% | |
| 3 | Securities, Commodity Contracts, and Other Financial Investments and Related Activities$80.4K–$140K typical+25.7% vs U.S. | $105,160 | +25.7% | |
| 4 | Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services$79.1K–$133K typical+22.4% vs U.S. | $102,400 | +22.4% | |
| 5 | Publishing Industries$78.2K–$130.4K typical+20.0% vs U.S. | $100,380 | +20.0% | |
| 6 | Information$77.4K–$128.7K typical+18.8% vs U.S. | $99,430 | +18.8% | |
| 7 | Utilities$78.5K–$124.9K typical+17.3% vs U.S. | $98,130 | +17.3% | |
| 8 | Computer and Electronic Product Manufacturing$76.4K–$128.1K typical+17.0% vs U.S. | $97,920 | +17.0% | |
| 9 | Chemical Manufacturing$75.1K–$123.4K typical+11.6% vs U.S. | $93,380 | +11.6% | |
| 10 | Finance and Insurance$72.7K–$123.9K typical+11.5% vs U.S. | $93,290 | +11.5% | |
| 11 | Management of Companies and Enterprises$74.9K–$117.9K typical+9.9% vs U.S. | $91,940 | +9.9% | |
| 12 | Transportation Equipment Manufacturing$72.6K–$114.3K typical+8.7% vs U.S. | $90,970 | +8.7% | |
| 13 | Heavy and Civil Engineering Construction$73K–$116.3K typical+6.9% vs U.S. | $89,430 | +6.9% | |
| 14 | Machinery Manufacturing$72.4K–$110.2K typical+5.5% vs U.S. | $88,270 | +5.5% | |
| 15 | Manufacturing$70.6K–$112.3K typical+4.9% vs U.S. | $87,790 | +4.9% | |
| 16 | Telecommunications$72.3K–$106K typical+3.6% vs U.S. | $86,690 | +3.6% | |
| 17 | Real Estate and Rental and Leasing$71.8K–$109.2K typical+3.2% vs U.S. | $86,320 | +3.2% | |
| 18 | Food Manufacturing$68.6K–$112.2K typical+2.1% vs U.S. | $85,450 | +2.1% | |
| 19 | Credit Intermediation and Related Activities$67.7K–$120.6K typical+1.8% vs U.S. | $85,200 | +1.8% | |
| 20 | Merchant Wholesalers, Nondurable Goods$66.6K–$112.2K typical+1.2% vs U.S. | $84,700 | +1.2% | |
| 21 | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services$68.8K–$118.6K typical+1.0% vs U.S. | $84,490 | +1.0% | |
| 22 | Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers$65.3K–$120.2K typical+0.6% vs U.S. | $84,170 | +0.6% | |
| 23 | Federal, State, and Local Government, excluding State and Local Government Schools and Hospitals and the U.S. Postal Service (OEWS Designation)$65.8K–$107.6K typical+0.1% vs U.S. | $83,760 | +0.1% | |
| 24 | Fabricated Metal Product Manufacturing$67.5K–$105.2K typical-0.1% vs U.S. | $83,630 | -0.1% | |
| 25 | Insurance Carriers and Related Activities$66.1K–$103.9K typical-0.5% vs U.S. | $83,250 | -0.5% | |
| 26 | Construction$68.8K–$104.8K typical-0.9% vs U.S. | $82,940 | -0.9% | |
| 27 | Motor Vehicle and Parts Dealers$62.9K–$114.9K typical-1.0% vs U.S. | $82,870 | -1.0% | |
| 28 | Specialty Trade Contractors$67.6K–$104.9K typical-1.1% vs U.S. | $82,800 | -1.1% | |
| 29 | Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations$68.1K–$102.4K typical-1.3% vs U.S. | $82,610 | -1.3% | |
| 30 | Wholesale Trade$65.5K–$108.1K typical-1.6% vs U.S. | $82,320 | -1.6% | |
| 31 | Hospitals$66.3K–$102.6K typical-1.9% vs U.S. | $82,110 | -1.9% | |
| 32 | Construction of Buildings$68.4K–$102.7K typical-2.1% vs U.S. | $81,890 | -2.1% | |
| 33 | Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services$64.1K–$106K typical-3.0% vs U.S. | $81,130 | -3.0% | |
| 34 | Other Services (except Public Administration)$65.6K–$101.5K typical-3.1% vs U.S. | $81,080 | -3.1% | |
| 35 | Merchant Wholesalers, Durable Goods$64.9K–$105.9K typical-3.2% vs U.S. | $80,970 | -3.2% | |
| 36 | Ambulatory Health Care Services$65.9K–$101.9K typical-3.4% vs U.S. | $80,830 | -3.4% | |
| 37 | Performing Arts, Spectator Sports, and Related Industries$64.5K–$102.9K typical-4.8% vs U.S. | $79,650 | -4.8% | |
| 38 | Retail Trade$62.3K–$106.3K typical-5.1% vs U.S. | $79,450 | -5.1% | |
| 39 | Transportation and Warehousing$62.3K–$102.6K typical-5.3% vs U.S. | $79,240 | -5.3% | |
| 40 | Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hunting$66.7K–$96.1K typical-5.3% vs U.S. | $79,230 | -5.3% | |
| 41 | Health Care and Social Assistance$64.1K–$99.1K typical-5.8% vs U.S. | $78,850 | -5.8% | |
| 42 | Educational Services$63.2K–$98.7K typical-6.4% vs U.S. | $78,300 | -6.4% | |
| 43 | Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation$60.7K–$98.6K typical-8.0% vs U.S. | $76,990 | -8.0% | |
| 44 | Truck Transportation$61.6K–$93.2K typical-8.2% vs U.S. | $76,850 | -8.2% | |
| 45 | Nursing and Residential Care Facilities$62.2K–$93.1K typical-8.2% vs U.S. | $76,780 | -8.2% | |
| 46 | Food Services and Drinking Places$60.6K–$98.4K typical-8.5% vs U.S. | $76,550 | -8.5% | |
| 47 | Amusement, Gambling, and Recreation Industries$58.6K–$95.8K typical-9.6% vs U.S. | $75,660 | -9.6% | |
| 48 | Repair and Maintenance$62.2K–$96.4K typical-10.2% vs U.S. | $75,140 | -10.2% | |
| 49 | Support Activities for Transportation$61.7K–$101.8K typical-10.5% vs U.S. | $74,920 | -10.5% | |
| 50 | Social Assistance$61.7K–$91.1K typical-10.8% vs U.S. | $74,630 | -10.8% | |
| 51 | Accommodation and Food Services$56.1K–$86.7K typical-15.3% vs U.S. | $70,840 | -15.3% | |
| 52 | Accommodation$50.4K–$80.6K typical-22.3% vs U.S. | $64,990 | -22.3% |
Showing 52 of 52 published industry cuts. Every figure is a direct BLS OEWS measurement for accountants and auditors (SOC 13-2011) working in that industry. Sectors and subsectors overlap — a subsector sits inside its parent sector.
Top payers
The 10 highest-paying industries
Measured median pay for accountants and auditors, against the national benchmark for all industries.
Median pay by industry — top 10
Oil & gas extraction leads at $110,940, about 1.33× the national median for all industries.
Where the jobs are
The biggest employers of accountants
The highest-paying industries are not the largest. These are the sectors that actually employ the most accountants and auditors — where the jobs realistically are.
Sectors only, so the counts do not double-count subsectors.
Related searches
Frequently asked questions
- Which industry pays accountants the most?
- Oil and Gas Extraction has the highest measured median pay for accountants and auditors at $110,940 — +32.6% versus the national median of $83,680. This is a direct BLS OEWS May 2025 measurement, not an estimate.
- Which industry pays accountants the least?
- Accommodation sits at the bottom at $64,990 median. The gap between the top and bottom industry is about 71% — larger than the gap between most states, which is why industry choice matters as much as location.
- Are these CPA salaries or accountant salaries?
- These are accountant and auditor salaries. BLS measures the broad occupation "Accountants and Auditors" (SOC 13-2011) within each industry — it does not publish a CPA-specific wage, by industry or otherwise. CPAs are a licensed subset of this occupation and typically earn above these medians. Any CPA- or role-specific figure on this site is a labeled estimate layered on top of the verified BLS measurement.
- Why do some industries appear inside others?
- BLS publishes the industry cut at two depths. Sectors are the broad NAICS buckets (Manufacturing, Finance and Insurance). Subsectors are narrower cuts that sit inside a sector — Oil and Gas Extraction, for example, is inside Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas Extraction. Both are shown because both are useful, but that means the list is not a clean split of the workforce and employment is counted at both levels. Use the Sectors and Subsectors tabs to see a non-overlapping list.
- Does moving industries actually raise my pay?
- It can, but the figures here compare different populations of accountants, not the same accountant in two jobs. Higher-paying industries tend to demand specialized technical accounting (oil and gas revenue accounting, fund accounting, regulatory reporting), concentrate in expensive metros, and hire more senior roles. Some of the gap is the industry paying more, and some is a different mix of jobs and locations. Treat the ranking as a map of where the money is, not a guaranteed raise.
- Do these figures include bonuses and equity?
- Only partly. BLS OEWS wages include base pay and some incentive pay, but they do not capture equity, deferred compensation, or profit-sharing well. That matters most in bonus-heavy industries like securities and investment management, where reported wages understate real total compensation.
How to read these numbers
National, state, and metro pay comes straight from the federal wage measurement for accountants & auditors — direct and source-backed, not scaled from anything.
Role, experience, CPA-license, and employer figures are modeled on top of that measurement and labeled Estimate — the federal data does not break those out, so we never present them as measurements.
See what your industry pays you
Set your role, experience, and license in the calculator to model your own number against the verified BLS benchmark.