North Carolina · Salary guide
Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC CPA Salary
CPA and accountant pay across the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia metro — percentiles and role-by-role estimates vs the national benchmark.
Median CPA pay · Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia metro
$92,910
Midpoint for accountants & auditors
Typical range
$72.4K–$129K
Middle 50% (25th–75th percentile)
Top earners
$167.3K+
90th percentile and above
vs. national
+11.0%
North Carolina · vs U.S. median
Verified BLS wage benchmark for the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia metro · updated June 2026
How much does a CPA make in Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia?
The verified BLS wage measurement for accountants and auditors in the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia metro. The CPA-license premium layered on top is a labeled estimate.
vs. the U.S. benchmark
+11.0%
The Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia metro vs the national median and +13.2% vs North Carolina statewide.
North Carolina guideLicensed CPA · modeled
$104,100
A modeled ~12% credential premium on the local median — the license consistently pays more.
What the license is worthTop earners · 90th pct
$167.3K+
The BLS-measured 90th percentile for accountants in this metro — model your own with your role and experience.
Model your payCharlotte-Concord-Gastonia metro
verified local median
$92,910
+11.0%North Carolina statewide
verified state median
$82,050
-1.9%National benchmark
verified
$83,680
base
Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia runs +11.0% vs the national median and +13.2% vs North Carolina statewide. All three are direct BLS wage measurements for accountants and auditors at their own area level.
Cost of living
Real pay in Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia
What the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia median actually buys once local prices are accounted for. Nominal pay is the verified BLS figure; the buying-power view divides it by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parity (2024) for the metro.
Nominal
$92.9K
Price level
97.3/100
Real pay
$95.5K
Local prices run 3% below the national average, so pay here stretches further than the headline suggests — Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia rises 19 places once adjusted for buying power.
Real pay · BEA-adjustedA high nominal salary in an expensive metro can buy less than a smaller salary in a low-cost one. Real pay reorders the map by buying power — but it is not take-home pay: it excludes taxes, benefits, and housing choices.
See real pay across all metros →Best ways to use this page
- 1View percentiles
Find your percentile
See where your pay sits across the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia range, from entry level to top earners.
- 2See pay by role
Check your role
Pay climbs steeply from staff to controller. See the estimate for your title in this metro.
- 3Open the calculator
Model your own number
Set role, experience, license, and employer for a tailored estimate — equity and bonus broken out.
- 4Submit your pay
Add your salary
Anonymous, two minutes. Submissions are how role- and employer-level pay becomes real data.
Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia metro · Accountants & auditors
Verified$44.67/hr median hourly · $101,910 average
Percentiles · Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia
Verified| Percentile | Annual | Hourly | What it means |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $59,200 | $28.46/hr | Entry-level / lower pay |
| 25th percentile | $72,420 | $34.82/hr | Below median |
| Median (50th) | $92,910 | $44.67/hr | Typical pay |
| 75th percentile | $129,000 | $62.02/hr | Experienced / senior |
| 90th percentile | $167,330 | $80.45/hr | Top earners |
By role
CPA roles in Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia
Median estimates by role, scaled to the metro wage level.
Median pay by role
In the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia metro, estimated pay runs from $131,900 (Accounting Manager) to $362,300 (Chief Financial Officer) — about 2.7× across the ladder.
| Role / level | Low | Est. median | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chief Financial Officer | $362,300 | ||
| Partner | $334,500 | ||
| Director of Finance | $227,600 | ||
| Senior Manager | $190,500 | ||
| Controller | $181,200 | ||
| Tax Manager | $144,000 | ||
| Audit Manager | $144,000 | ||
| Accounting Manager | $131,900 | ||
| Audit Senior | $102,200 | ||
| Tax Senior | $100,300 | ||
| Senior Accountant | $94,800 | ||
| Audit Associate | $77,100 | ||
| Tax Associate | $76,200 | ||
| Staff Accountant | $72,500 |
Role multipliers applied to the BLS national median for Accountants & Auditors. The low–high band is a modeled typical range, not a guaranteed offer.
By experience
CPA pay by experience in Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia
The metro median scaled across experience bands, with the modeled CPA-license premium. Estimate.
| Experience | Est. median | CPA-licensed (est.) |
|---|---|---|
| 0–1 years | $79,900 | $89,500 |
| 2–4 years | $89,200 | $99,900 |
| 5–7 years | $100,300 | $112,300 |
| 8–12 years | $111,500 | $124,900 |
| 13–20 years | $122,600 | $137,300 |
| 20+ years | $131,900 | $147,700 |
Experience multipliers on the area median; CPA column adds a modeled +12% credential premium.
By employer
CPA pay by employer type in Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia
Big 4, national, regional, and local firms vs. industry — at a manager-level base on the metro median. Estimate.
| Employer type | Est. manager-level pay | vs. industry |
|---|---|---|
| Big 4 firm | $161,300 | +7.7% |
| National firm | $151,200 | +0.9% |
| Regional firm | $141,100 | -5.8% |
| Local firm | $132,500 | -11.5% |
| Industry / corporate | $149,800 | — |
Employer-type multipliers applied at a manager-level base on the BLS national median.
What affects pay
What drives CPA pay in Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia
The same factors move pay within a metro. Use the calculator to model your own.
Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia market
Charlotte is one of the country’s largest banking centers — home to Bank of America and Truist and a major East Coast hub for Wells Fargo — which concentrates finance and accounting demand. A relatively low cost of living keeps take-home pay competitive.
Cost of labor
Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia wages track the local cost of living and employer competition — denser, higher-cost metros pay above the statewide median.
Employer mix
Big 4 and national firms pay a brand premium; regional/local firms and government pay below industry roles at the same level.
Role & experience
Pay roughly doubles from staff to controller. The CPA license adds a modeled premium and unlocks senior roles.
Remote & hybrid
Remote roles can pay to a national band rather than the local one, widening access to higher-paying employers.
How to use these figures
Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia metro figures here are a direct BLS wage measurement — but they cover accountants and auditors as a single occupation, so they are not specific to the CPA license, your role, or your employer. Use them as a local baseline, then model your own situation and submit a salary to sharpen the employer-level detail BLS does not publish.
Other metros
Compare nearby metro pay
CPA pay across other major metros — large, high-cost areas pay the strongest.
Frequently asked questions
- How much does a CPA make in Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia?
- The median accountant/auditor wage in the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia metro is about $92,910 (+11.0% vs national). Licensed CPAs generally earn above this baseline.
- Does Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia pay more than the rest of North Carolina?
- Large metros like Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia typically pay above their statewide median due to higher cost of living and a denser concentration of large employers and public-accounting firms.
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.
Add your Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia salary
BLS measures the occupation, not your role, firm, or license. Submissions are what add that layer. Anonymous and quick.