North Carolina · Salary guide
Durham-Chapel Hill, NC CPA Salary
CPA and accountant pay across the Durham-Chapel Hill metro — percentiles and role-by-role estimates vs the national benchmark.
Median CPA pay · Durham-Chapel Hill metro
$85,090
Midpoint for accountants & auditors
Typical range
$70.7K–$115.7K
Middle 50% (25th–75th percentile)
Top earners
$152.9K+
90th percentile and above
vs. national
+1.7%
North Carolina · vs U.S. median
Verified BLS wage benchmark for the Durham-Chapel Hill metro · updated June 2026
How much does a CPA make in Durham-Chapel Hill?
The verified BLS wage measurement for accountants and auditors in the Durham-Chapel Hill metro. The CPA-license premium layered on top is a labeled estimate.
vs. the U.S. benchmark
+1.7%
The Durham-Chapel Hill metro vs the national median and +3.7% vs North Carolina statewide.
North Carolina guideLicensed CPA · modeled
$95,300
A modeled ~12% credential premium on the local median — the license consistently pays more.
What the license is worthTop earners · 90th pct
$152.9K+
The BLS-measured 90th percentile for accountants in this metro — model your own with your role and experience.
Model your payDurham-Chapel Hill metro
verified local median
$85,090
+1.7%North Carolina statewide
verified state median
$82,050
-1.9%National benchmark
verified
$83,680
base
Durham-Chapel Hill runs +1.7% vs the national median and +3.7% 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 Durham-Chapel Hill
What the Durham-Chapel Hill 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
$85.1K
Price level
97.6/100
Real pay
$87.2K
Local prices run 2% below the national average, so some of that pay is absorbed by higher local costs — Durham-Chapel Hill slips 6 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 Durham-Chapel Hill 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.
Durham-Chapel Hill metro · Accountants & auditors
Verified$40.91/hr median hourly · $98,060 average
Percentiles · Durham-Chapel Hill
Verified| Percentile | Annual | Hourly | What it means |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $60,620 | $29.14/hr | Entry-level / lower pay |
| 25th percentile | $70,700 | $33.99/hr | Below median |
| Median (50th) | $85,090 | $40.91/hr | Typical pay |
| 75th percentile | $115,740 | $55.64/hr | Experienced / senior |
| 90th percentile | $152,900 | $73.51/hr | Top earners |
By role
CPA roles in Durham-Chapel Hill
Median estimates by role, scaled to the metro wage level.
Median pay by role
In the Durham-Chapel Hill metro, estimated pay runs from $120,800 (Accounting Manager) to $331,900 (Chief Financial Officer) — about 2.7× across the ladder.
| Role / level | Low | Est. median | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chief Financial Officer | $331,900 | ||
| Partner | $306,300 | ||
| Director of Finance | $208,500 | ||
| Senior Manager | $174,400 | ||
| Controller | $165,900 | ||
| Tax Manager | $131,900 | ||
| Audit Manager | $131,900 | ||
| Accounting Manager | $120,800 | ||
| Audit Senior | $93,600 | ||
| Tax Senior | $91,900 | ||
| Senior Accountant | $86,800 | ||
| Audit Associate | $70,600 | ||
| Tax Associate | $69,800 | ||
| Staff Accountant | $66,400 |
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 Durham-Chapel Hill
The metro median scaled across experience bands, with the modeled CPA-license premium. Estimate.
| Experience | Est. median | CPA-licensed (est.) |
|---|---|---|
| 0–1 years | $73,200 | $82,000 |
| 2–4 years | $81,700 | $91,500 |
| 5–7 years | $91,900 | $102,900 |
| 8–12 years | $102,100 | $114,400 |
| 13–20 years | $112,300 | $125,800 |
| 20+ years | $120,800 | $135,300 |
Experience multipliers on the area median; CPA column adds a modeled +12% credential premium.
By employer
CPA pay by employer type in Durham-Chapel Hill
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 | $147,700 | +7.7% |
| National firm | $138,500 | +0.9% |
| Regional firm | $129,300 | -5.8% |
| Local firm | $121,300 | -11.6% |
| Industry / corporate | $137,200 | — |
Employer-type multipliers applied at a manager-level base on the BLS national median.
What affects pay
What drives CPA pay in Durham-Chapel Hill
The same factors move pay within a metro. Use the calculator to model your own.
Durham-Chapel Hill market
The Durham-Chapel Hill metro’s measured accountant pay sits modestly above the national median, at +1.7%. Within the state it runs modestly above the North Carolina median (+3.7%) — it pays above the North Carolina median, so it concentrates the state’s higher-paying accounting roles. Metro pay reflects the local cost of labor and the density of large employers and public-accounting firms more than the job title itself. This is a direct BLS wage measurement for the metro, not an estimate scaled from the national figure.
Cost of labor
Durham-Chapel Hill 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
Durham-Chapel Hill 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 Durham-Chapel Hill?
- The median accountant/auditor wage in the Durham-Chapel Hill metro is about $85,090 (+1.7% vs national). Licensed CPAs generally earn above this baseline.
- Does Durham-Chapel Hill pay more than the rest of North Carolina?
- Large metros like Durham-Chapel Hill 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 Durham-Chapel Hill salary
BLS measures the occupation, not your role, firm, or license. Submissions are what add that layer. Anonymous and quick.