How are Georgia Accountant salaries calculated on this page?

Nominal wages come from BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES) — annual employer surveys, May 2026 reference period. Real-wage figures use BEA Regional Price Parities (2023 vintage) to adjust for state-level cost of living. No self-report or jobs-board data is mixed in.

How many Accountants does Georgia employ?

BLS OES counts 45,000 Accountants employed in Georgia in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.

Why is the BEA RPP for Georgia different from a single CPI number?

BEA splits regional price parity into three components — goods, services, and rents — reweighted to the BEA's national consumption basket. Georgia's overall index of 96.5 reflects rents 88.3, services 92.3, and goods 97.7.

Where does Georgia rank for Accountant pay?

On nominal BLS wages alone, Georgia ranks among the 51 states and DC by median pay. After the BEA cost-of-living adjustment the ordering changes — high-cost states fall, low-cost states rise. Both rankings are shown in the data table on this page.

How wide is the wage spread in Georgia?

P10 to P90 spans $48,140 to $140,640. That spread captures entry-level to top-quartile pay, including specialty differentials and metro-area variance within the state.

Should I negotiate based on the BLS median for Georgia?

The BLS median is a calibration anchor, not a ceiling. Use it to validate that an offer is in-band — anything well below the P25 in this state is a flag, anything above the P75 typically requires demonstrable specialty depth, niche credentials, or a high-COL metro within Georgia.

Is busy season ($35K of overtime) included in Georgia accountant BLS figures?

Yes — BLS OES uses annualized W-2 earnings, so January-April busy-season overtime is rolled into the median. The high P90 in public-accounting-heavy Georgia markets reflects busy-season hours plus year-end bonuses. Industry accountants typically have flatter hours and a lower P90 ceiling but more predictable totals.

2026 Accountant Salary — Georgia ($80K BLS, RPP-Adjusted Real Wage)

TL;DR

BLS reports Georgia Accountant median pay at $80,100. Adjusted for state cost of living, real purchasing power equals $83,010.
P25-P75 spread runs $62,230 to $105,600; P10 floor $48,140, P90 ceiling $140,640.
Cost of living tracks roughly with the national index, so nominal and real wages stay close.
On a real-wage basis, this state sits at #23 of 51; nominal rank is #18.

Wage breakdown — Georgia

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$48,140	$49,889
P25 (lower quartile)	$62,230	$64,491
P50 (median)	$80,100	$83,010
P75 (upper quartile)	$105,600	$109,437
P90 (top tier)	$140,640	$145,750
Mean	$92,050	$95,395
Employment	45,000 Accountants in Georgia

Cost of living — BEA Regional Price Parity

Component	Georgia index (US = 100)
All-items RPP	96.5
Goods	97.7
Services	92.3
Rents	88.3

Georgia's overall RPP (96.5) is close to the national 100 baseline; nominal and real wage move roughly together.

After-tax take-home — Georgia (2024 BLS · 2024 tax year, single filer)

Layer-by-layer take-home math at the BLS median

Layer	Amount	Note
Gross BLS P50 (Accountant)	$80,100	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$8,869	11.1% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	−$3,534	5.19% flat (2026)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$6,128	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$61,569	76.9% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$63,806	÷ (96.5 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

What the Georgia state-tax burden means for Accountant take-home

Mid-band state-tax burden at 4.4% effective. Combined with federal and FICA, take-home is $61,569 (76.9% of gross). After the 96.5 RPP, real take-home is $63,806.

Computed from 2026 IRS federal brackets (Rev. Proc. 2025-32), 2026 state DOR brackets, and 2026 FICA rates. Single filer, standard deduction, no other adjustments. See methodology · tax for limitations (married filers, ITM/SALT itemizers, retirement deferrals, HSA, dependent credits, etc.).

National context

Across the United States, BLS reports a national median of $81,680 for Accountants with mean pay of $93,520 and total employment of 1,448,290. Georgia sits at #18 on nominal pay and #23 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, Georgia falls 5 positions — the cost premium eats into the headline wage.

Frequently asked questions

How are Georgia Accountant salaries calculated on this page?: Nominal wages come from BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES) — annual employer surveys, May 2026 reference period. Real-wage figures use BEA Regional Price Parities (2023 vintage) to adjust for state-level cost of living. No self-report or jobs-board data is mixed in.
How many Accountants does Georgia employ?: BLS OES counts 45,000 Accountants employed in Georgia in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.
Why is the BEA RPP for Georgia different from a single CPI number?: BEA splits regional price parity into three components — goods, services, and rents — reweighted to the BEA's national consumption basket. Georgia's overall index of 96.5 reflects rents 88.3, services 92.3, and goods 97.7.
Where does Georgia rank for Accountant pay?: On nominal BLS wages alone, Georgia ranks among the 51 states and DC by median pay. After the BEA cost-of-living adjustment the ordering changes — high-cost states fall, low-cost states rise. Both rankings are shown in the data table on this page.
How wide is the wage spread in Georgia?: P10 to P90 spans $48,140 to $140,640. That spread captures entry-level to top-quartile pay, including specialty differentials and metro-area variance within the state.
Should I negotiate based on the BLS median for Georgia?: The BLS median is a calibration anchor, not a ceiling. Use it to validate that an offer is in-band — anything well below the P25 in this state is a flag, anything above the P75 typically requires demonstrable specialty depth, niche credentials, or a high-COL metro within Georgia.
Is busy season ($35K of overtime) included in Georgia accountant BLS figures?: Yes — BLS OES uses annualized W-2 earnings, so January-April busy-season overtime is rolled into the median. The high P90 in public-accounting-heavy Georgia markets reflects busy-season hours plus year-end bonuses. Industry accountants typically have flatter hours and a lower P90 ceiling but more predictable totals.

Sources & methodology

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES), SOC 13-2011, 2024 reference period.
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis — Regional Price Parities, 2023 vintage (all-items, goods, services, rents).
Real-wage figures = nominal BLS wage ÷ (state RPP / 100).
See the methodology page for full computation details and limitations.

By Marcus Liang · Founder & Editor · Last synced 2026-05-05.

Cross-comparison: see how Georgia Accountant pay ranks against the other 254 state × occupation pages on the Real Wage Atlas → — four-way ranking by real wage, after-tax take-home, state-tax savings, and cost-of-living arbitrage.