How much does an Accountant make in Hawaii?

BLS reports a median annual wage of $67,820 for Accountants in Hawaii as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $59,120 and the 75th-percentile is $87,530.

How many Accountants does Hawaii employ?

BLS OES counts 4,940 Accountants employed in Hawaii in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.

How wide is the wage spread in Hawaii?

P10 to P90 spans $49,050 to $108,520. 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 Hawaii?

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 Hawaii.

When does this data update?

BLS OES releases a new May reference set roughly each spring; we re-run the ETL pipeline within two weeks of release. BEA RPP refreshes annually. The last-synced timestamp at the top of this page reflects the most recent build.

Does CPA licensure raise accountant pay in Hawaii?

BLS aggregates accountants and auditors under SOC 13-2011 — CPA-licensed and non-CPA pay are not split. In practice, CPA-licensed accountants in Hawaii typically earn 10-20% above the all-accountant median, and the gap widens at the senior/manager level where CPA is functionally required for partner-track public accounting and CFO roles. Hawaii requires 150 semester hours of education to sit for the exam (the AICPA Uniform CPA standard).

Is busy season ($35K of overtime) included in Hawaii 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 Hawaii markets reflects busy-season hours plus year-end bonuses. Industry accountants typically have flatter hours and a lower P90 ceiling but more predictable totals.

How Much Do Accountants Make in Hawaii? $68K (2026 BLS + BEA)

TL;DR

BLS reports Hawaii Accountant median pay at $67,820. Adjusted for state cost of living, real purchasing power equals $61,821.
BEA RPP near 100 means nominal pay translates almost 1:1 into real take-home.
Wage envelope: $49,050 (P10) to $108,520 (P90), with quartiles at $59,120 and $87,530.
State ranks #48 nationally on nominal wage, #51 on real (RPP-adjusted) wage.

Wage breakdown — Hawaii

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$49,050	$44,712
P25 (lower quartile)	$59,120	$53,891
P50 (median)	$67,820	$61,821
P75 (upper quartile)	$87,530	$79,788
P90 (top tier)	$108,520	$98,922
Mean	$76,070	$69,342
Employment	4,940 Accountants in Hawaii

Cost of living — BEA Regional Price Parity

Component	Hawaii index (US = 100)
All-items RPP	109.7
Goods	110.3
Services	191.7
Rents	128.7

Hawaii is a high-cost state — RPP 109.7 above the national 100 baseline. Most of the cost premium routes through rents (128.7) and services (191.7).

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

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

Layer	Amount	Note
Gross BLS P50 (Accountant)	$67,820	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$6,167	9.1% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	−$4,667	1.4–11% (12 brackets)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$5,188	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$51,797	76.4% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$47,216	÷ (109.7 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

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

Hawaii carries one of the heavier state-tax loads in the country at this income tier (6.9% effective on the BLS median). Combined with federal and FICA, gross-to-take-home spread is 23.6%, leaving $51,797 pre-RPP and $47,216 after the 109.7 cost-of-living index — a $20,604 gap from the headline gross.

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. Hawaii sits at #48 on nominal pay and #51 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, Hawaii falls 3 positions — the cost premium eats into the headline wage.

Frequently asked questions

How much does an Accountant make in Hawaii?: BLS reports a median annual wage of $67,820 for Accountants in Hawaii as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $59,120 and the 75th-percentile is $87,530.
How many Accountants does Hawaii employ?: BLS OES counts 4,940 Accountants employed in Hawaii in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.
How wide is the wage spread in Hawaii?: P10 to P90 spans $49,050 to $108,520. 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 Hawaii?: 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 Hawaii.
When does this data update?: BLS OES releases a new May reference set roughly each spring; we re-run the ETL pipeline within two weeks of release. BEA RPP refreshes annually. The last-synced timestamp at the top of this page reflects the most recent build.
Does CPA licensure raise accountant pay in Hawaii?: BLS aggregates accountants and auditors under SOC 13-2011 — CPA-licensed and non-CPA pay are not split. In practice, CPA-licensed accountants in Hawaii typically earn 10-20% above the all-accountant median, and the gap widens at the senior/manager level where CPA is functionally required for partner-track public accounting and CFO roles. Hawaii requires 150 semester hours of education to sit for the exam (the AICPA Uniform CPA standard).
Is busy season ($35K of overtime) included in Hawaii 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 Hawaii 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 Hawaii 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.