What does the top of the Accountant pay scale look like in Illinois?

The 90th percentile lands at $132,080. That tier typically reflects senior roles, specialty certifications, high-cost-of-living metros within the state, or union-negotiated rate cards. Below that, the P75 quartile is $100,540.

Why is the BEA RPP for Illinois 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. Illinois's overall index of 98.8 reflects rents 92.4, services 80.4, and goods 101.6.

Where does Illinois rank for Accountant pay?

On nominal BLS wages alone, Illinois 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 Illinois?

P10 to P90 spans $51,690 to $132,080. That spread captures entry-level to top-quartile pay, including specialty differentials and metro-area variance within the state.

Is Illinois a 'real-wage arbitrage' state for Accountants?

No — Illinois's RPP is close to the national 100 baseline, so nominal and real wages move roughly together. Neither an arbitrage nor a penalty state.

What are the limits of these Accountant salary numbers?

BLS OES is an employer survey of W-2 wages — it excludes contractor pay, bonuses outside the base wage definition, equity compensation, and tip income. Self-employed practitioners and gig workers are not represented. For occupations with significant non-W-2 income, the BLS figure is a floor, not a complete picture.

Is busy season ($35K of overtime) included in Illinois 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 Illinois 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 Illinois? $79K (2026 BLS + BEA)

TL;DR

Median Accountant salary in Illinois: $79,300 nominal, $80,302 real (BEA RPP basis).
Bottom quartile $64,360, top quartile $100,540. The P90 ($132,080) is roughly 2.6× the P10 ($51,690).
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 #33 of 51; nominal rank is #20.

Wage breakdown — Illinois

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$51,690	$52,343
P25 (lower quartile)	$64,360	$65,173
P50 (median)	$79,300	$80,302
P75 (upper quartile)	$100,540	$101,811
P90 (top tier)	$132,080	$133,749
Mean	$88,160	$89,274
Employment	54,690 Accountants in Illinois

Cost of living — BEA Regional Price Parity

Component	Illinois index (US = 100)
All-items RPP	98.8
Goods	101.6
Services	80.4
Rents	92.4

Illinois's overall RPP (98.8) is close to the national 100 baseline; nominal and real wage move roughly together.

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

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

Layer	Amount	Note
Gross BLS P50 (Accountant)	$79,300	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$8,693	11.0% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	−$3,925	4.95% flat (2026)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$6,066	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$60,615	76.4% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$61,381	÷ (98.8 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

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

Mid-band state-tax burden at 5.0% effective. Combined with federal and FICA, take-home is $60,615 (76.4% of gross). After the 98.8 RPP, real take-home is $61,381.

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. Illinois sits at #20 on nominal pay and #33 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, Illinois falls 13 positions — the cost premium eats into the headline wage.

Frequently asked questions

What does the top of the Accountant pay scale look like in Illinois?: The 90th percentile lands at $132,080. That tier typically reflects senior roles, specialty certifications, high-cost-of-living metros within the state, or union-negotiated rate cards. Below that, the P75 quartile is $100,540.
Why is the BEA RPP for Illinois 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. Illinois's overall index of 98.8 reflects rents 92.4, services 80.4, and goods 101.6.
Where does Illinois rank for Accountant pay?: On nominal BLS wages alone, Illinois 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 Illinois?: P10 to P90 spans $51,690 to $132,080. That spread captures entry-level to top-quartile pay, including specialty differentials and metro-area variance within the state.
Is Illinois a 'real-wage arbitrage' state for Accountants?: No — Illinois's RPP is close to the national 100 baseline, so nominal and real wages move roughly together. Neither an arbitrage nor a penalty state.
What are the limits of these Accountant salary numbers?: BLS OES is an employer survey of W-2 wages — it excludes contractor pay, bonuses outside the base wage definition, equity compensation, and tip income. Self-employed practitioners and gig workers are not represented. For occupations with significant non-W-2 income, the BLS figure is a floor, not a complete picture.
Is busy season ($35K of overtime) included in Illinois 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 Illinois 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 Illinois 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.