How are Minnesota 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.

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

The 90th percentile lands at $135,370. 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 $102,940.

Why is the BEA RPP for Minnesota 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. Minnesota's overall index of 98.3 reflects rents 90.7, services 89.4, and goods 102.1.

Should I negotiate based on the BLS median for Minnesota?

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 Minnesota.

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 Minnesota?

BLS aggregates accountants and auditors under SOC 13-2011 — CPA-licensed and non-CPA pay are not split. In practice, CPA-licensed accountants in Minnesota 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. Minnesota requires 150 semester hours of education to sit for the exam (the AICPA Uniform CPA standard).

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

Accountant Salary in Minnesota (2026): $81K Median, BEA RPP-Adjusted

TL;DR

BLS reports Minnesota Accountant median pay at $81,100. Adjusted for state cost of living, real purchasing power equals $82,501.
On a real-wage basis, this state sits at #24 of 51; nominal rank is #16.
Cost of living tracks roughly with the national index, so nominal and real wages stay close.
P25-P75 spread runs $64,790 to $102,940; P10 floor $54,840, P90 ceiling $135,370.

Wage breakdown — Minnesota

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$54,840	$55,787
P25 (lower quartile)	$64,790	$65,909
P50 (median)	$81,100	$82,501
P75 (upper quartile)	$102,940	$104,718
P90 (top tier)	$135,370	$137,708
Mean	$92,240	$93,833
Employment	30,400 Accountants in Minnesota

Cost of living — BEA Regional Price Parity

Component	Minnesota index (US = 100)
All-items RPP	98.3
Goods	102.1
Services	89.4
Rents	90.7

Minnesota's overall RPP (98.3) is close to the national 100 baseline; nominal and real wage move roughly together.

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

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

Layer	Amount	Note
Gross BLS P50 (Accountant)	$81,100	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$9,089	11.2% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	−$4,064	5.35–9.85% (graduated)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$6,204	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$61,743	76.1% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$62,809	÷ (98.3 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

What the Minnesota 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 $61,743 (76.1% of gross). After the 98.3 RPP, real take-home is $62,809.

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. Minnesota sits at #16 on nominal pay and #24 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, Minnesota falls 8 positions — the cost premium eats into the headline wage.

Frequently asked questions

How are Minnesota 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.
What does the top of the Accountant pay scale look like in Minnesota?: The 90th percentile lands at $135,370. 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 $102,940.
Why is the BEA RPP for Minnesota 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. Minnesota's overall index of 98.3 reflects rents 90.7, services 89.4, and goods 102.1.
Should I negotiate based on the BLS median for Minnesota?: 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 Minnesota.
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 Minnesota?: BLS aggregates accountants and auditors under SOC 13-2011 — CPA-licensed and non-CPA pay are not split. In practice, CPA-licensed accountants in Minnesota 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. Minnesota requires 150 semester hours of education to sit for the exam (the AICPA Uniform CPA standard).
Is busy season ($35K of overtime) included in Minnesota 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 Minnesota 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 Minnesota 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.