How much does an Accountant make in Virginia?

BLS reports a median annual wage of $84,190 for Accountants in Virginia as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $66,560 and the 75th-percentile is $109,670.

Where does Virginia rank for Accountant pay?

On nominal BLS wages alone, Virginia 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 Virginia?

P10 to P90 spans $57,150 to $145,750. That spread captures entry-level to top-quartile pay, including specialty differentials and metro-area variance within the 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.

Does CPA licensure raise accountant pay in Virginia?

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

Public accounting vs industry vs government in Virginia — which pays more?

Public accounting (Big 4 / regional firm audit + tax) typically pays 10-15% below industry corporate-accountant pay at the staff/senior level, then crosses over at manager and above as billable-hour leverage compounds. Government accountants in {state} (state DOR, federal IRS/GAO, municipal) usually trail both private paths on base pay but lead on pension and job security. Industry controller/CFO-track roles in {state} push toward the BLS P75-P90 band.

Is busy season ($35K of overtime) included in Virginia 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 Virginia 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 — Virginia ($84K BLS, RPP-Adjusted Real Wage)

TL;DR

Headline Accountant pay in Virginia is $84,190. Real take-home, after the state's cost-of-living index, lands at $83,084.
Mid-band cost of living: real and nominal wage are within a few percent of each other.
BLS percentile breakdown: P10 $57,150 · P25 $66,560 · P75 $109,670 · P90 $145,750.
On a real-wage basis, this state sits at #22 of 51; nominal rank is #12.

Wage breakdown — Virginia

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$57,150	$56,399
P25 (lower quartile)	$66,560	$65,686
P50 (median)	$84,190	$83,084
P75 (upper quartile)	$109,670	$108,229
P90 (top tier)	$145,750	$143,836
Mean	$95,650	$94,394
Employment	50,220 Accountants in Virginia

Cost of living — BEA Regional Price Parity

Component	Virginia index (US = 100)
All-items RPP	101.3
Goods	101.1
Services	92.4
Rents	105.6

Virginia's overall RPP (101.3) is close to the national 100 baseline; nominal and real wage move roughly together.

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

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

Layer	Amount	Note
Gross BLS P50 (Accountant)	$84,190	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$9,769	11.6% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	−$4,095	2–5.75% (graduated)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$6,441	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$63,886	75.9% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$63,047	÷ (101.3 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

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

Mid-band state-tax burden at 4.9% effective. Combined with federal and FICA, take-home is $63,886 (75.9% of gross). After the 101.3 RPP, real take-home is $63,047.

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. Virginia sits at #12 on nominal pay and #22 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, Virginia falls 10 positions — the cost premium eats into the headline wage.

Frequently asked questions

How much does an Accountant make in Virginia?: BLS reports a median annual wage of $84,190 for Accountants in Virginia as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $66,560 and the 75th-percentile is $109,670.
Where does Virginia rank for Accountant pay?: On nominal BLS wages alone, Virginia 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 Virginia?: P10 to P90 spans $57,150 to $145,750. That spread captures entry-level to top-quartile pay, including specialty differentials and metro-area variance within the 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.
Does CPA licensure raise accountant pay in Virginia?: BLS aggregates accountants and auditors under SOC 13-2011 — CPA-licensed and non-CPA pay are not split. In practice, CPA-licensed accountants in Virginia 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. Virginia requires 150 semester hours of education to sit for the exam (the AICPA Uniform CPA standard).
Public accounting vs industry vs government in Virginia — which pays more?: Public accounting (Big 4 / regional firm audit + tax) typically pays 10-15% below industry corporate-accountant pay at the staff/senior level, then crosses over at manager and above as billable-hour leverage compounds. Government accountants in {state} (state DOR, federal IRS/GAO, municipal) usually trail both private paths on base pay but lead on pension and job security. Industry controller/CFO-track roles in {state} push toward the BLS P75-P90 band.
Is busy season ($35K of overtime) included in Virginia 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 Virginia 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 Virginia 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.