The 2024 Accounting Today Salary Survey: Accountants' voices

July 31, 2024 4:47 PM

When it comes to compensation in the profession, accountants' opinions wildly vary.

Accounting Today and its parent company Arizent recently completed our inaugural accounting salary survey. It collected responses in May 2024 from over 560 accountants from firms of all sizes regarding their salaries, benefits and career trajectories.

We asked respondents: What is one thing you think someone entering the accounting profession should know about compensation? Is there anything you wish you had known about salary and compensation before joining the accounting profession?

Their responses ranged from positive reminders that the earning potential at the partner level is worth the long hours and stress, to strong suggestions that young people avoid the accounting profession altogether, and to advice on how to consider salaries, raises and promotions.

(See our Salary Survey feature, "Partners pinching pennies.")

The Good: Paid well and recession proof

Hand putting money coins stack growing, saving money for finance accounting concept.

"At some firms, a promotion does not necessarily equal a huge jump in pay. Salary increases are based on a combination of personal performance and overall firm performance. It is worth the wait to get to partner. We are paid well and are fairly recession proof. The grass may seem greener in industry when they offer you more money, but you will top out quickly."

— Partner at a midsized firm

The Good: There will always be work

"Public accounting is like working in the medical field. Yes, you can get out of school with the diploma, but there is so much more to learn than what college teaches you. And it takes years to learn all of the various things you need to know. It will always be a process of continual learning. That said, it is a good profession. You can work in any state. It doesn't matter if the economy is good or bad. There will always be tax work. The trick is to find an employer that you like and respect."

— Owner and managing partner at a small firm

The Good: A high ceiling

"The ceiling is extremely high for what you can make if you have the tolerance for high stress and good work ethic."

— Manager at a midsized firm

The Good: The money will come

"I have been doing this for 52 years. You have to love it to stick with it and the money will come. It is very hard work!"

— President at a small firm

The Bad: No transparency

"I wish I knew what I was worth and how to determine. I would say entry level is a different story as you are getting your foot in the door and exploring, but once you have experience it's hard to know what your worth is without asking around at other firms. Not many people are open about their salaries, so that makes it hard to see if you are being underpaid and undervalued or in a proper range."

— Audit manager at a midsized firm

The Bad: Not worth the money

"The hours and stress aren't worth the money."

— Senior accountant at a midsized firm

The Bad: A giant pyramid scheme

Ponzi scheme vector illustration. Business investment scam concept

"Look out for yourself. Partners are greedy. Public accounting is a giant pyramid scheme."

— COO at a midsized firm

The Bad: You'll wish you were hourly

"You're going to wish you were paid hourly during busy season."

— Senior tax associate at a large firm

The Bad: Arbitrary compensation

"Hours worked does not correlate to compensation, nor does effort. Much about compensation seems arbitrary, and firms will generally pay the least that they can in order to retain staff."

— Senior manager at a midsized firm

Advice: They need you more than you need them

closeup of handshake of business partners on the background of business team

"Don't take less than you are worth. They need you more than you need them. Most organizations pay accountants less than they are worth. The job requires long hours and in-depth knowledge of all operational and financial processes. No job requires that much involvement in an organization's job processes. A good accountant is worth more than gold."

— Senior accountant at a midsized firm

Advice: Get your CPA ASAP

"I would say do the work to get your CPA license ASAP — do not delay. It is the best thing you can do to jump to the next compensation level. I did not get my CPA license straight out of college like many classmates who majored in accounting did (I minored in accounting and was therefore missing two required classes to sit for the exams). It's harder to get your license while working full time, so if there is a quicker way to get it, do it."

— Staff accountant at a small firm

Advice: Choose another profession

"With the hours worked and education needed to work in accounting, people considering entering the field should consider other career paths such as engineering or medicine."

— Staff at a small firm

Advice: Be prepared to jump firms

"If making as much money as possible is the goal, be prepared to jump firms every few years. Many firms do not award long-term loyalty with appropriate salary increases after two to three years."

— Tax manager at a midsized firm

Advice: You eat what you kill

"You eat what you kill and the bigger the firm, the higher the fees, but you get to keep less. If you're an equity partner and your compensation is less than your individual fees collected (not total fees collected from your book of business), you are actually just an employee and partners are making money at your expense."

— Managing member at a sole proprietorship

Advice: Get as much as you can

"You need to get as much as you can upfront. Clarify when your salary will be reviewed."

— Manager at a small firm

Advice: Culture is greater than salary

"Culture is greater than salary. I could jump somewhere for maybe $10 to $20k more but I do not think I can replicate the culture of my firm. A lot of people I talk with have moved jobs for more money and almost immediately regretted it due to the work environment. I would rather take a steady, reasonable paycheck, with job security and ethical bosses than move to a higher paying job where I'm constantly fearing retaliation or being fired."

— Manager at a large firm