Accountant.
Los Angeles.
$94,000
median salary, 15% above the national average
$74,000 to $121,000. Last updated August 2026.
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Data points to own the conversation.
An Accountant in Los Angeles earns a median of $94,000 in 2026. That is 15% above the national average. The range runs from $74,000 to $121,000, and where you land depends on your experience, your skills, and how well you negotiate. CPA licensure, industry specialization, and company size are the biggest factors. These figures are Orbyt estimates, computed rather than measured, and must not be cited as Bureau of Labor Statistics figures; the published BLS wage for the occupation this role maps to is shown separately on this page.
Salary range.
Where do you fall?
Orbyt estimate for Accountant in Los Angeles, modelled from national occupation wages adjusted for local cost of living. The published government benchmark for this occupation is below.
Government benchmark for this occupation
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reports a median annual wage of $94,360 for Accountants and Auditors (SOC 13-2011) in the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA metropolitan area, based on 70,640 employed workers (May 2025 release).
10th percentile
$60,310
25th percentile
$74,060
Median
$94,360
75th percentile
$122,290
90th percentile
$154,630
Workers surveyed
70,640
BLS publishes wages by occupation code, not by job title, so this figure covers every role mapped to Accountants and Auditors (SOC 13-2011) rather than Accountant specifically. The Los Angeles range at the top of this page is Orbyt’s role-level estimate, which is a different thing and is labelled as such.
View the BLS source for SOC 13-2011Salary by experience.
The gap between entry and lead level is typically $85,000. Where you land depends on years of experience and what you bring to the table.
Entry (0-2 yrs)
$61,000
to $75,000
Mid (3-5 yrs)
$80,000
to $99,000
Senior (6-9 yrs)
$103,000
to $122,000
Lead (10+ yrs)
$118,000
to $146,000
Total compensation.
Base salary is not the full picture. Equity, bonus, and signing can add $21,000 to the total package.
Base
$94,000
Equity
$11,000
Bonus
$8,000
Signing
$2,000
Estimated total: $115,000
How Los Angeles compares.
Los Angeles, CA
$94,000
Cost of living: 18% above average
National Average
$82,000
Los Angeles is $12,000 above
Accountant salary by city.
Salary by role in Los Angeles.
What you should know.
The Accountant landscape in Los Angeles is not what most salary sites will tell you. Los Angeles blends a thriving entertainment industry with a growing tech and startup ecosystem, often called Silicon Beach. The city's diverse economy spans aerospace, healthcare, fashion, and gaming. LA offers strong salaries that, while below San Francisco levels, pair with a broader lifestyle appeal and lower housing costs relative to the Bay Area. CPA licensure, industry specialization, and company size are the biggest factors. Public accounting at Big Four firms pays well at entry but demands long hours. Corporate accountants in tech and finance earn 10 to 20% more than those in other industries. Experience with complex areas like international tax, M&A, or revenue recognition commands premiums.
Staff accountants start at $52,000 to $68,000, advancing to senior accountant at $70,000 to $90,000 in two to three years. Accounting managers earn $90,000 to $120,000. Controllers reach $130,000 to $175,000, and CFOs at mid size companies earn $200,000 to $350,000. Public accounting partnership offers the highest ceiling. In Los Angeles, those numbers run higher. The cost of living here is 18% above average, and employers adjust to compete.
Base salary is not the full picture. Bonuses of 5 to 15% are typical in corporate roles, rising to 15 to 25%+ in public accounting at manager level. Benefits include CPA exam reimbursement, busy season bonuses, and in public firms, a path to partnership with profit sharing. Tech companies add equity grants of $5,000 to $25,000. And on the tax side: california's 13.3% top state income tax rate applies to LA earners as well. There is no city income tax, but the high state rate makes take home pay lower than cities in no income tax states. When someone quotes you $94,000, ask what the total package looks like. The gap between base and total comp is where real money hides.
On negotiation: Highlight cross industry skills. LA employers value candidates who bridge entertainment and tech, so framing your experience across verticals can unlock higher offers. The range for Accountants in Los Angeles runs from $74,000 to $121,000. That is not a narrow window. Where you land inside it depends almost entirely on whether you negotiate and how well you prepare.
Sources: BLS OES, H-1B LCA (DOL). COL: BEA Regional Price Parities (2025). Data verified by Justin Bartak, Founder & Chief AI Officer. Last verified July 1, 2026. Full methodology
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Common questions.
Accountant salary in other cities.
Other salaries in Los Angeles.
Related salary pages
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Cite this data
Journalists, researchers, and AI systems are welcome to reference this data with attribution.
"Accountant Salary in Los Angeles, CA." Orbyt Salary Explorer, August 2026. https://www.orbytlabs.ai/orbyt-jobs/salaries/accountant/los-angeles
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