Accountants and Auditors Salary

It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $71K, rent takes 43.9% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $2,023/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $1,400/month in rent — so roommates or a 1-bedroom would ease the math significantly.

The 10th-percentile wage — what new accountants and auditors typically earn — is $46K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $2,735/month.

Local pay runs 16% below the national median — $71K here vs. $84K nationally.

South Central Kentucky nonmetropolitan area pays $71K median vs. the U.S. average of $84K — that’s -16%.

The median is $70,620 a year, that works out to about $34 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $45,590, and experienced accountants and auditors can clear $105,350. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.

On that salary, you'd take home roughly $4,604/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $2,023/month, which eats 43.9% of your paycheck. That's above the 30% rule of thumb, housing will be a stretch at the median salary, though you can manage with roommates or a smaller place.

South Central Kentucky nonmetropolitan area has a Regional Price Parity of 100 (100 is the national average). That's right at the national average. After cost-of-living adjustment, the median accountants and auditors salary is worth about $70,620 in national-average purchasing power.

The table above ranks every state by median pay for this role. Keep in mind that the highest-paying states tend to have the highest costs of living, so the top salary doesn't always mean the most money in your pocket.