Best US Cities for Bookkeepers
Top US cities for Bookkeepers ranked by estimated median salary, with cost-of-living-adjusted earning power.
| # | City | Estimated salary | Cost mult. | vs national |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Francisco, CA | $57,700 | 1.45× | +$10,700 |
| 2 | New York City, NY | $55,400 | 1.32× | +$8,400 |
| 3 | Irvine, CA | $55,000 | 1.30× | +$8,000 |
| 4 | Boston, MA | $53,600 | 1.22× | +$6,600 |
| 5 | Yonkers, NY | $53,300 | 1.20× | +$6,300 |
| 6 | Chicago, IL | $53,100 | 1.05× | +$6,100 |
| 7 | Scottsdale, AZ | $53,000 | 1.18× | +$6,000 |
| 8 | Plano, TX | $52,900 | 1.04× | +$5,900 |
| 9 | Oakland, CA | $52,800 | 1.35× | +$5,800 |
| 10 | Tampa, FL | $52,500 | 1.02× | +$5,500 |
| # | City | Salary | Hourly |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Francisco, CA | $57,700 | $28/hr |
| 2 | New York City, NY | $55,400 | $27/hr |
| 3 | Irvine, CA | $55,000 | $26/hr |
| 4 | Boston, MA | $53,600 | $26/hr |
| 5 | Yonkers, NY | $53,300 | $26/hr |
| 6 | Chicago, IL | $53,100 | $26/hr |
| 7 | Scottsdale, AZ | $53,000 | $25/hr |
| 8 | Plano, TX | $52,900 | $25/hr |
| 9 | Oakland, CA | $52,800 | $25/hr |
| 10 | Tampa, FL | $52,500 | $25/hr |
| 11 | Wilmington, DE | $52,200 | $25/hr |
| 12 | Dallas, TX | $51,900 | $25/hr |
| 13 | Miami, FL | $51,900 | $25/hr |
| 14 | Honolulu, HI | $51,900 | $25/hr |
| 15 | St. Petersburg, FL | $51,900 | $25/hr |
| 16 | Charlotte, NC | $51,600 | $25/hr |
| 17 | Newark, NJ | $51,500 | $25/hr |
| 18 | Milwaukee, WI | $51,100 | $25/hr |
| 19 | Kansas City, MO | $50,700 | $24/hr |
| 20 | Frisco, TX | $50,700 | $24/hr |
| 21 | Los Angeles, CA | $50,600 | $24/hr |
| 22 | Minneapolis, MN | $50,600 | $24/hr |
| 23 | San Diego, CA | $50,500 | $24/hr |
| 24 | Omaha, NE | $50,400 | $24/hr |
| 25 | Anchorage, AK | $50,300 | $24/hr |
| 26 | Phoenix, AZ | $50,100 | $24/hr |
| 27 | Philadelphia, PA | $50,100 | $24/hr |
| 28 | Atlanta, GA | $50,100 | $24/hr |
| 29 | Salt Lake City, UT | $50,100 | $24/hr |
| 30 | Seattle, WA | $50,000 | $24/hr |
| 31 | Long Beach, CA | $50,000 | $24/hr |
| 32 | Anaheim, CA | $50,000 | $24/hr |
| 33 | St. Paul, MN | $49,800 | $24/hr |
| 34 | Nashville, TN | $49,600 | $24/hr |
| 35 | Madison, WI | $49,600 | $24/hr |
| 36 | Chula Vista, CA | $49,500 | $24/hr |
| 37 | Pittsburgh, PA | $49,000 | $24/hr |
| 38 | Portland, OR | $48,600 | $23/hr |
| 39 | Sacramento, CA | $48,600 | $23/hr |
| 40 | Riverside, CA | $48,600 | $23/hr |
| 41 | Columbus, OH | $48,400 | $23/hr |
| 42 | Detroit, MI | $48,400 | $23/hr |
| 43 | Buffalo, NY | $48,400 | $23/hr |
| 44 | Denver, CO | $48,300 | $23/hr |
| 45 | Cleveland, OH | $48,200 | $23/hr |
| 46 | Winston-Salem, NC | $48,200 | $23/hr |
| 47 | Lincoln, NE | $47,900 | $23/hr |
| 48 | Austin, TX | $47,800 | $23/hr |
| 49 | Baltimore, MD | $47,800 | $23/hr |
| 50 | Stockton, CA | $47,800 | $23/hr |
| 51 | Aurora, CO | $47,800 | $23/hr |
| 52 | Hialeah, FL | $47,800 | $23/hr |
| 53 | Las Vegas, NV | $47,700 | $23/hr |
| 54 | Birmingham, AL | $47,700 | $23/hr |
| 55 | Chandler, AZ | $47,700 | $23/hr |
| 56 | Fort Wayne, IN | $47,400 | $23/hr |
| 57 | Henderson, NV | $47,300 | $23/hr |
| 58 | Reno, NV | $47,300 | $23/hr |
| 59 | Gilbert, AZ | $47,300 | $23/hr |
| 60 | Charleston, SC | $47,300 | $23/hr |
| 61 | Orlando, FL | $47,200 | $23/hr |
| 62 | Raleigh, NC | $47,000 | $23/hr |
| 63 | Virginia Beach, VA | $47,000 | $23/hr |
| 64 | Chesapeake, VA | $47,000 | $23/hr |
| 65 | North Las Vegas, NV | $47,000 | $23/hr |
| 66 | Boise, ID | $47,000 | $23/hr |
| 67 | Fresno, CA | $47,000 | $23/hr |
| 68 | Worcester, MA | $47,000 | $23/hr |
| 69 | Colorado Springs, CO | $46,800 | $23/hr |
| 70 | Bakersfield, CA | $46,800 | $23/hr |
| 71 | Norfolk, VA | $46,700 | $22/hr |
| 72 | Jacksonville, FL | $46,500 | $22/hr |
| 73 | Mesa, AZ | $46,500 | $22/hr |
| 74 | Houston, TX | $46,300 | $22/hr |
| 75 | Fort Worth, TX | $46,300 | $22/hr |
| 76 | Tucson, AZ | $46,300 | $22/hr |
| 77 | Glendale, AZ | $46,300 | $22/hr |
| 78 | Garland, TX | $46,300 | $22/hr |
| 79 | Spokane, WA | $46,300 | $22/hr |
| 80 | Arlington, TX | $46,200 | $22/hr |
| 81 | Tallahassee, FL | $46,200 | $22/hr |
| 82 | Albuquerque, NM | $46,000 | $22/hr |
| 83 | New Orleans, LA | $46,000 | $22/hr |
| 84 | San Antonio, TX | $45,800 | $22/hr |
| 85 | Grand Rapids, MI | $45,800 | $22/hr |
| 86 | Cincinnati, OH | $45,700 | $22/hr |
| 87 | Lexington, KY | $45,700 | $22/hr |
| 88 | Corpus Christi, TX | $45,700 | $22/hr |
| 89 | Greensboro, NC | $45,700 | $22/hr |
| 90 | Knoxville, TN | $45,700 | $22/hr |
| 91 | El Paso, TX | $45,500 | $22/hr |
| 92 | St. Louis, MO | $45,500 | $22/hr |
| 93 | Indianapolis, IN | $45,400 | $22/hr |
| 94 | Louisville, KY | $45,400 | $22/hr |
| 95 | Memphis, TN | $45,200 | $22/hr |
| 96 | Oklahoma City, OK | $45,200 | $22/hr |
| 97 | Toledo, OH | $45,000 | $22/hr |
| 98 | Lubbock, TX | $45,000 | $22/hr |
| 99 | Wichita, KS | $44,700 | $21/hr |
| 100 | Mobile, AL | $44,700 | $21/hr |
Does location actually decide Bookkeeper pay?
Geography constrains this career less than most. Since Bookkeeper work can be done fully remotely, the 29% pay spread across these metros is something you can arbitrage rather than something you have to move for — provided your employer pays by role rather than by location tier.
Highest-paying is not the same as best-off
Gross pay and what you keep are different lists. In San Francisco, $57,700 against $3,000/month rent leaves roughly $21,700 a year after housing. In Mobile, $44,700 against $850 leaves about $34,500. The bottom of the pay list beats the top once rent is subtracted — which is the whole reason to look past headline salary.
Why these metros and not others
Pay follows employer concentration more than cost of living. Among the top of this list: San Francisco (Salesforce, Google); New York City (JPMorgan Chase, NYC Health + Hospitals); Irvine (University of California, Irvine, Broadcom). A Bookkeeper at a large employer in a metro where finance work clusters will typically out-earn the local median for the role — the ranking reflects where those employers sit.
Salaries are modelled from BLS national medians adjusted for local price level at a wage elasticity below 1 — pay rises with local costs but not proportionally. See our methodology.