Accountant salary in the Central Pennsylvania nonmetro area

Pay in the Central Pennsylvania nonmetro area against Pennsylvania and the US

The middle half of accountants in the Central Pennsylvania nonmetro area earns $51,860–$84,580. The top tenth earns $102,820 or more, 2.5 times the bottom tenth, close to the US pattern of 2.6 times. The mean ($72,330) is 10% over the median, so a group of high earners pulls the average up; price a typical hire from the median. From the 25th to the 75th percentile, the local range is only $32,720 wide, against $37,660 across Pennsylvania and $42,790 nationally: employers in the Central Pennsylvania nonmetro area pay within a narrower band.

What to budget for an accountant here

The step from the 25th percentile to the median is $13,990 a year; from the median to the 75th it is $18,730, or about $24,168 once benefits are added. These percentiles describe what people in the job earn locally, not experience levels, so place your offer by the tasks and seniority you need.

For scale, the US median of $83,680 falls between the median and the 75th percentile in the Central Pennsylvania nonmetro area, and the Pennsylvania statewide median of $79,000 falls there too.

What a hire really costs in the Central Pennsylvania nonmetro area

At the $65,850 median, a local hire costs about $84,968 a year: benefits and payroll taxes other than paid leave are 22.5% of total compensation in US private industry², about $19,118 here. Recruiting, equipment and office space come on top. Benefit levels vary by employer, so treat this as an estimate.

We place executive assistants, customer support and e-commerce staff today; for accountants we answer within one business day whether we can help. Enter the monthly pay you have in mind to compare it with a local hire. The fee field shows our standard fee³; Deel's contractor plan is the default payroll tool⁴.

Other roles in the Central Pennsylvania nonmetro area

Of the 17 roles we track in the Central Pennsylvania nonmetro area, this one ranks #2 by median pay, after project coordinators ($87,860); recruiters come next at $62,990.

Measured against the US median, accountants rank #15 of the 17 roles we track in the Central Pennsylvania nonmetro area (-21.3%), between sales development representatives (-18.9%) and paralegals (-21.5%). The typical role here is at -12.0%, so, measured against the US, accountants cost less in the Central Pennsylvania nonmetro area than the area's general pay level would suggest. Accountants hold 7.5% of the jobs in these 17 roles in the Central Pennsylvania nonmetro area, 9.5% across Pennsylvania and 9.1% nationally. The job is a smaller part of the local workforce in these roles than it is nationally.

Other areas in Pennsylvania

Across the 20 areas of Pennsylvania with data for this job, the median runs from $65,690 in Altoona to $85,990 in Philadelphia-Camden, a gap of $20,300 a year. All 9 areas in Pennsylvania with more accountants than the Central Pennsylvania nonmetro area also pay more, among them Philadelphia-Camden, PA-NJ ($85,990) and Pittsburgh, PA ($76,940).

the Central Pennsylvania nonmetro area against other US metro areas

By number of jobs, the Central Pennsylvania nonmetro area is #191 of 521 US areas for this job. It is a mid-sized market, and its pay is in the bottom quarter of US areas. Outside Pennsylvania, Manhattan and Eagle Pass pay just above the Central Pennsylvania nonmetro area and Little Rock-North Little Rock and Pocatello just below. All four are within $520 a year of the median in the Central Pennsylvania nonmetro area. Of the three markets with about as many accountants, all three pay more.

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How these pages are built: methodology and data sources. Last updated 2026-11-12.