Accountant salary in Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI

Pay in Milwaukee-Waukesha against Wisconsin and the US

The middle half of accountants in Milwaukee-Waukesha earns $66,720–$102,840. Pay is tightly grouped: the top tenth starts at $132,150, only 2.2 times the bottom tenth, against 2.6 times across the US, so the going rate is easier to read. The mean ($91,480) is 14% 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 $36,120 wide, between the figure for Wisconsin ($35,800) and the US figure ($42,790).

What to budget for an accountant here

Pay climbs faster above the median than below it here: the 75th percentile is $22,550 over the median, the 25th only $13,570 under it. An offer at the 75th percentile adds about $29,097 a year in employer cost. 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 Milwaukee-Waukesha, and the Wisconsin statewide median of $79,400 falls between the 25th percentile and the median.

What a hire really costs in Milwaukee-Waukesha

Pay is only part of it. Benefits and payroll taxes other than paid leave are 22.5% of total compensation in US private industry², which adds about $23,310 to the $80,290 median and brings it to $103,600 a year. 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 Milwaukee-Waukesha

Of the 17 roles we track in Milwaukee-Waukesha, this one ranks #2 by median pay, after project coordinators ($100,350); recruiters come next at $74,970.

Measured against the US median, accountants rank #13 of the 17 roles we track in Milwaukee-Waukesha (-4.1%), between HR assistants (-3.9%) and paralegals (-4.1%). The typical role here is at -1.3%, so this job follows the area's general pay level. Accountants hold 9.8% of the jobs in these 17 roles in Milwaukee-Waukesha, 8.9% across Wisconsin and 9.1% nationally. That is close to the national mix.

Other areas in Wisconsin

Across the 17 areas of Wisconsin with data for this job, the median runs from $74,210 in the Northwestern Wisconsin nonmetro area to $81,130 in Madison, a gap of $6,920 a year. No other area in Wisconsin has as many accountants, and 13 of the other 16 pay less.

Milwaukee-Waukesha against other US metro areas

By number of jobs, Milwaukee-Waukesha is #39 of 521 US areas for this job. It is one of the larger markets for this job and one of the better-paying ones. Outside Wisconsin, Burlington and Glens Falls pay just above Milwaukee-Waukesha and Odessa and Greensboro-High Point just below. All four are within $120 a year of the median in Milwaukee-Waukesha. Of the three markets with about as many accountants, two pay more.

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