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What Accountants actually earn*
We get asked all the time…
“Am I doing well”
“How am I doing against my peers”.
This is a complex question and salary cannot dictate that alone, but it can give you a data point to start your analysis from! So we asked 1100+ Accountants across the midlands two questions, what do you earn and how old are you?
The data
- We didn’t include day rate contractors. Only FTCs and permanent employees.
- The formula was BASIC + BONUS + CAR. It would be too confusing to start including pensions and benefits.
- *Data is West Midlands based
Early salary jumps feel small, but are big in % terms
A 20–24 year old sits on a median of around £28.5k. By 25–29 that’s £39k. By your early 30s, £50k.
That’s the part nobody feels at the time. The numbers in your early 20s look small, so the progress feels slow. But in percentage terms, your 20s are the fastest-growing decade of your whole career. You’re laying the foundation for every increase that comes after.
The best thing you can do is study
The best thing you can do in your 20s is study. Our research shows a jump up to £50k by the time you are 30, which is when most people (In industry) are finalising their qualifications.
Once you qualify, that status keeps your pay elevated for the long term. You have built yourself a floor that is unlikely to ever dip below £50k.
The numbers start feeling bigger in your 30s
In your 30s, life starts hitting you with responsibilities, and it is where you will rely on the experience you have built so far, the most. A 10% pay rise is suddenly £5k-£8k, and car allowances start creeping in.
Circumstances & Responsibilities
It is important you put the salary figures into the context of your own life. In your late 20s and early 30s, life can start throwing responsibilities at you fast! As an example, parents often slow their growth down for a few years during the early years of their childs life, and whilst I do not have the data, I would imagine those that do not have children earn a higher wage than those that do.
Frame everything against the backdrop of your own life, before assessing how your salary matches up to your bracket!
Late 50s pay dip
Pay slides about 15% in the late 50s, and I have seen this in other non accounting studies. There are a few things that can cause this.
Ageism in the workplace can be an issue, but also this is the time in their life that many may get made redundant and then not chase a job with quite as much pressure (and salary) as before. If you are made redundant at 56 and your mortgage is paid, often people chose to focus on work life balance, than constantly pushing for a higher salary!
60+
Those that are 60+ see their salaries rebound. Often qualified candidate go contracting at this point, as their time served in the profession and overall experience is seen as a bonus.
Contracting pays more than permanent, but comes with stability risks. Older candidates in more comfortable financial positions are in a great place to take advantage of that!
One number hides a lot of people.
Here’s the caveat that matters most: the median is just the midpoint. The spread around it is wide — and it gets wider with age. People take all sorts of paths in life, so if you are a 50 year old management accountant, you may be below the median but still well paid and very happy!Salary is just a data point, and it needs to be judged in the context of your wider life!
Feel free to follow me Daniel Taylor for more West Midlands insights.
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