Finance

Accountant Salary in District Of Columbia (2026)

The average Accountant in District Of Columbia earns around $85,000/year. After taxes, your estimated take-home is $64,371/year ($5,364/month).

Take-Home Pay Breakdown

CategoryAmount
Annual Take-Home Pay
$64,371
Monthly Take-Home Pay
$5,364
Biweekly Take-Home Pay
$2,476
Hourly Take-Home Pay

based on 2,080 hrs/year

$31/hr
Federal Tax
$9,870
State Tax
$4,257
FICA Taxes
$6,503
Effective Tax Rate

total taxes ÷ gross salary

24.27%
Estimates only — not tax advice. · Full disclaimer →

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Accountant Salary Ranges in District Of Columbia

Entry Level (0–3 yrs)

$58,000

/year

See tax breakdown →

Mid Level (3–7 yrs)

$85,000

/year

See tax breakdown →

Senior Level (7+ yrs)

$122,000

/year

See tax breakdown →

Not all Accountants earn the same — not even close

DC's accountant market is anchored by federal civilian accounting cluster (IRS Internal Revenue Service Headquarters Washington DC + Treasury Department + Office of Management and Budget OMB + Government Accountability Office GAO + Department of Defense Comptroller + Defense Contract Audit Agency DCAA Northern Virginia cross-border + Office of the Inspector General OIG + the substantial federal civilian accounting + GS-0510 accountant + GS-0511 auditor pay scales + the substantial federal civilian as one of country's largest US public sector accountant concentrations), DC-Northern Virginia cleared federal contractor accounting (Booz Allen + Leidos + SAIC + CACI + ManTech + IBM Federal + Deloitte Federal + KPMG Federal + Ernst & Young Federal + PwC Federal + the substantial DCAA + CAS Cost Accounting Standards + DCMA + FAR Federal Acquisition Regulation), Big 4 DC (Deloitte + EY + PwC + KPMG Washington DC + the substantial DC Big 4 federal practice as one of country's substantial US Big 4 federal concentrations), Capital One + Hilton + Marriott + Fannie Mae + Freddie Mac corporate accounting, DC-HQ regional CPA cluster (Aronson LLC Rockville MD cross-border + Cherry Bekaert DC + Weiss & Company Wheaton MD cross-border + the substantial DC-DMV regional CPA), plus Georgetown McDonough School of Business + George Washington Business + American + Howard CPA pipeline.

Partner / Director CPA Firm

$215,000–$425,000+ bonus

Partner at Big 4 DC + Aronson + Cherry Bekaert + Deloitte Federal · book

Senior Manager / Manager (Big 4 / Deloitte Federal)

$125,000–$200,000+ bonus

Mgr at Deloitte Federal + EY + PwC + KPMG + Booz Allen federal · book

Senior Federal Accountant (IRS / GAO / Treasury)

$108,000–$162,000+ GS-13/14

IRS HQ + GAO + Treasury · federal civilian accountant · GS-13/14

Senior Cleared Federal Auditor (DCAA / OIG)

$125,000–$192,000+ TC

DCAA Defense Contract Audit Agency + Inspector General · cleared · TS/SCI

Senior Tax Accountant (UHNW / Federal Lobbyist)

$108,000–$162,000+ bonus

DC + Georgetown + Foxhall UHNW + federal lobbyist tax accountant

Senior Government Contracts Accountant (FAR / CAS)

$118,000–$182,000+ bonus

Booz Allen + Leidos + SAIC + CACI · FAR + CAS Cost Accounting Standards

Senior Accountant (Capital One / Hilton / Marriott)

$92,000–$138,000+ bonus

Capital One + Hilton + Marriott + Fannie + Freddie · corporate accounting

Senior Forensic / Litigation Support

$108,000–$165,000+ bonus

DC federal forensic accounting + the substantial DC federal litigation support

Senior Auditor (Big 4 / Aronson / Cherry Bekaert)

$98,000–$148,000+ bonus

Audit at Big 4 DC + Aronson + Cherry Bekaert + Deloitte Federal

Mid-Level Accountant (3-6 yrs)

$72,000–$108,000+ bonus

Functional IC at DC major employers · transitioning to senior band

Junior Accountant (0-3 yrs)

$58,000–$80,000+ bonus

Georgetown McDonough + GW + AU + Howard CPA pipeline · entry band

Worth knowing: Federal civilian accounting (IRS + GAO + Treasury + OMB + DCAA) + DC-Northern Virginia cleared federal contractor accounting (Booz Allen + Leidos + SAIC + Deloitte Federal) + Big 4 DC federal practice tri-anchor is one of the country's distinctive concentrated US single-state federal accounting + cleared FAR + CAS + Big 4 federal accountant cluster and a feature most national accountant surveys understate for DC. Federal civilian accounting (IRS Internal Revenue Service Headquarters Washington DC + Treasury Department + Office of Management and Budget OMB + Government Accountability Office GAO + Department of Defense Comptroller + Defense Contract Audit Agency DCAA Northern Virginia cross-border + Office of the Inspector General OIG + the substantial federal civilian accounting + GS-0510 accountant + GS-0511 auditor pay scales). DC-Northern Virginia cleared federal contractor accounting (Booz Allen + Leidos + SAIC + CACI + ManTech + IBM Federal + Deloitte Federal + KPMG Federal + EY Federal + PwC Federal + the substantial DCAA + CAS Cost Accounting Standards + DCMA + FAR Federal Acquisition Regulation compliance). Big 4 DC federal practice (Deloitte + EY + PwC + KPMG Washington DC). Capital One + Hilton + Marriott + Fannie Mae + Freddie Mac corporate. DC-HQ regional CPA (Aronson LLC Rockville MD cross-border + Cherry Bekaert DC + Weiss & Company). Georgetown McDonough + GW + AU + Howard. DC progressive top 10.75% + DC NLC since 2024 anchor the DC accountant proposition.

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