Guess what? The Robert Half salary guide is out. Although not a legally binding document, the guide does give us a good look into how the job placement behemoth has estimated salaries for the year ahead. Last year, Bob projected public accounting salaries would see a 3.7% bump, let’s see what they’ve got for 2027 public accounting salary projections.
If this is your first time seeing this data, their projections use a low, mid, high system. To them, low means “the candidate is new to the role or has limited experience and is still developing core skills” which is kind of funny to see on director positions but that’s how they do it so that’s what’s in the chart.
Without any further blathering, the chart for audit and tax positions:
| Job Title | Low | Mid | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Senior Audit Manager | $142,750 | $182,750 | $222,750 |
| Audit Manager | $98,750 | $115,750 | $133,750 |
| Senior Audit Associate | $74,250 | $88,000 | $97,500 |
| Audit Associate | $58,750 | $70,750 | $82,500 |
| Tax Director | $148,000 | $184,750 | $224,250 |
| Senior Tax Manager | $126,500 | $143,500 | $160,250 |
| Tax Manager | $104,250 | $124,000 | $143,250 |
| Tax Senior Associate | $78,500 | $96,500 | $111,500 |
| Tax Associate | $63,750 | $75,750 | $87,500 |
You can see our write-up of the 2026 public accounting salary projections to compare these positions if you’d like. The average for finance and accounting positions across the board, as calculated by Robert Half, is a mere 1.8% increase over 2026 (don’t shoot the messenger, we’re just reporting what they’re saying). A handful of job titles are getting bigger increases though:
- +3.8% Financial Analyst
- +3.7% Staff Accountant
- +3.6% FP&A Manager
- +3.3% Assistant Treasurer
- +3.3% Procurement Specialist
- +3.2% Payroll Specialist
The guide includes these tidbits for public accounting:
- 67% of finance and accounting leaders are making more competitive offers, especially for business-critical roles with limited talent pools.
- 69% are offering salaries above their planned range, citing the need to secure candidates with specialized skills as a top reason.
- 82% are offering higher pay for relevant AI skills, with half offering more for AI-related expertise than for other tech skills.
For those of you on the market, does this check out with what you’re seeing?
