The Top 10 Cities Worldwide To Become An Accountant And Make It

Number crunchers are everywhere, wherever there is businesses and large corporations, there is a need for accountancy. But where is it best to become an accountant and use those skills to progress and become to the best of the best? Well, it’s a numbers game! We will need to look at the cities that bring the biggest concentration of business , and therefore accountancy jobs.
Let’s both look at cities from average salary to the commute times, this list will help you to determine the best place to be an accountant, whether you would like to relocate and move onto a better career ladder and see if the grass is greener on the other side, or you are just interested for research reasons, either way this list is for you!
Coming In At #10 Is Seattle, Washington
Yes, Seattle may have a…. gloomy reputation, but Seattle is among one of the most luscious places to live, infact, Investment News even ranks it one of the best places to live due to it’s cultural amenities, colleges and percentage of the population holding graduate degree’s!
This also makes it a top choice accountants and auditors alike. The salary is very respective around this city, at the same time the cost of living is not that sharp on the wallet. It is also the HQ of one of the biggest accountancy firms (11TH) in the United States. The average salary for accounting is, $66,950 for accounting/auditing and $38,460 for bookkeeping, the population is just 565,000 and the unemployment rates are astronomically low.
At A Steady #9 Is Minneapolis
This city is more tech-friendly, there are also close to 40,000 accountants working in Minneapolis (and it’s twin city St. Paul). MN is also home to the top 20 accounting firms, here are a few… RSM, LarsonAllen LLP and Mcgladery. Salaries to work here as an accounting are like those of in New York, accept the cost of living is a lot lower! Salaries can include $63,300 on accountant/auditor and $36,490 for bookkeeping.
At A Great #8 Is Denver, Colorado
This city is a great combination of urban and low cost living with natural beauty. Denver has a huge range of different professions, it is also on the low end of 6.8% of unemployment rates. The average salaries are between $68,290 to $69,830, school graduates are in the 82% range and the population is currently in the 600,000.
At Lucky #7 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Philadelphia is home of the cheesesteak, but of course, it has much more to offer than this! Philadelphia has the fourth highest gross domestic product among the American cities. The city also boasts 45k accountants, auditors and bookkeepers, the salaries boast a cool calm $36,740 – $73,850. I think the only down side to this city is the commute times to work, where on average it takes 31 minutes!
At Sweet #6 Is Phoenix Arizona

Hate the winter weathers? Want to live in one of the fastest growing cities on the planet? Dig out them sunglasses and take a look at Phoenix! Boasting 40,000 accountants and more, many bookkeepers are flocking to Phoenix where there is plenty opportunity and lots of sun. Now the average salaries… accountant/auditor is $56,380 to the bookkeeper at $35,160. The population is of course higher than the other cities we went over the population currently runs at 1.4 million.
At #5 Is the Capitol Of Washington, DC
No, you do not need to be a politician or lobbyist to reside here in Washington, DC. This is a great place for workers of all kinds, Washington also has one of the lowest employment rates in the country. The average salary here is $40,870 – $75,830, the population is at 600,000 and the unemployment rate is 6.1% which is astronomically low.
At #4 We Have The Big Bad City Of Chicago
This windy city has towering blocks of financial institutes, the only city Chicago can look up to is New York in this case. This is home to the 6th and 7th largest accountancy firm in the USA, Grant Thornton and BDO Sideman. Over 80,000 people work as accountants in this city and the salaries are nothing to be sniffed at; accounting/auditing runs at $70,730 and bookkeeping is $36,800. This huge city has a population of 2.7 million and the unemployment rates run at 10.3%.
Coming In At #3 Boston, MA
Boston is known across all states for it’s high concentration of universities, but there is a lot more to Boston, eating seafood or cheering for the Red Sox. Investopia named Boston one of the top cities in the world for finance, making this the perfect place for accountants to live! Boston is currently home to more than 50,000 accountants and auditors. The salary ranges from $39,530 to $69,700. Boston also has a low unemployment rates compared to the other cities we have looked at; 7.7%.
At #2, Home Of The Cowboys, Houston, TX
Houston received a top ranking on Kiplinger’s best cities of 2008. The reason why was because the unemployment levels and the cost of living were relatively low compared to other American cities and metro areas. The Big Four firms have offices in and around Houston along with many electricity companies calling Houston, home! Accountants salaries here begin at $34,170 all the way up to $68,260. The unemployment rates here are 8.2% of the population, which is 2 million.
And Of Course We all Know #1 NEW YORK!
You knew that no other city could take it’s place, right? New York has tower blocks that dwarf the competition, and also blow the other cities out of the water with over 140,000 accountants, auditors and bookkeepers! With all four of the biggest accounting firms having homes here, the big apple is the best place for any accountant to make or break him, if you want to be in finance, this is the place for you!
New York’s Statistics:
Salaries: $39,360 – $69,830
Population: 8,200,000
Unemployment rates: 8.9%

Featured images:

•  License: Creative Commons image source
•  License: Creative Commons image source

George worked for a Birmingham Accountants back in the 80’s but is now retired, he has worked all over the world and audited books for some ofthe biggest brands in the USA. He now owns his own blog giving out top notch advice and motivational speech to new accountants that are struggling to climb the ladder.