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Senior cost accountant salary

Quoted expert
Thomas King

Average senior cost accountant salary

$65,824

$31.65 hourly rate

Entry-level senior cost accountant salary
$48,000 yearly salary
Updated December 15, 2025

Understanding the Senior Cost Accountant Salary

The average salary for a Senior Cost Accountant in the United States is approximately $65,824 per year or about $32 per hour. This figure varies based on factors such as geographical location, years of experience, and industry sector.

In states like California and New York, salaries can be significantly higher due to the cost of living and demand for skilled professionals. For example, top-paying industries for Senior Cost Accountants include finance, manufacturing, and healthcare

Experience also plays a vital role in salary progression. Professionals with over ten years in the field often command salaries exceeding $80,000 annually. With the right credentials and expertise, career advancement opportunities abound, allowing Senior Cost Accountants to transition into managerial roles or specialized financial consulting positions.

In summary, the Senior Cost Accountant role not only offers a solid salary but also a pathway to growth within the financial sector.

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Where can a Senior Cost Accountant earn more?

Compare salary by location
Vs
101k
81k
61k
41k
21k
Columbus, OH$77,819
Omaha, NE$50,617
Compare salary by company
Vs
129k
109k
89k
69k
49k
OraSure Technologies$102,909
Globus Medical$79,094

Senior cost accountant salary estimates from across the web

Based on the latest salary information compiled by Zippia, Salary.com, Indeed, Glassdoor, Ziprecruiter, Comparably and Payscale, the average salary for a senior cost accountant typically falls between $65,824 and $115,847.
zippia
$65,824yearly
glassdoor[1]
$108,047yearly
indeed[2]
$93,484yearly
comparably[3]
$115,847yearly
Salary.com[4]
$95,900yearly
ZipRecruiter[5]
$90,500yearly
payscale[6]
$82,220yearly

Average senior cost accountant salary by state

The average senior cost accountant salary in New Jersey, New York, and California are the highest in the U.S. The lowest average senior cost accountant salary states are West Virginia, Wyoming, and South Dakota.

  • State view
  • County view
Average salary:

Highest paying states for senior cost accountants

RankStateAvg. salaryHourly rate
1District of Columbia$77,604$37.31
2Connecticut$69,592$33.46
3Massachusetts$71,768$34.50
4New York$72,867$35.03
5New Jersey$77,192$37.11
6Arizona$67,773$32.58
7Rhode Island$65,532$31.51
8California$72,147$34.69
9Texas$65,354$31.42
10Delaware$67,127$32.27
11New Hampshire$68,062$32.72
12Pennsylvania$63,668$30.61
13Georgia$63,828$30.69
14Virginia$65,714$31.59
15Colorado$61,149$29.40
16Illinois$59,611$28.66
17North Carolina$62,423$30.01
18Oklahoma$62,157$29.88
19Alabama$61,450$29.54
20Minnesota$59,668$28.69
21Missouri$60,016$28.85
22Florida$60,117$28.90
23Wisconsin$59,746$28.72
24Washington$63,453$30.51
25Ohio$57,419$27.61
26Tennessee$56,927$27.37
27Indiana$58,947$28.34
28Nevada$56,043$26.94
29Maryland$58,154$27.96
30New Mexico$60,278$28.98
31Oregon$58,309$28.03
32Alaska$60,158$28.92
33Kentucky$57,346$27.57
34South Carolina$59,023$28.38
35Michigan$55,133$26.51
36Louisiana$55,777$26.82
37Arkansas$55,609$26.74
38Iowa$50,989$24.51
39Utah$51,917$24.96
40Idaho$55,766$26.81
41Hawaii$48,441$23.29
42Montana$45,419$21.84
43Kansas$52,859$25.41
44Mississippi$50,474$24.27
45Vermont$55,250$26.56
46Nebraska$50,606$24.33
47Maine$51,727$24.87
48West Virginia$49,734$23.91
49Wyoming$49,604$23.85
50South Dakota$49,451$23.77
51North Dakota$46,368$22.29

Highest paying cities for senior cost accountants

The highest-paying cities for senior cost accountants are San Francisco, CA, Ewing, NJ, and Phoenix, AZ.

RankCityAvg. salaryHourly rate
1San Francisco, CA$77,819$37.41
2Ewing, NJ$77,142$37.09
3Phoenix, AZ$67,787$32.59
4Wilmington, DE$67,303$32.36
5San Antonio, TX$65,787$31.63
6Philadelphia, PA$64,497$31.01
7Seattle, WA$63,751$30.65
8Atlanta, GA$63,729$30.64
9Raleigh, NC$63,062$30.32
10Colorado Springs, CO$61,624$29.63
11Tampa, FL$60,212$28.95
12Niles, IL$59,783$28.74
13Brooklyn Park, MN$59,665$28.69
14Indianapolis, IN$58,835$28.29
15Columbus, OH$57,303$27.55
16Memphis, TN$56,772$27.29
17Las Vegas, NV$55,332$26.60
18Salt Lake City, UT$51,718$24.86
19Cedar Rapids, IA$51,233$24.63
20Omaha, NE$50,617$24.34

Senior cost accountant salary details

A senior cost accountant's salary ranges from $48,000 a year at the 10th percentile to $89,000 at the 90th percentile.

Average senior cost accountant salary graph
Average senior cost accountant salary graph, trends, and summary

What is a senior cost accountant's salary?

PercentileAnnual salaryMonthly salaryHourly rate
90th Percentile$89,000$7,417$43
75th Percentile$77,000$6,417$37
Average$65,824$5,485$32
25th Percentile$56,000$4,667$27
10th Percentile$48,000$4,000$23

Highest paying senior cost accountant jobs

The highest paying types of senior cost accountants are account leader, cost accounting manager, and senior tax accountant.

Job titleAnnual salaryMonthly salaryHourly rateJob openings
Accounting Supervisor$68,923$5,744$33.1456,377
Account Leader$108,843$9,070$52.33135,207
Accounting Consultant$62,830$5,236$30.2174,894
Accountant/Consultant$64,298$5,358$30.9138,916
Finance Analyst/Accountant$62,975$5,248$30.28118,043
Tax Accountant$62,142$5,178$29.8857,919

How would you rate the starting salaries for senior cost accountants, as well as the prospects for salary advancement?

Thomas King

Department Chair, Director, Master of Accountancy Program, Professor, Accountancy, Case Western Reserve University

Starting salaries vary with accounting graduates, from $50k to six figures. It depends on the particular employer and job. Those students who demonstrate a strong work ethic, networkability, and good communication skills earn attractive salaries.

Top companies hiring senior cost accountants now:

  1. General Motors jobs (10)
  2. Hologic jobs (6)
  3. Zebra Technologies jobs (6)
  4. Dean and jobs (6)
  5. AT&T jobs (8)

Which companies pay senior cost accountants the most?

Senior cost accountant salaries at OraSure Technologies and Micron Technology are the highest-paying according to our most recent salary estimates. In addition, the average senior cost accountant salary at companies like Skyworks Solutions and Fortinet are highly competitive.

RankCompanyAverage salaryHourly rate
1OraSure Technologies$102,909$49.48
2Micron Technology$99,011$47.60
3Skyworks Solutions$95,006$45.68
4Fortinet$93,660$45.03
5NuVasive$92,795$44.61
6Hologic$91,276$43.88
7Zebra Technologies$91,246$43.87
8OSI Systems$91,218$43.85
9Sherpa$91,104$43.80
10Analogic$90,922$43.71
11Coherent$89,701$43.13
12Wabtec Corporation$88,532$42.56
13Aventine Hill Partners$87,062$41.86
14REV Group$85,696$41.20
15ITT$85,031$40.88
16DuPont$84,672$40.71
17MaxLinear$84,641$40.69
18Thermo Fisher Scientific$82,078$39.46
19AMETEK$80,207$38.56
20Globus Medical$79,094$38.03

Wage gap by gender, race and education

$66,000$65,200$64,400$63,600$62,800$62,000
MaleFemale

Senior Cost Accountant salary by industry

The average senior cost accountant salary varies across industries:

  • The average senior cost accountant salary in the health care industry is $74,446, the highest of any industry.
  • The average senior cost accountant salary in the finance industry is $70,117.
  • Senior cost accountants in the hospitality industry earn an average salary of $65,525, the lowest of any industry.

Highest paying industries for senior cost accountants

RankIndustryAverage salaryHourly rate
1Health Care$74,446$35.79
2Manufacturing$70,117$33.71
3Technology$68,097$32.74
4Hospitality$65,525$31.50

High paying senior cost accountant jobs

Senior cost accountant salary trends

The average senior cost accountant salary has risen by $9,584 over the last ten years. In 2014, the average senior cost accountant earned $56,240 annually, but today, they earn $65,824 a year. That works out to a 8% change in pay for senior cost accountants over the last decade.

Compare senior cost accountant salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.

Average senior cost accountant salary over time

Compare senior cost accountant salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.

Senior cost accountant salary by year

YearAvg. salaryHourly rate% Change
2026$65,800$31.65+2.7%
2025$64,000$30.78+1.5%
2024$63,100$30.33+1.6%
2023$62,100$29.83+1.7%
2022$61,000$29.32+1.4%

Recently added senior cost accountant salaries

CompanyJobLocationDate addedSalary
Solectron CorpSenior Cost AccountantFontana, CA06/30/2025$81,700
RelativitySenior Cost AccountantLong Beach, CA06/29/2025$89,000
IDEXSenior Cost AccountantHenrietta, NY06/28/2025$76,200
Teledyne TechnologiesSenior Cost AccountantPoway, CA06/26/2025$77,000
TeledyneSenior Cost AccountantPoway, CA06/26/2025$77,000
Avita Medical AmericasSR. Cost Accountant and AnalystSanta Clarita, CA06/25/2025$90,000
Beckman CoulterSenior Cost Accountant-ManufacturingMiami, FL06/21/2025$100,000
Aston CarterSenior Cost AccountantScranton, PA06/18/2025$90,000
Kelly ServicesSenior Cost AccountantMesa, AZ06/17/2025$90,000
Hire Point RecruitingSenior Cost AccountantParsippany-Troy Hills, NJ06/15/2025$80,000

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