BLS OEWS May 2025
Bookkeeper salary, Raleigh-Cary, NC
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The median annual wage for Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC is $50,200 (BLS, May 2025, Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks, SOC 43-3031). That is $470 (0.9%) below the U.S. median of $50,670.
Direct match
BLS publishes this occupation under its own code, 43-3031 Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks. Titles, seniority and industry inside it still vary.
| Percentile | Wage | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| 10th | $37,650 | 10% of workers in this occupation and area earned less than this. |
| 25th | $43,460 | 25% earned less than this. |
| Median | $50,200 | Half earned less and half earned more. |
| 75th | $59,760 | 75% earned less than this. |
| 90th | $69,230 | 90% earned less than this. |
| Mean | $52,180 | Average wage across all workers. |
| Percentile | Wage | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| 10th | $36,000 | 10% of workers in this occupation and area earned less than this. |
| 25th | $43,520 | 25% earned less than this. |
| Median | $50,670 | Half earned less and half earned more. |
| 75th | $61,470 | 75% earned less than this. |
| 90th | $74,550 | 90% earned less than this. |
| Mean | $53,560 | Average wage across all workers. |
What BLS wages include and exclude
Wages for the OEWS survey are straight-time, gross pay, exclusive of premium pay. Base rate; cost-of-living allowances; guaranteed pay; hazardous-duty pay; incentive pay, including commissions and production bonuses; and tips are included. Excluded are overtime pay, severance pay, shift differentials, nonproduction bonuses, employer cost for supplementary benefits, and tuition reimbursements.
- Employment, area
- 7,550
- Location quotient
- 1.15
What changed since May 2024
| Release | Median |
|---|---|
| BLS OEWS May 2024 | $48,990 |
| BLS OEWS May 2025 | $50,200 |
The published medians differ by $1,210. Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2024 and May 2025. This is not an annualized growth claim. Area definitions and the workers represented can change.
What belongs in the pay comparison
OEWS includes straight-time gross wages, guaranteed pay, commissions and production bonuses. It excludes overtime, nonproduction bonuses and employer-paid benefits. If this person covers a payroll deadline, an overdue billing queue or a late close, the overtime bill is separate. A shift differential is also excluded. Compare the regular wage first, then explain the extra hours and any incentive in the offer rather than hide them inside one annual amount.
Recruiter's read
Qualitative view from our desk. Not BLS data.
For Bookkeeper, discuss the work behind these requirements: QuickBooks Online or Desktop (ProAdvisor a plus); bank and credit card reconciliations; AP and AR entry and 1099 prep. Ask what the person completed themselves and what a manager or specialist reviewed. A system name on a resume does not establish depth in that workflow. The BLS figure describes the listed occupation, not a separately measured rate for this exact opening.
Common questions
What is the median annual wage for Bookkeeper?
$50,200 in Raleigh-Cary, NC, NC, based on BLS May 2025 data for Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks (SOC 43-3031).
What does the middle half of workers earn?
The 25th percentile is $43,460 and the 75th percentile is $59,760 in Raleigh-Cary, NC, NC. That is where the middle half of workers in this occupation fall.
How many people work in this occupation?
BLS estimates 7,550 workers in Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks in Raleigh-Cary, NC, NC.
How much do the highest paid workers earn?
The 90th percentile is $69,230. 10% of workers earned more.
Does BLS publish this exact title?
Yes. BLS reports it as Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks.
Related areas and roles
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Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC, from BLS data.
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BLS OEWS May 2025, released 2026-05-15. These are published occupation estimates, not a quote for an exact niche title. Tool calculations use BLS values or your inputs, not predictions.
Reading this page's BLS evidence
What do the released numbers measure?
For Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC, the May 2025 OEWS row records a annual median of $50,200 under Bookkeeper (SOC 43-3031, Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks). The Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC mapping uses the occupation's own SOC line, but the survey does not separate employer-specific duties inside that line. The released Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC employment field is 7,550 jobs, which describes the SOC rather than a count of candidates available to take your opening.
How much room is inside the published band?
The middle-half annual band for Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC runs from $43,460 at P25 to $59,760 at P75, a width of $16,300. For Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC, the lower half of that band covers $6,740, while the upper half covers $9,560; the upper side therefore accounts for more of the middle-half spread. An offer for Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC can move within that published band without justifying an exact percentile claim, and these points do not identify junior, senior or manager pay grades.
How does this estimate compare with the national figure?
The Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC median is $470 below the national Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks median of $50,670. For Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC, that comparison uses the same SOC, release and annual unit rather than mixing a local title-specific claim with a national occupation total. The Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC location quotient is 1.15, an employment-concentration measure that cannot explain this wage difference or be used as a cost-of-living adjustment.
Which other metro estimates can you compare?
The Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC comparison uses the two nearest published metropolitan internal points: Goldsboro, NC, where the annual median for Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks is $45,700; Rocky Mount, NC, where the annual median for Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks is $44,320. These Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC neighbors are selected only from metros with a published median for the same SOC, so suppression can change which comparisons are available. For Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC, the geography comes from Census Gazetteer internal points where available, not a claim about commuting time, recruiting reach or an employer's payroll policy.
What can the industry rows tell you?
Among the loaded national industry rows relevant to Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC, the highest numeric annual medians are Monetary Authorities-Central Bank (NAICS 521000), $65,060; Monetary Authorities-Central Bank (NAICS 521100), $65,060. The Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC industry comparison excludes top-coded and suppressed medians from exact ranking and is limited to the industries loaded for this brand, not every possible industry. BLS does not provide an industry-by-Raleigh-Cary, NC wage cut in this dataset, so the Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC national industry figures cannot be labeled local industry premiums.
What changed in the published median?
For Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC, the prior 2024-05 median was $48,990, compared with $50,200 in 2025-05; the released medians differ by $1,210 upward. This Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC comparison is subtraction of published medians, not an annualized growth forecast or a claim that the same workers received that change. The Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC year-over-year cells use the same SOC and area code, but changes in the surveyed employment mix can still affect what the two medians describe.
What belongs outside the wage budget?
The Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC annual median of $50,200 is an OEWS wage measure, not a complete employer-cost budget. For Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC, guaranteed pay and incentive pay including commissions and production bonuses belong inside the OEWS definition, so adding all commission again would double-count a component the survey includes. Overtime, nonproduction bonuses and employer benefit costs are excluded from the Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC wage definition; budget those separately when relevant, but this Raleigh-Cary, NC row supplies no dollar amounts for them, equity or relocation.
Questions about this estimate
What does Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC's $50,200 median actually measure?
For Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC, this is the May 2025 annual median of Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks, SOC 43-3031. The Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC direct mapping does not establish a separately measured employer-specific rate for the opening.
How wide is the published offer band for Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC?
For Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC, P75 minus P25 is $16,300. The Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC endpoints are $43,460 and $59,760, not experience-level labels or an interpolated candidate percentile.
Can the industry figures be treated as Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC's local rates?
The loaded Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC industry rows describe national Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks wages. The Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC rows are not an industry-by-Raleigh-Cary, NC breakdown, so no local industry premium is calculated.
What changed between releases for Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC?
The Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC annual medians were $48,990 in 2024-05 and $50,200 in 2025-05. The Bookkeeper in Raleigh-Cary, NC difference is $1,210; this is not a forecast or a same-worker raise.