Accounting
Federal headcount, average salary, length of service, and pay comparison for the Accounting occupation series (code 0510), drawn directly from the OPM FedScope dataset (June 2026).
The verdict
In the Accounting and Budget Group family, Accounting counts 8,731 employees, a mid-sized federal occupation at 0.4% of the federal civilian workforce, and headcount declined 22.4% from the prior period; pay averages $145,658, which pays above the federal-wide $117,339.
- Employees
- 8,731
- Share of workforce
- 0.4%
- Avg salary
- $145,658
- Avg tenure
- 16.1 yrs
FedScope read on Accounting (dense series)
Federal agencies employ 8,731 people in the Accounting occupation (OPM code 0510), accounting for 0.4% of the total federal civilian workforce of 1,953,300 for the June 2026 reporting window. Headcount in this occupation moved down by -22.4% versus the prior period, a useful gauge for job seekers on USAJOBS trying to assess whether this role is expanding government-wide or contracting under hiring freezes and attrition.
The average salary for Accounting is $145,658 per year. Salaries moved down by -0.1% from the prior period, a small shift, within the range of normal year-to-year rounding rather than a broad pay-table change. Average length of service in this role is 16.1 years, a long average tenure, typical of career federal roles where employees stay through much of a full career before retirement.
Accounting sits inside the Accounting and Budget Group family (code 05), which contains 18 related occupations across the federal government. Candidates browsing USAJOBS for Accounting postings should also review these sibling occupations in the Accounting and Budget Group family.
Accounting makes up 10.1% of the 86,835 employees across the Accounting and Budget Group family, ranking #4 of 18 occupations in that family by headcount. Its average salary ranks in the top half (81st percentile) of pay among Accounting and Budget Group occupations.
Salary context · rich-pay series
How Accounting pay compares to the federal average of $117,339
Occupation Average
$145,658
Federal Average
$117,339
vs. Federal Avg
+24.1%
Where Accounting ranks on rich federal pay
Its average salary of $145,658 is higher than 86% of federal occupation series (464 of 541). The highlighted bar marks where Accounting sits in the federal pay distribution.
Average-salary distribution across all 541 federal occupation series; Accounting ranks higher than 86%.
Related Occupations in Accounting and Budget Group
10 other occupations in the same family
| Occupation | Employees | Avg Salary | Avg LOS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Financial Administration and Program | 25,018 | $114,904 | 15.9 yrs |
| Budget Analysis | 12,255 | $131,861 | 16.8 yrs |
| Tax Examining | 10,631 | $56,610 | 10.9 yrs |
| Internal Revenue Agent | 7,678 | n/a | 13.6 yrs |
| Auditing | 5,808 | $144,351 | 17 yrs |
| Financial Clerical and Assistance | 5,304 | $56,817 | 10.7 yrs |
| Financial Institution Examining | 4,728 | $168,883 | 15.2 yrs |
| Accounting Technician | 1,754 | $61,366 | 12.3 yrs |
| Financial Management | 1,049 | $166,042 | 21.6 yrs |
| Military Pay | 738 | $63,334 | 11.7 yrs |
Nationwide peers near this dense headcount
Two peer sets for Accounting outside the Accounting and Budget Group family, on headcount and average salary axes that vary across all OPM occupation series.
Similar dense headcount
Nearest employee counts in other occupation families (8,731 here).
Similar rich average salary
Nearest average salaries in other occupation families ($145,658 here).
Key takeaways
- Accounting pays above the federal average by 24.1% ($145,658 vs $117,339 federal-wide), at the 86th percentile for pay among 541 tracked occupation series.
- A mid-sized federal occupation by headcount: 8,731 employees, 0.4% of the federal civilian workforce, and headcount declined 22.4% from the prior period.
- According to OPM FedScope June 2026, Accounting ranks #53 of 663 federal occupation series by headcount (the same employee_count ordering as our occupations directory).
- Accounting makes up 10.1% of the 86,835 employees across the Accounting and Budget Group family, ranking #4 of 18 occupations in that family by headcount.
OPM FedScope and Federal Workforce Data figures are federal civilian headcounts, average salaries, and length-of-service statistics - not job-quality scores, hiring advice, or a live vacancy listing. A larger or higher-paid agency is not a better employer.