How much do Accountants and Auditors make in Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA?

Percentile spread

For Accountants and Auditors, the published 10th percentile is $55,650 and the 90th percentile is $135,540. The difference is $79,890, which is 94.1% of the median. Ten percent of measured wages fall below the 10th percentile and ten percent fall above the 90th. How to read a percentile.

The middle half of the distribution, from the 25th percentile at $72,220 to the 75th at $108,940, covers $36,720.

The mean annual wage is $94,640, which sits above the median of $84,920. Median and mean measure different points in the same distribution.

National and state comparison

The Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA median is 1.5% higher than the national median of $83,680 for Accountants and Auditors. In 2024 national prices the local median is $77,273, which is 7.7% lower than that same national median. The national figure is already in national prices because the United States parity is 100.

It is 12.5% lower than the California median of $97,050.

Price-adjusted pay

The 2024 all-items regional price parity for Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA is 109.896, with the United States at 100. The Bureau of Economic Analysis released those parities on February 19, 2026. Dividing the May 2025 median of $84,920 by that parity and multiplying by 100 puts Accountants and Auditors at $77,273 in national prices. The wage year and the price year are different. Compare this wage after prices.

Nearby metros

17 other metropolitan areas within 200 miles publish a annual median for Accountants and Auditors. Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA ranks 9th of 18 on that median, counting itself. Distance is the great-circle mileage between Census Bureau internal points (U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 Gazetteer Files, Core Based Statistical Areas, internal points (INTPTLAT, INTPTLONG).).

• San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA is 36 miles away, with a median of $121,700 and employment of 13,180. That median is 43.3% higher than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $110,213, against $77,273 here.
• San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA is 55 miles away, with a median of $110,730 and employment of 25,170. That median is 30.4% higher than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $95,776, against $77,273 here.
• Salinas, CA is 66 miles away, with a median of $83,810 and employment of 1,050. That median is 1.3% lower than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $76,860, against $77,273 here.

Employment share

Accountants and Auditors accounts for 0.75% of wage-and-salary employment in Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA (740 of 98,500). Nationally the occupation is 0.93% of employment (1,449,500 of 155,495,730). The local share is 0.81 times the national share. That ratio is the location quotient computed from these May 2025 employment counts. It is not copied from the location-quotient column in the BLS bulk file.