The scorekeepers of money: people who record, check and investigate the numbers every organization runs on.
Top pay: highest pay, longest training
Accounting Firm Partner: A co-owner of an accounting firm who leads audits of big companies and brings in clients. Typical pay $400k.
Chief Audit Executive: Leads a company's internal audit department, reporting directly to the board on risks and controls. Typical pay $220k.
Audit Senior Manager: Runs multiple audit teams at an accounting firm, one step below partner. Typical pay $165k.
Small Accounting Practice Owner: Runs a local accounting firm doing taxes, bookkeeping and advice for small businesses and families. Typical pay $130k.
Accounting Manager: Leads the team that closes the books each month and makes sure the numbers are right. Typical pay $125k.
Technical Accounting Manager: The rules expert who figures out how to record unusual, complicated deals according to accounting standards. Typical pay $150k.
Mid pay: solid pay, degree or apprenticeship
Accountant: Prepares and checks financial records, makes sure taxes are paid and helps organizations understand their money. Typical pay $83k.
External Auditor: Works at an accounting firm checking whether companies' financial statements are accurate. Typical pay $85k.
Internal Auditor: Works inside a company checking that its money, processes and controls are working and honest. Typical pay $90k.
IT Auditor: Audits a company's computer systems to check that data is secure and financial systems can't be tampered with. Typical pay $105k.
Government Auditor: Audits government agencies and programs to make sure tax money is spent properly. Typical pay $85k.
Forensic Accountant: Investigates financial records to uncover fraud or calculate losses for lawsuits and police cases. Typical pay $100k.
Cost Accountant: Figures out exactly how much it costs to make each product so companies can price and profit. Typical pay $80k.
Royalty Auditor: Checks that songwriters, authors, inventors and brands are paid the correct royalties. Typical pay $90k.
Nonprofit Accountant: Keeps the books for charities, tracking how each grant and donation is spent. Typical pay $68k.
SOX Compliance Analyst: Tests a public company's financial controls to make sure its numbers can be trusted, as required by the Sarbanes-Oxley law. Typical pay $90k.
Revenue Accountant: Figures out exactly when and how a company counts its sales as revenue, following strict accounting rules. Typical pay $85k.
Joint Interest Billing Analyst: Splits the costs of oil and gas wells among all the companies and families that own a share. Typical pay $75k.
Union Finances Investigator (OLMS): A federal investigator who audits labor unions' books to catch officers stealing dues money and makes sure union elections are fair. Typical pay $88k.
Construction Accountant: Tracks the money on building projects: what each job costs, how far along it is, change orders, retainage and whether the contractor is making a profit. Typical pay $78k.
Hospital Reimbursement Analyst: Prepares the giant yearly Medicare cost report and other filings that decide how much government money a hospital receives. Typical pay $85k.
Starter: fastest way in
Bookkeeper: Records a business's sales, bills and payments so the books are accurate. Typical pay $49k.
Billing Specialist: Creates and sends bills to customers and tracks payments. Typical pay $46k.
Casino Revenue Auditor: Checks a casino's daily money from slots, tables and the cashier cage to catch errors or cheating. Typical pay $48k.
Inventory Auditor: Travels to stores to count products quickly with scanners for year-end audits. Typical pay $35k.
Accounts Receivable Specialist: Sends invoices, records customer payments and follows up when customers pay late. Typical pay $49k.
Accounting Clerk: Handles basic accounting tasks like entering transactions, reconciling accounts and filing records. Typical pay $48k.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.