Is Accounting a Business Degree? Careers, Salaries & ROI Explained (2026)

Yes, account­ing is a type of busi­ness degree, and in 2026 it remains one of the high­est-ROI busi­ness majors. Account­ing pro­grams are often offered as stand­alone degrees or as con­cen­tra­tions with­in busi­ness admin­is­tra­tion, and they pre­pare grad­u­ates for:

• CPA licen­sure
• cor­po­rate finance roles
• lead­er­ship careers

Some schools offer bachelor’s of sci­ence degrees in Busi­ness Admin­is­tra­tion with a con­cen­tra­tion in Account­ing. Any type of bachelor’s degree in account­ing will qual­i­fy you to become a Cer­ti­fied Pub­lic Accoun­tant (CPA), or con­tin­ue your edu­ca­tion with a busi­ness Master’s or PhD. Oth­er types of busi­ness majors include:

• Finance
• Busi­ness Admin­is­tra­tion and Management
• Mar­ket­ing
• Real Estate
• Human Resource Management
• Busi­ness Communications
• Inter­na­tion­al Business

Relat­ed:

• Best Self-Paced Online Colleges
• 10 Fastest Online Finance Degree Bachelor’s Programs
• Top Schol­ar­ships for Busi­ness and Busi­ness Admin­is­tra­tion Students
• Mas­ter­ing Online Busi­ness School: Top Tips for Earn­ing Your Busi­ness Degree Remotely

Is an Accounting Degree Still Worth It in 2026?

Yes, an account­ing degree con­tin­ues to be a valu­able invest­ment in 2026, even as automa­tion and arti­fi­cial intel­li­gence trans­form many areas of busi­ness. While some trans­ac­tion­al tasks like data entry and basic rec­on­cil­i­a­tions can now be auto­mat­ed, human judg­ment, eth­i­cal rea­son­ing, finan­cial inter­pre­ta­tion, and reg­u­la­to­ry com­pli­ance skills remain in high demand. As a result, accoun­tants who under­stand both foun­da­tion­al prin­ci­ples and evolv­ing tools con­tin­ue to be indispensable.

Sev­er­al growth areas are dri­ving increased demand for account­ing professionals:

• Cor­po­rate Account­ing: Com­pa­nies of all sizes need accoun­tants to man­age finan­cial report­ing, bud­get­ing, fore­cast­ing, and inter­nal con­trols. As busi­ness­es expand glob­al­ly and nav­i­gate com­plex finan­cial envi­ron­ments, demand for cor­po­rate account­ing exper­tise remains strong.
• Com­pli­ance & Risk Man­age­ment: Reg­u­la­to­ry scruti­ny has increased across indus­tries, from Sarbanes–Oxley report­ing to SEC dis­clo­sures and inter­na­tion­al tax com­pli­ance. Accoun­tants who can help orga­ni­za­tions mit­i­gate risk, ensure com­pli­ance with evolv­ing stan­dards, and design eth­i­cal frame­works are high­ly sought after.
• Data-Dri­ven Finance Roles: Account­ing pro­fes­sion­als who can inter­pret data, ana­lyze trends, and sup­port strate­gic deci­sion-mak­ing are more valu­able than ever. Roles that blend account­ing knowl­edge with ana­lyt­ics — such as finan­cial ana­lyt­ics, pre­dic­tive fore­cast­ing, and busi­ness intel­li­gence — con­tin­ue to grow.

Account­ing is also often con­sid­ered a “reces­sion-resis­tant” busi­ness major because finan­cial over­sight and stew­ard­ship are crit­i­cal regard­less of eco­nom­ic con­di­tions. Even in down­turns, orga­ni­za­tions need reli­able pro­fes­sion­als to man­age costs, opti­mize cash flow, and ensure accu­rate reporting.

The growth of online and non­prof­it account­ing degree pro­grams has made this field more acces­si­ble and flex­i­ble than ever. Many region­al­ly accred­it­ed col­leges offer online bachelor’s and master’s degrees in account­ing or account­ing con­cen­tra­tions that meet CPA eli­gi­bil­i­ty require­ments, allow­ing stu­dents to con­tin­ue work­ing while advanc­ing their education.

Finding the Best Accounting Degree 2026

Accounting vs Other Business Majors

If you are sure that you want to pur­sue a bachelor’s degree with a major in account­ing to get your foot in the door in a field of busi­ness, you should start by find­ing a pro­gram that meets your aca­d­e­m­ic and pro­fes­sion­al expec­ta­tions. For your ref­er­ence we have com­piled a list of the Top 15 Bach­e­lor of Account­ing Degree Pro­grams, all of which pro­vide great edu­ca­tion­al qual­i­ty and will qual­i­fy you for a num­ber of jobs. If any of the schools on the list offer an account­ing pro­gram that will get you start­ed in the field of busi­ness, you should request more infor­ma­tion by fol­low­ing the links to the school’s website. 

Is a Bachelor’s in Accounting Worth it?

Grad­u­ates with a bachelor’s degree with a major in account­ing, and spend some time gain­ing work expe­ri­ence in the field of busi­ness, will be qual­i­fied for a num­ber of high pay­ing jobs, including:

• Finan­cial Man­agers, who earn an aver­age annu­al salary of $125,080.
• Top Exec­u­tives, who earn an aver­age annu­al salary of $104,700.
• Sales Man­agers, who earn an aver­age annu­al salary of $121,060.
• Finan­cial Ana­lysts, who earn an aver­age annu­al salary of $84,300.
• Finan­cial Exam­in­ers, who earn an aver­age annu­al salary of $81,690.

As you can see, account­ing can be an extreme­ly lucra­tive major if you are moti­vat­ed in the field of busi­ness. Poten­tial stu­dents (and espe­cial­ly those look­ing to go into an account­ing pro­gram) should be aware of the return on invest­ment that they can expect from their degree, which they can fig­ure out by con­duct­ing A Cost/Benefit Analy­sis of a Bachelor’s Degree. While your bachelor’s degree will not explic­it­ly direct your career path, choos­ing a spe­cial­iza­tion with­in the field of account­ing can help give you a leg up on oth­er appli­cants with sim­i­lar cre­den­tials. Stu­dents who major in account­ing can often choose course­work from one of the fol­low­ing specializations:

• Eco­nom­ics and Finance
• Finan­cial Accounting
• Account­ing Infor­ma­tion Systems
• Actu­ar­i­al Science
• Tax Account­ing
• Foren­sic Accounting
• Busi­ness Law
• Man­age­r­i­al Accounting/Management Accounting
• Oper­a­tions Management
• Cor­po­rate Accounting
• Cost Account­ing
• Audit­ing

Accounting Salary & Return on Investment (2026)

Account­ing con­tin­ues to deliv­er one of the strongest returns on invest­ment among busi­ness majors in 2026, com­bin­ing sta­ble demand, clear career lad­ders, and strong long-term earn­ings growth.

Entry-Level vs. Mid-Career Salary Ranges

• Entry-lev­el accoun­tants (0–2 years): ~$55,000–$65,000
• Mid-career accoun­tants (5–10 years): ~$75,000–$95,000
• Senior accoun­tants / man­agers: $100,000–$130,000+ depend­ing on role and industry

Spe­cial­iza­tions such as tax, audit, foren­sic account­ing, and finan­cial analy­sis tend to sit at the high­er end of these ranges.

CPA vs. Non-CPA Earnings

• Non-CPA accoun­tants: Sol­id ear­ly earn­ings, but slow­er salary growth over time
• CPAs: Earn ~10–25% more on aver­age, with faster pro­mo­tion into senior, man­age­r­i­al, and exec­u­tive roles

The CPA cre­den­tial sig­nif­i­cant­ly boosts life­time earn­ing poten­tial and expands access to lead­er­ship, con­sult­ing, and advi­so­ry positions.

Public Accounting vs. Corporate vs. Government

• Pub­lic Account­ing (Big Four & region­al firms):
  High­er ear­ly work­load, faster pro­mo­tions, strong long-term upside
  Mid-career salaries: $85,000–$120,000+
• Cor­po­rate Account­ing / Indus­try Roles:
  Bet­ter work-life bal­ance, steady pay increas­es, strong ben­e­fits
  Mid-career salaries: $80,000–$110,000+
• Gov­ern­ment & Non­prof­it Account­ing:
  Low­er salaries, but strong job sta­bil­i­ty, pen­sions, and pre­dictable hours
  Mid-career salaries: $65,000–$90,000

Why Accounting Outperforms Many Business Majors on ROI

• Clear pro­fes­sion­al cre­den­tial­ing (CPA) increas­es salary ceiling
• Reces­sion-resis­tant demand across indus­tries and eco­nom­ic cycles
• Broad career flex­i­bil­i­ty (audit, tax, finance, com­pli­ance, ana­lyt­ics, leadership)
• Low­er edu­ca­tion­al risk com­pared to more gen­er­al busi­ness degrees
• Strong out­comes from afford­able non­prof­it and online pro­grams, reduc­ing stu­dent debt

For stu­dents seek­ing a bal­ance of income poten­tial, job secu­ri­ty, and upward mobil­i­ty, account­ing con­sis­tent­ly ranks among the high­est-ROI busi­ness degrees in 2026, espe­cial­ly when paired with CPA licen­sure and strate­gic specialization.

If you are cur­rent­ly employed with­in the field of busi­ness and are look­ing to get a degree in account­ing to take the next step towards a pro­mo­tion, you might con­sid­er an online account­ing degree. Online learn­ing will allow you the sched­ule flex­i­bil­i­ty to con­tin­ue work­ing at your job while tak­ing class­es wher­ev­er and when­ev­er it is most con­ve­nient for you. Major­ing in account­ing lends itself to online for­mats, as cours­es usu­al­ly require math and sta­tis­tic work which does not require hands-on activities.

Any pro­gram with AACSB accred­i­ta­tion will pre­pare you for the CPA exam, but there are lots of oth­er ways to take account­ing careers. Account­ing pro­fes­sion­als and account­ing grad­u­ates don’t nec­es­sar­i­ly have to look for jobs with account­ing firms. With an account­ing degree, you can also pur­sue relat­ed careers like:

• Strate­gic management
• Small business/entrepreneurship
• Risk man­age­ment
• Project man­age­ment
• Mar­ket­ing management
• Non­prof­it management
• Busi­ness management

Busi­ness pro­grams dif­fer depend­ing on the busi­ness schools, but gen­er­al busi­ness cours­es will help you learn about finan­cial state­ments, finan­cial records, busi­ness ethics, finan­cial report­ing, book­keep­ing, and more.

Can You Earn an Accounting Degree Online?

Yes, earn­ing an account­ing degree online is not only pos­si­ble, it’s wide­ly accept­ed in 2026 and increas­ing­ly com­mon among work­ing pro­fes­sion­als and career changers.

Online Accounting Degrees Are Widely Accepted

Accred­it­ed online account­ing degrees are viewed the same as on-cam­pus degrees by employ­ers. As long as the school holds region­al accred­i­ta­tion, your diplo­ma does not indi­cate that it was earned online. Today, many top uni­ver­si­ties offer ful­ly online account­ing pro­grams with iden­ti­cal cur­ricu­lum and fac­ul­ty to their in-per­son counterparts.

Ideal for Working Professionals

An online account­ing degree is espe­cial­ly well-suit­ed for:

• Work­ing pro­fes­sion­als bal­anc­ing full-time jobs
• Career switch­ers enter­ing account­ing or finance
• Par­ents and care­givers need­ing sched­ule flexibility
• Mil­i­tary mem­bers and veterans

Most pro­grams use asyn­chro­nous course­work, allow­ing stu­dents to com­plete assign­ments on their own schedule.

AACSB-Accredited Online Programs

Many of the best online account­ing pro­grams hold AACSB accred­i­ta­tion, the gold stan­dard for busi­ness schools. Choos­ing an AACSB-accred­it­ed online account­ing degree can:

• Strength­en employ­er recognition
• Improve grad­u­ate school eligibility
• Bet­ter pre­pare stu­dents for CPA-track careers

AACSB accred­i­ta­tion is not required for CPA licen­sure, but it is high­ly respect­ed in the account­ing profession.

CPA Exam Eligibility With Online Degrees

An online account­ing degree can ful­ly qual­i­fy you for the CPA exam, pro­vid­ed:

• The school is region­al­ly accredited
• You meet your state’s cred­it-hour and course­work requirements

Most states require 150 total cred­it hours, which many stu­dents com­plete through a com­bi­na­tion of:

• Online bachelor’s degrees
• Online master’s in account­ing programs
• Grad­u­ate cer­tifi­cates or addi­tion­al coursework

Always check your state board of accoun­tan­cy require­ments before enrolling.

Accelerated and Competency-Based Options

Online account­ing pro­grams often offer faster path­ways to grad­u­a­tion, including:

• Accel­er­at­ed terms (5–8 week courses)
• Year-round enroll­ment
• Com­pe­ten­cy-based edu­ca­tion (CBE) options that allow stu­dents to progress by mas­tery rather than seat time

These for­mats can sig­nif­i­cant­ly reduce time to degree and over­all cost—especially valu­able for CPA-bound students.

Accounting Degree FAQs

Is accounting a business degree or a finance degree?

Account­ing is con­sid­ered a busi­ness degree, not a finance degree. It typ­i­cal­ly falls under schools of busi­ness and is often offered as a major or con­cen­tra­tion with­in Busi­ness Admin­is­tra­tion pro­grams. While account­ing and finance over­lap, account­ing focus­es on finan­cial report­ing, com­pli­ance, audit­ing, and con­trols, where­as finance empha­sizes invest­ing, mar­kets, and cap­i­tal management.

Do you need an accounting degree to become a CPA?

You do not always need a spe­cif­ic account­ing degree, but you must meet your state’s CPA edu­ca­tion require­ments, which usu­al­ly include:

• A bachelor’s degree (in any field, in some states)
• A required num­ber of account­ing and busi­ness course­work hours
• 150 total col­lege cred­it hours

In prac­tice, a bachelor’s degree in account­ing is the most direct and effi­cient path to CPA eligibility.

Is accounting harder than other business majors?

Account­ing is often con­sid­ered more tech­ni­cal­ly demand­ing than many busi­ness majors because it involves:

• Advanced math and analytics
• Reg­u­la­to­ry stan­dards (GAAP, IFRS, tax law)
• Pre­ci­sion-based prob­lem solving
• High-stakes com­pli­ance and accu­ra­cy requirements

How­ev­er, it is also one of the most struc­tured and clear­ly defined busi­ness fields, which many stu­dents find eas­i­er to nav­i­gate than broad­er majors like man­age­ment or marketing.

Can accounting majors work outside accounting firms?

Yes—account­ing majors are high­ly ver­sa­tile. Grad­u­ates work in:

• Cor­po­rate finance and account­ing departments
• Gov­ern­ment agencies
• Health­care systems
• Non­prof­its
• Com­pli­ance and risk management
• Con­sult­ing firms
• Tech com­pa­nies
• Finan­cial plan­ning and advi­so­ry services

Many account­ing pro­fes­sion­als nev­er work in tra­di­tion­al account­ing firms at all.

Is an online accounting degree respected?

Yes. An online account­ing degree is ful­ly respect­ed when earned from a region­al­ly accred­it­ed insti­tu­tion. Employ­ers view accred­it­ed online degrees the same as on-cam­pus degrees, and online account­ing programs:

• Qual­i­fy stu­dents for CPA eli­gi­bil­i­ty (if state require­ments are met)
• Are wide­ly accept­ed by employers
• Often car­ry AACSB accreditation
• Are increas­ing­ly pre­ferred by work­ing pro­fes­sion­als and career changers

In 2026, online account­ing degrees are con­sid­ered main­stream, cred­i­ble, and career-valid path­ways into the profession.

Bottom Line

A well-cho­sen online account­ing degree offers flex­i­bil­i­ty, afford­abil­i­ty, and strong career out­comes. With wide­spread employ­er accep­tance, CPA eli­gi­bil­i­ty, and AACSB-accred­it­ed options avail­able, online account­ing pro­grams remain one of the smartest, high­est-ROI degree paths in 2026.

If you are con­sid­er­ing an online degree pro­gram, be sure to check out our The Essen­tial Guide to Online Bach­e­lors Degrees. If any of the schools on our list of the Top 15 Bach­e­lor of Account­ing Degree Pro­grams meet your cri­te­ria, be sure to vis­it their web­site for more information.

RELATED LINKS:

25 Best Bachelor’s in Accounting

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