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Tax Preparers pay in Portland-South Portland, ME and San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA
The May 2025 BLS OEWS median for Tax Preparers is $50,070 per year in Portland-South Portland, ME. It is $84,240 per year in San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA. Portland-South Portland, ME is 40.6% below San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA on the published median.
Both rows use SOC 13-2082 and the same annual wage metric. Median means the middle of each area's published wage spread. It is not one worker's pay. The larger median is not proof that one place gives a better job or a better result. It is one wage fact from one source period.
BLS lists Not published wage and salary jobs in Portland-South Portland, ME and 1,410 in San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA. Those are survey job counts, not open posts. Read pay, job scale, local share, and price level as separate facts before you make a choice.
