Accountant salary in Nigeria (2026)
Accountant pay in Nigeria typically runs from ₦120,000 to ₦700,000 a month gross, with a median around ₦280,000. Below: what that buys in each city, and what you actually take home.
Salary data: NaijaCalc compiled range from published Nigerian salary surveys and job-board postings, Sep 2026. · Data as of 2026-09-10 · Confidence: medium
Figures are MONTHLY GROSS salary in naira, compiled as ranges from published Nigerian salary surveys (MySalaryScale, SalaryExplorer, Payscale, Glassdoor NG) and job-board postings. They are planning estimates for negotiation and budgeting — not offers, not averages from a census, and not tax advice. Every page renders the confidence tier and this caveat. The single highest-value maintenance task on this site is replacing these estimates with reader-submitted, verified payslips.
Take-home pay on the median
Under the Nigeria Tax Act 2025 the first ₦800,000 of chargeable income is tax-free, and 8% goes to pension. On a gross salary of ₦280,000:
| Line | Annual | Monthly |
|---|---|---|
| Gross salary | ₦3,360,000 | ₦280,000 |
| Pension (8%) | −₦268,800 | −₦22,400 |
| Take-home (before PAYE) | ₦3,091,200 | ₦257,600 |
Get your exact take-home pay →
Accountant salary by city
Adjusted using each city's overall cost index against a national baseline of 100.
| City | Low | Median | High | Cost index |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lagos | ₦220,000 | ₦520,000 | ₦1,295,000 | 185 |
| Abuja | ₦205,000 | ₦475,000 | ₦1,190,000 | 170 |
| Port Harcourt | ₦175,000 | ₦405,000 | ₦1,015,000 | 145 |
| Ibadan | ₦115,000 | ₦270,000 | ₦670,000 | 96 |
| Kano | ₦105,000 | ₦245,000 | ₦615,000 | 88 |
| Enugu | ₦115,000 | ₦270,000 | ₦680,000 | 97 |
| Benin City | ₦110,000 | ₦250,000 | ₦630,000 | 90 |
| Kaduna | ₦105,000 | ₦240,000 | ₦600,000 | 86 |
| Warri | ₦140,000 | ₦330,000 | ₦825,000 | 118 |
| Jos | ₦100,000 | ₦230,000 | ₦580,000 | 83 |
| Abeokuta | ₦105,000 | ₦245,000 | ₦610,000 | 87 |
| Ilorin | ₦95,000 | ₦220,000 | ₦555,000 | 79 |
| Uyo | ₦115,000 | ₦265,000 | ₦660,000 | 94 |
| Owerri | ₦110,000 | ₦260,000 | ₦650,000 | 93 |
| Calabar | ₦100,000 | ₦240,000 | ₦595,000 | 85 |
| Sokoto | ₦90,000 | ₦215,000 | ₦530,000 | 76 |
| Maiduguri | ₦90,000 | ₦205,000 | ₦520,000 | 74 |
| Asaba | ₦120,000 | ₦275,000 | ₦685,000 | 98 |
Entry route
ICAN or ANAN qualification is the gate to the upper half of the range.
Unqualified bookkeepers sit at the bottom; chartered accountants in industry sit at the top. The credential gap is worth more than years of experience.
Remote work: this profession is commonly performed remotely, which matters a great deal in Nigeria — a foreign employer paying in dollars or pounds can sit several multiples above the local ceiling for the same work.