Career
Budget analysts
Help organizations plan and stick to their budgets.
$91,640
Median pay
+1.9%
Job growth, 2025–35
2,900
Openings a year
Bachelor's degree
Typical education
4 years
Typical time after high school
Here's what you actually need to know.
The work
What people in this job do
- Analyze monthly department budgeting and accounting reports to maintain expenditure controls.
- Provide advice and technical assistance with cost analysis, fiscal allocation, and budget preparation.
- Review operating budgets to analyze trends affecting budget needs.
- Compile and analyze accounting records and other data to determine the financial resources required to implement a program.
- Examine budget estimates for completeness, accuracy, and conformance with procedures and regulations.
The outlook
How the forecast changed this year
The deeper question
What kind of person does this path ask you to become?
What this work centers on
O*NET interest profile, scored 1–7.
The work
Do you want most of your days spent on information & systems, then persuasion & leadership?
Responsibility
Are you willing to be the one responsible for this?
“Analyze monthly department budgeting and accounting reports to maintain expenditure controls.”
Development
What would you need to build over the next 5–10 years?
Mathematics, Critical Thinking, Reading Comprehension, Judgment and Decision Making.
Trade-offs
What does it ask of you in exchange?
4 years of education after high school (bachelor's degree), for a median of $91,640 a year and 2,900 openings nationally each year.
Paths in
Degrees that lead here
- FinanceSee the degree →
- AccountingSee the degree →
- AccountingCIP 52.0301
- Accounting and FinanceCIP 52.0304
- Finance, GeneralCIP 52.0801
- Public FinanceCIP 52.0808
Paths across
Careers that use similar skills
- Accountants and Auditors$83,680 · +5.0%
- Treasurers and Controllers
- Financial Managers$166,570 · +9.7%
- Credit Analysts$83,510 · -4.3%
- Personal Financial Advisors$105,070 · +1.4%
Ask anything about this career.
“Would this make sense if I don't want to sit at a desk all day?” Answers will come from the sources on this page, with citations. Coming soon.
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Sources
- BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- BLS Employment Projections, 2024–34 (archived), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- O*NET 31.0 Database (August 2026), National Center for O*NET Development / U.S. Department of Labor. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 Crosswalk, NCES and BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-01.