Headline risk
20%
Moderate RiskRetail salespersons
United States AI Work Index tracks this occupation on the shared structural baseline and then layers on local demand resilience, wages, and confidence.
Why This Score
Share of job tasks that overlap with current AI capabilities
Median annual wage
Projected employment change over 10 years
Typical preparation needed for this occupation
Occupation profile
Sell merchandise, such as furniture, motor vehicles, appliances, or apparel to consumers.
Task evidence
100% weighted task match · 27% effective coverage
Scores combine AI task overlap, human advantages, and local demand. How it works
United States Now
Median Wage
USD 34,580
Employment 2024
3936.7K
Projected Change (2024–34)
-0.5%
Openings (2024–34)
555.8K
Wage distribution
Demand outlook
Overall employment of retail sales workers is projected to decline 0 percent from 2024 to 2034.
Role Profile
Tasks
- 1. Greet customers and ascertain what each customer wants or needs. AI use: 0%
- 2. Recommend, select, and help locate or obtain merchandise based on customer needs and desires. AI use: 99%
- 3. Answer questions regarding the store and its merchandise. AI use: 95%
- 4. Maintain knowledge of current sales and promotions, policies regarding payment and exchanges, and security practices. AI use: 0%
- 5. Describe merchandise and explain use, operation, and care of merchandise to customers. AI use: 96%
- 6. Ticket, arrange, and display merchandise to promote sales. AI use: 100%
Technologies
Requirements
Work context
Worker profile
Median age 35.8 · 2.7M employed
Under 25: 28% · 25–54: 50% · 55+: 22%
Related
No direct US role match is available yet for this occupation.
Source coverage
11/11 source families · O*NET 30.2 / OEWS 2024 / ORS 2025 / OOH 2025-08-28 / Projections 2024-34 / CPS 2025 / Anthropic task penetration
Mapping quality
crosswalk_exact · employment series present
Narrative & sources
Retail sales workers sell merchandise, spare and replacement parts, and equipment to customers.
Retail sales workers usually work in clean, well-lit stores. Most are employed full time. Schedules may vary, with evening and weekend work required in some jobs.
Retail sales workers typically do not need formal education to enter the occupation. However, some employers prefer to hire candidates who have a high school diploma or the equivalent. Most retail sales workers learn on the job.
The median hourly wage for parts salespersons was $18.00 in May 2024.
Overall employment of retail sales workers is projected to decline 0 percent from 2024 to 2034.
Published limitations
This page shows the local country layer, not realised individual job outcomes. The global structural baseline is shared across countries; only the local demand and wage layer changes here.
Built from O*NET occupation descriptions, task statements, technology skills, work context, Job Zones, Anthropic task penetration, BLS OEWS wages, BLS projection tables, BLS ORS requirements, BLS OOH narrative content, BLS skills data, and BLS CPS occupation age tables.