← All 785 jobsFile 41-2031
Retail Salespersons
Also filed here: Retail, Shop assistant, Store associate, Sales associate, Showroom sales
Lightly edited
AI performs some of this work. Most of it still needs a person. The BLS expects 0.3% fewer of these jobs by 2035.
- Rank
- #290 of 785 jobs, by how much of the work AI does
- US jobs, 2025 to 2035
- -0.3% All jobs: +3.5%
- Median US pay
- $35,410 a year, 2025
- People doing it
- 4 million in the US, with about 520,600 openings a year
The work, 20 activities
The job description, marked up.
Every activity in this job, the biggest first. Tap a line for the evidence.
- deleAI does this
- +AIAI helps
- stetStill yours
AI helps with this: Advise others on products or services11%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 196 conversations, and it got them there 92% of the time. In this job the work is hands-on, so AI can only assist.
AI does this: Provide general assistance to others, such as customers, patrons, or motorists10%
AI performed this in about 1 in 9 Copilot conversations and completed it 83% of the time.
AI helps with this: Determine values or prices of goods or services8%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 224 conversations, and it got them there 86% of the time. In this job the work is hands-on, so AI can only assist.
AI helps with this: Arrange displays or decorations8%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 1,323 conversations, and it got them there 65% of the time.
AI helps with this: Execute financial transactions7%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 1,073 conversations, and it got them there 93% of the time.
Still yours: Collect data about consumer needs or opinions7%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI does this: Respond to customer problems or inquiries5%
AI performed this in about 1 in 6 Copilot conversations and completed it 84% of the time.
AI helps with this: Prepare documentation for contracts, applications, or permits5%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 1,066 conversations, and it got them there 94% of the time.
AI does this: Maintain current knowledge in area of expertise5%
AI performed this in about 1 in 40 Copilot conversations and completed it 91% of the time.
AI does this: Explain technical details of products or services5%
AI performed this in about 1 in 43 Copilot conversations and completed it 91% of the time.
AI helps with this: Promote products, services, or programs4%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 715 conversations, and it got them there 92% of the time. In this job the work is hands-on, so AI can only assist.
Still yours: Maintain sales or financial records4%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI helps with this: Purchase goods or services4%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 214 conversations, and it got them there 91% of the time.
Still yours: Monitor resources or inventories4%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Monitor safety or security of work areas, facilities, or properties3%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Reconcile financial data3%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Clean tools, equipment, facilities, or work areas2%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Package objects2%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Sell products or services2%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Direct organizational operations, activities, or procedures2%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
2025 to 2035
Ten years from now.
For every 100 of these jobs in 2025, the BLS projects 100 in 2035. Across all US jobs, about 104.
Even shrinking, it should still see about 520,600 openings a year as people retire or move on.
Nearby
Where your skills travel.
Jobs that share the most work with this one, where AI does less of it.
- Shares 28% of the workHosts and Hostesses, Restaurant, Lounge, and Coffee Shop14% AI does, against 25% here+3.4% by 2035 · $31,200 · No formal credential
- Shares 25% of the workStockers and Order Fillers16% AI does, against 25% here+8.9% by 2035 · $37,330 · No formal credential
- Shares 23% of the workBartenders6% AI does, against 25% here+5% by 2035 · $34,340 · No formal credential
How to read this file.
deleAI does this. In US Bing Copilot conversations from January to September 2024, AI itself performed the activity, completed it and made a real difference often enough to count.
+AIAI helps. People brought the activity to AI as their own goal, and it usually got them there.
stetStill yours. It barely shows up in AI use, AI rarely finishes it, or in this job it needs hands.
Shares are weighted by how much each activity matters in the job, using O*NET. Microsoft’s own AI applicability score for this job is 0.30, higher than 88% of jobs.
Doing an activity is not doing a job. The researchers behind this data warn against reading it as job loss, and so do we. It is US data; the shape of the work travels.
Sources: Microsoft Research, Working with AI (2025) · O*NET OnLine, 41-2031 · BLS Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
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