Counter and Rental Clerks

Low pay & highrisk
High Risk
Low High

Explore safer careers (4)

Lower estimated automation risk

First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers
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Why it fits

Realistic advancement for experienced clerks who coordinate service counters, staff, cash, and customer issues.

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Why it fits

Reuses product explanation, customer service, transactions, and resolving routine purchase questions.

Parts Salespersons
59% automation risk | Moderate Risk
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Why it fits

Applies repair-counter knowledge, parts lookup, customer needs assessment, pricing, and payment handling.

Hotel, Motel, and Resort Desk Clerks
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Why it fits

Plausible customer-service shift using reservations, payments, options, issue handling, and records.

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Occupation snapshot

What does this snowflake show?
The Snowflake is a visual summary of the five badges: Automation Risk (calculated), Risk (polled), Growth, Wages and Volume. It gives you an instant snapshot of an occupations profile. The colour of the Snowflake relates to its size. The better the occupation scores in relation to others, the larger and greener the Snowflake becomes.
JOB SCORE
2.8/10
What's this?
Job Score (higher is better):

We rate jobs using four factors. These are:

- Chance of being automated
- Job growth
- Wages
- Volume of available positions

These are some key things to think about when job hunting.

Risk & user votes

Calculated automation risk

74% (High Risk)

High Risk (61-80%): This occupation shows a significant risk of end-to-end replacement by automation. Many core parts of the role may be structured, repeatable, software-driven, or physically predictable enough for AI, machines, or robotic systems to take over. If you work in this area, it may be worth exploring safer related careers or moving towards more human-centred responsibilities.

More information on what this score is, and how it is calculated is available here.

Human strengths important in this job

These are human abilities and work contexts that are important in this occupation. They may help explain why parts of the role are harder to replace end-to-end, but they are not the only inputs into the automation score.

Working directly with the public

Very important
Why this matters
The job involves face-to-face interaction with customers, clients, or guests—answering questions, handling requests, and managing service situations in real time. Roles with frequent public interaction are harder to replace end-to-end because they rely on trust, communication, and adapting to unpredictable human needs.
Jobs that also use this strength

Decision-making and problem solving

Quite important
Why this matters
Analyze information, weigh tradeoffs, and choose the best solution—especially when situations are ambiguous, high-stakes, or have real-world consequences.
Jobs that also use this strength

What users think

Based on 37 votes

86% chance of full automation within the next two decades

Our visitors have voted that it's very probable this occupation will be automated. The automation risk level we have generated is less clear, and shows 74% chance of automation.

What do you think the risk of automation is?

What is the likelihood that Counter and Rental Clerks will be replaced by robots or artificial intelligence within the next 20 years?

View sentiment trend

Pay & outlook

Wages

Very low paid relative to other professions

In 2024, the median annual wage for Counter and Rental Clerks was $38,540 ($19 per hour).

The median annual wage for Counter and Rental Clerks was 22.1% lower than the national median annual wage, which stood at $49,500.

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Wages over time

* Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics

Growth

Moderate growth relative to other professions

The number of 'Counter and Rental Clerks' job openings is expected to rise 3.2% by 2034

View employment trend

Total employment, and estimated job openings

* Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics for the period between 2023 and 2033
Updated projections are due 09-2025.

Volume

Significantly greater range of job opportunities compared to other professions

As of 2024 there were 398,620 people employed as 'Counter and Rental Clerks' within the United States.

This represents around 0.26% of the employed workforce across the country

Put another way, around 1 in 386 people are employed as 'Counter and Rental Clerks'.

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Job description

Receive orders, generally in person, for repairs, rentals, and services. May describe available options, compute cost, and accept payment.

O*NET-SOC code: 41-2021.00