Industry group, 4592
Book Retailers and News Dealers
66,980 people work in this industry in the US, at mean pay of $39,540 a year (BLS, May 2025). What follows is how much of their working time the best AI models could finish, when, and in which jobs and tasks. Estimates.
of the paid hours. Now is projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index.
a year: 38 million hours at what they cost. Not a forecast of savings.
- 30%
- 28%
- 42%
of the paid hours are within reach now in tasks people already bring to Claude. Another 26% is within reach in tasks not yet seen there.
Across the US: 30% within reach now and 36% by the end of 2028, on the long-run pace at four in five. Now is projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index.
Share of the paid hours within reach, now to 2030
Change assumptionsHide assumptionsLong-run pace, four in five
What each choice means: , , , , . Every pace starts from .
What handing the work over would take
For the 64,323 people in jobs so far, 96% of the industry's people; the others are in the totals above and join this split as the review reaches their jobs. Shares of their working time within reach now, at the pace and reliability chosen above. Estimates. Now is projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index.
about 21 million hours a year. The material can be handed to a model and the result handed back.
about 17 million hours a year. The model has to be connected to the system the work lives in.
about 5.9 million hours a year. Short enough by length. This site leaves conversation with people, so it is not in the totals.
What their work is made of
- 17%
- 13%
- 5%
- 23%
- 42%
Each task's time split among five kinds of doing, judged one task at a time; only documents and systems can count as within reach.
What changes for the people
For the 64,323 people in jobs reviewed task by task so far, by the end of 2028 on the long-run pace at four in five: the shares of their working time, from each job page's own map, weighted by how many people here do that job. It says which parts of the work change, never whether anyone keeps a job. Estimates.
Conversation, in-person and hands-on work.
Desk work within reach in tasks where a mistake costs something or a licensed person signs.
Desk work within reach that is small if wrong, with lighter checks.
What most people here would learn first
How many of them have each skill among the first two things to learn on their job's page. Every state, and the US
- The hands-on craft48,750 (76%)
- The conversations46,993 (73%)
- Reviewing work you did not do yourself15,673 (24%)
- Briefing a model and checking its drafts14,380 (22%)
- Running AI inside the business systems1,780 (3%)
- Judgment where errors are severe310 (under 1%)
- Dealing with people outside the organization190 (under 1%)
How far this has come
With GPT-4, measured in March 2023, 0% of this industry's paid hours were within reach at . With Claude 3.7 Sonnet, measured in February 2025, 2%. With Claude Mythos Preview (early), measured in April 2026, 21%. Today's estimate: 28%.
A backcast: today's task data with the best model METR had measured by each date. It shows how fast the models have moved, not what anyone forecast at the time.
Robots and the physical work
Anthropic rates 48% of the working time of the people in this industry as physical work. For 44% of the working time, a robot has been shown doing most of the task somewhere: 26% in a purpose-built cell, 18% in a structured facility. 0.62 of 3.
- Not physical 52%
- No robot shown 4%
- In a purpose-built cell 26%
- In a structured facility 18%
Anthropic's rating, not this site's estimate: Claude Opus 5, searching the web, rated each physical O*NET task by the kind of setting in which a robot it could cite (deployed, sold or demonstrated) does most of the task, weighted by its own estimate of each task's share of the time (What work can robots do?, September 30, 2026, data CC BY 4.0; every job ranked). A robot shown somewhere is not a robot in your building: cost, setup and safety decide that. The share within reach on this page still counts no body work. Weighted by the people in each occupation; each job's page names the robot behind each rated task.
Where the hours are
Jobs by hours within reach now. Now is projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index. The 16 largest jobs hold 95% of the people.
| People | Pay here | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail Salespersons | 37,340 | 23% | 18 million | $35K |
| First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers | 6,720 | 49% | 6.9 million | $46K |
| General and Operations Managers | 3,420 | 45% | 3.2 million | $64K |
| Cashiers | 3,250 | 19% | 1.3 million | $32K |
| First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers | 850 | 48% | 852,176 | $46K |
| Shipping, Receiving, and Inventory Clerks | 750 | 53% | 828,360 | $37K |
| Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks | 430 | 88% | 787,967 | $44K |
| Fast Food and Counter Workers | 5,020 | 7% | 678,704 | $34K |
| Customer Service Representatives | 480 | 64% | 642,970 | $38K |
| Office Clerks, General | 410 | 56% | 481,832 | $36K |
| Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists | 410 | 50% | 422,150 | $48K |
| Stockers and Order Fillers | 950 | 19% | 381,368 | $38K |
People: BLS counts for this industry, May 2025. Pay here: the median paid for the job in this industry, else its mean, else the national median. 48 smaller jobs (3,190 people) count in every total but are not listed. Task data covers 96% of the industry's people; the rest are in BLS "all other" groups with no task list, or in counts BLS does not publish.
The tasks with the most hours within reach by the end of 2028
Across the whole industry, on the chosen pace and reliability.
- Maintain knowledge of current sales and promotions, policies regarding payment and exchanges, and security practices.Retail Salespersons4.5 million hours50% of the task within reach
- Open and close cash registers, performing tasks such as counting money, separating charge slips, coupons, and vouchers, balancing cash drawers, and making deposits.Retail Salespersons3.6 million hours50% of the task within reach
- Maintain records related to sales.Retail Salespersons2.4 million hours100% of the task within reach
- Inventory stock and requisition new stock.Retail Salespersons2.1 million hours20% of the task within reach
- Prepare sales slips or sales contracts.Retail Salespersons1.4 million hours100% of the task within reach
- Establish credit policies and operating procedures.First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers1.3 million hours100% of the task within reach
- Sell or arrange for delivery, insurance, financing, or service contracts for merchandise.Retail Salespersons1.3 million hours50% of the task within reach
- Plan budgets and authorize payments and merchandise returns.First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers957,465 hours100% of the task within reach
- Estimate quantity and cost of merchandise required, such as paint or floor covering.Retail Salespersons872,047 hours70% of the task within reach
- Formulate pricing policies for merchandise, according to profitability requirements.First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers780,649 hours100% of the task within reach
Scan a typical company in this industry
The industry's largest jobs, in the proportions BLS counts across the whole industry, at the pay it pays, run through the company scan. A starting point before you have a roster, or a benchmark for the one you have. Or choose the whole industry: every occupation BLS publishes for it with task data, at its nationwide headcount, the sector report ($249 for the full report, or included in Pro).
Next to this industry
Within reach now and by the end of 2028, long-run pace, four in five. Now is projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index.
How it is built: BLS counts the people in each job in this industry; each job's tasks and their lengths give its share within reach at a date; the industry's share is those shares weighted by people. Value is pay times 1.43 for benefits and payroll costs. Seen in Claude use splits today's share by whether Anthropic saw people bring each task to Claude in 2025; other AI tools are not counted. How it works
Questions about this industry
- How much of the work in Book Retailers and News Dealers is within reach of AI now?
- An estimated 28% of the paid hours in Book Retailers and News Dealers are within reach of AI models now and 30% by the end of 2028, on METR's long-run pace at four in five. Within reach means a model could finish work that long at that reliability. It is not a forecast of jobs lost or of savings.
- Which jobs in Book Retailers and News Dealers carry the most hours within reach?
- By hours within reach now (projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index): Retail Salespersons (37,340 people, 23% of their time, about 18 million hours a year); First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers (6,720 people, 49% of their time, about 6.9 million hours a year); and General and Operations Managers (3,420 people, 45% of their time, about 3.2 million hours a year).
- Which tasks in Book Retailers and News Dealers carry the most hours within reach by the end of 2028?
- Maintain knowledge of current sales and promotions, policies regarding payment and exchanges, and security practices (Retail Salespersons, about 4.5 million hours a year); Open and close cash registers, performing tasks such as counting money, separating charge slips, coupons, and vouchers, balancing cash drawers, and making deposits (Retail Salespersons, about 3.6 million hours a year); and Maintain records related to sales (Retail Salespersons, about 2.4 million hours a year).
- What would people working in Book Retailers and News Dealers learn first?
- Among the 64,323 people in jobs reviewed task by task, the skills most often among the first two things to learn on their job's page are the hands-on craft (48,750 people); the conversations (46,993 people); and reviewing work you did not do yourself (15,673 people). By the end of 2028 on the long-run pace at four in five, about 70% of their working time stays with people, 17% becomes checking a model's work and 12% can be handed over with lighter checks. It says which parts of the work change, never whether anyone keeps a job.
- How is this estimated?
- BLS counts the people in each occupation in Book Retailers and News Dealers (May 2025); each occupation's share of working time within reach comes from its O*NET tasks, each with an estimated length checked against GDPval, and METR's measurements of how long a task the best AI models can finish, carried forward to the date from the latest, Claude Mythos Preview (early) in April 2026. The industry's share is those shares weighted by people. Task data covers 96% of its people, and 96% are in occupations reviewed task by task. Data checked November 10, 2026.
Embed these figures on your site
A small card with the share of working time within reach now and at the end of 2027, 2028 and 2030, the date and a link back. Free under CC BY 4.0; the card carries the credit.