Subsector, 323
Printing and Related Support Activities
355,560 people work in this industry in the US, at mean pay of $55,810 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: 251 million hours at what they cost. Not a forecast of savings.
- 38%
- 13%
- 49%
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 296,579 people in jobs so far, 83% 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 137 million hours a year. The material can be handed to a model and the result handed back.
about 84 million hours a year. The model has to be connected to the system the work lives in.
about 52 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
- 26%
- 14%
- 9%
- 6%
- 45%
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 296,579 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
- Reviewing work you did not do yourself210,859 (71%)
- The hands-on craft166,930 (56%)
- Briefing a model and checking its drafts85,487 (29%)
- Running AI inside the business systems36,830 (12%)
- The conversations27,132 (9%)
- Dealing with people outside the organization16,060 (5%)
- Judgment where errors are severe14,290 (5%)
- Signing off under your license2,150 (1%)
- Handling protected records190 (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, 24%. Today's estimate: 35%.
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 51% of the working time of the people in this industry as physical work. For 46% of the working time, a robot has been shown doing most of the task somewhere: 31% in a purpose-built cell, 15% in a structured facility. 0.62 of 3.
- Not physical 49%
- No robot shown 5%
- In a purpose-built cell 31%
- In a structured facility 15%
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 40 largest jobs hold 91% of the people.
| People | Pay here | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Printing Press Operators | 88,160 | 18% | 33 million | $46K |
| Graphic Designers | 15,120 | 87% | 27 million | $47K |
| Prepress Technicians and Workers | 14,090 | 77% | 22 million | $48K |
| Customer Service Representatives | 15,920 | 64% | 21 million | $47K |
| First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers | 15,950 | 48% | 16 million | $65K |
| Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products | 14,570 | 46% | 14 million | $61K |
| General and Operations Managers | 12,500 | 45% | 12 million | $97K |
| Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks | 6,310 | 88% | 12 million | $49K |
| Shipping, Receiving, and Inventory Clerks | 9,370 | 53% | 10 million | $43K |
| Office Clerks, General | 7,030 | 56% | 8.3 million | $42K |
| First-Line Supervisors of Office and Administrative Support Workers | 3,740 | 54% | 4.2 million | $63K |
| Industrial Production Managers | 3,730 | 51% | 4 million | $104K |
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. 127 smaller jobs (31,360 people) count in every total but are not listed. Task data covers 98% 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.
- Enter, position, and alter text size, using computers, to make up and arrange pages so that printed materials can be produced.Prepress Technicians and Workers8.7 million hours100% of the task within reach
- Input production job settings into workstation terminals that control automated printing systems.Printing Press Operators8.1 million hours100% of the task within reach
- Create designs, concepts, and sample layouts, based on knowledge of layout principles and esthetic design concepts.Graphic Designers5.4 million hours100% of the task within reach
- Develop graphics and layouts for product illustrations, company logos, and Web sites.Graphic Designers5.4 million hours100% of the task within reach
- Generate prepress proofs in digital or other format to approximate the appearance of the final printed piece.Prepress Technicians and Workers4.7 million hours100% of the task within reach
- Proofread and perform quality control of text and images.Prepress Technicians and Workers4.4 million hours100% of the task within reach
- Adjust digital files to alter print elements, such as fonts, graphics, or color separations.Printing Press Operators4.2 million hours100% of the task within reach
- Examine job orders to determine quantities to be printed, stock specifications, colors, or special printing instructions.Printing Press Operators3.9 million hours50% of the task within reach
- Use computer software to generate new images.Graphic Designers3.8 million hours100% of the task within reach
- Plan and establish work schedules, assignments, and production sequences to meet production goals.First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers3.7 million 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).
Inside 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 Printing and Related Support Activities is within reach of AI now?
- An estimated 35% of the paid hours in Printing and Related Support Activities are within reach of AI models now and 38% 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 Printing and Related Support Activities carry the most hours within reach?
- By hours within reach now (projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index): Printing Press Operators (88,160 people, 18% of their time, about 33 million hours a year); Graphic Designers (15,120 people, 87% of their time, about 27 million hours a year); and Prepress Technicians and Workers (14,090 people, 77% of their time, about 22 million hours a year).
- Which tasks in Printing and Related Support Activities carry the most hours within reach by the end of 2028?
- Enter, position, and alter text size, using computers, to make up and arrange pages so that printed materials can be produced (Prepress Technicians and Workers, about 8.7 million hours a year); Input production job settings into workstation terminals that control automated printing systems (Printing Press Operators, about 8.1 million hours a year); and Create designs, concepts, and sample layouts, based on knowledge of layout principles and esthetic design concepts (Graphic Designers, about 5.4 million hours a year).
- What would people working in Printing and Related Support Activities learn first?
- Among the 296,579 people in jobs reviewed task by task, the skills most often among the first two things to learn on their job's page are reviewing work you did not do yourself (210,859 people); the hands-on craft (166,930 people); and briefing a model and checking its drafts (85,487 people). By the end of 2028 on the long-run pace at four in five, about 60% of their working time stays with people, 25% becomes checking a model's work and 14% 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 Printing and Related Support Activities (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 98% of its people, and 83% 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.