Furniture Finishers
Shape, finish, and refinish damaged, worn, or used furniture or new high-grade furniture to specified color or finish.
14,480 people do this job in the US. $44,540 a year.
of the working time. Estimate.
- 4%
- 2%
- 95%
Measured, from Anthropic's usage data (2025). Counts help on part of a task.
On the chosen pace and reliability. Estimate.
Share of the working time within reach, now to 2030
What each choice means: , , , , . Every pace starts from .
At this date and pace, models finish tasks up to 4.4 h long four times in five.
How far this has come
With GPT-4, measured in March 2023, 0% of this job's working time was within reach at . With Claude 3.7 Sonnet, measured in February 2025, 0%. With Claude Mythos Preview (early), measured in April 2026, 4%. Today's estimate: 4%.
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.
The tasks
Sorted by . 22 tasks from .
| Task | Kind | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Design, create, and decorate entire pieces or specific parts of furniture, such as draws for cabinets.Done more than yearly by most who do it. | 16% | 1 work day3.3 h to 3.1 work days | Stays with people | |
| Replace or refurbish upholstery of items, using tacks, adhesives, softeners, solvents, stains, or polish.Done hourly or more by most who do it. | 10% | 2.5 h50 min to 6.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Remove old finishes and damaged or deteriorated parts, using hand tools, stripping tools, sandpaper, steel wool, abrasives, solvents, or dip baths.Done hourly or more by most who do it. | 10% | 1.3 h38 min to 4.2 h | Stays with people | |
| Brush, spray, or hand-rub finishing ingredients, such as paint, oil, stain, or wax, onto and into wood grain and apply lacquer or other sealers.Done daily by most who do it. | 9% | 50 min25 min to 2.5 h | Stays with people | |
| Follow blueprints to produce specific designs.Done daily by most who do it. | 8% | 1.7 h25 min to 6.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Smooth, shape, and touch up surfaces to prepare them for finishing, using sandpaper, pumice stones, steel wool, chisels, sanders, or grinders.Done daily by most who do it. | 7% | 50 min21 min to 2.5 h | Stays with people | |
| Treat warped or stained surfaces to restore original contours and colors.Done daily by most who do it. | 6% | 1.3 h33 min to 3.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Fill and smooth cracks or depressions, remove marks and imperfections, and repair broken parts, using plastic or wood putty, glue, nails, or screws.Done daily by most who do it. | 4% | 38 min17 min to 1.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Distress surfaces with woodworking tools or abrasives before staining to create an antique appearance, or rub surfaces to bring out highlights and shadings.Done daily by most who do it. | 4% | 50 min25 min to 2.5 h | Stays with people | |
| Stencil, gild, emboss, mark, or paint designs or borders to reproduce the original appearance of restored pieces, or to decorate new pieces.Done more than yearly by most who do it. | 4% | 1.4 h38 min to 3.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Examine furniture to determine the extent of damage or deterioration, and to decide on the best method for repair or restoration.Done daily by most who do it. | 3% | 25 min13 min to 50 min | Stays with people | |
| Mix finish ingredients to obtain desired colors or shades.Done hourly or more by most who do it. | 3% | 25 min8 min to 1.1 h | Stays with people |
Within reach, per task: the share of the task's time whose instances are short enough for a model to finish at the chosen date, pace and reliability. Half by: the date half of that time comes within reach.
Jobs that share skills with this one
From O*NET's related occupations. Within reach now and by the end of 2028, long-run pace, four in five.
- Upholsterers7% now, 7% by 2028
- Painting, Coating, and Decorating Workers0% now, 0% by 2028
- Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters14% now, 22% by 2028
- Grinding and Polishing Workers, Hand11% now, 11% by 2028
- Molders, Shapers, and Casters, Except Metal and Plastic0% now, 0% by 2028
- Floor Sanders and Finishers0% now, 0% by 2028
Where this job works
The industry groups that employ the most of it (BLS, May 2025).
- Furniture and Related Product Manufacturing (3371 and 3372 only)10,110 people
- Personal and Household Goods Repair and Maintenance1,560 people
- Warehousing and Storage980 people
- Furniture and Home Furnishings Retailers710 people
- Merchant Wholesalers, Durable Goods (4232, 4233, 4235, 4236, 4237, and 4239 only)270 people
Where the most of these jobs are
The metro areas with the most people in it (BLS, May 2025).