Precision Agriculture Technicians
Apply geospatial technologies, including geographic information systems (GIS) and Global Positioning System (GPS), to agricultural production or management activities, such as pest scouting, site-specific pesticide application, yield mapping, or variable-rate irrigation. May use computers to develop or analyze maps or remote sensing images to compare physical topography with data on soils, fertilizer, pests, or weather.
$49,630 a year (for the broader BLS group this job sits in).
of the working time. Estimate.
- 74%
- 2%
- 24%
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, 31%. Today's estimate: 42%.
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 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Participate in efforts to advance precision agriculture technology, such as developing advanced weed identification or automated spot spraying systems.Done more than yearly by most who do it. | 11% | 6.7 h1.7 h to 4.2 work days | 6%Half by Jan 2028 | |
| Collect information about soil or field attributes, yield data, or field boundaries, using field data recorders and basic geographic information systems (GIS).Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 11% | 2.5 h50 min to 6.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Analyze geospatial data to determine agricultural implications of factors such as soil quality, terrain, field productivity, fertilizers, or weather conditions.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 11% | 2.5 h50 min to 5 h | 55%Half by now | |
| Create, layer, and analyze maps showing precision agricultural data, such as crop yields, soil characteristics, input applications, terrain, drainage patterns, or field management history.Done more than weekly by most who do it. | 9% | 2.5 h50 min to 5.8 h | 50%Half by now | |
| Analyze data from harvester monitors to develop yield maps.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 7% | 1.7 h38 min to 4.2 h | 72%Half by now | |
| Compare crop yield maps with maps of soil test data, chemical application patterns, or other information to develop site-specific crop management plans.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 6% | 2.5 h1.1 h to 6.7 h | 53%Half by now | |
| Install, calibrate, or maintain sensors, mechanical controls, GPS-based vehicle guidance systems, or computer settings.Done more than yearly by most who do it. | 6% | 2.1 h50 min to 5 h | Stays with people | |
| Document and maintain records of precision agriculture information.Done several times a day by most who do it. | 5% | 50 min17 min to 2.5 h | 87%Half by now | |
| Demonstrate the applications of geospatial technology, such as Global Positioning System (GPS), geographic information systems (GIS), automatic tractor guidance systems, variable rate chemical input applicators, surveying equipment, or computer mapping software.Done more than yearly by most who do it. | 5% | 1.3 h38 min to 3.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Apply precision agriculture information to specifically reduce the negative environmental impacts of farming practices.Done daily by most who do it. | 4% | 2.5 h50 min to 6.7 h | 46%Half by Oct 2026 | |
| Use geospatial technology to develop soil sampling grids or identify sampling sites for testing characteristics such as nitrogen, phosphorus, or potassium content, pH, or micronutrients.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 4% | 1.3 h38 min to 3.3 h | 90%Half by now | |
| Analyze remote sensing imagery to identify relationships between soil quality, crop canopy densities, light reflectance, and weather history.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 3% | 2.5 h50 min to 6.7 h | 46%Half by Oct 2026 |
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.
Where this job works
The industry groups that employ the most of it (BLS, May 2025). Counts are for the broader BLS group this job sits in.
- Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools3,730 people
- Scientific Research and Development Services2,260 people
- Merchant Wholesalers, Nondurable Goods (4241, 4247, and 4249 only)2,150 people
- Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services1,410 people
- Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services810 people
Where the most of these jobs are
The metro areas with the most people in it (BLS, May 2025). Counts are for the broader BLS group this job sits in.