Urban and Regional Planners
Develop comprehensive plans and programs for use of land and physical facilities of jurisdictions, such as towns, cities, counties, and metropolitan areas.
44,230 people do this job in the US. $89,320 a year.
of the working time. Estimate.
- 78%
- 11%
- 11%
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: 7%.
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 . 25 tasks from .
| Task | Kind | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Design, promote, or administer government plans or policies affecting land use, zoning, public utilities, community facilities, housing, or transportation.Done daily by most who do it. | 23% | 2.5 work days6.7 h to 1.7 work weeks | 0%Half by Jun 2028 | |
| Develop plans for public or alternative transportation systems for urban or regional locations to reduce carbon output associated with transportation.Done more than yearly by most who do it. | 10% | 4.2 work days6.7 h to 3.3 work weeks | 0%Half by Apr 2029 | |
| Conduct field investigations, surveys, impact studies, or other research to compile and analyze data on economic, social, regulatory, or physical factors affecting land use.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 9% | 2.1 work days6.7 h to 1 work week | Stays with people | |
| Assess the feasibility of land use proposals and identify necessary changes.Done more than weekly by most who do it. | 6% | 6.7 h1.7 h to 2.5 work days | 8%Half by Sep 2027 | |
| Determine the effects of regulatory limitations on land use projects.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 6% | 3.3 h50 min to 1.3 work days | 25%Half by Mar 2027 | |
| Create, prepare, or requisition graphic or narrative reports on land use data, including land area maps overlaid with geographic variables, such as population density.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 6% | 6.7 h2.5 h to 2.5 work days | 9%Half by Jul 2027 | |
| Supervise or coordinate the work of urban planning technicians or technologists.Done daily by most who do it. | 5% | 1.7 h25 min to 3.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Identify opportunities or develop plans for sustainability projects or programs to improve energy efficiency, minimize pollution or waste, or restore natural systems.Done more than yearly by most who do it. | 5% | 2.1 work days5 h to 1.7 work weeks | 1%Half by Jun 2028 | |
| Evaluate proposals for infrastructure projects or other development for environmental impact or sustainability.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 5% | 1.3 work days3.3 h to 4.2 work days | 4%Half by Dec 2027 | |
| Advise planning officials on project feasibility, cost-effectiveness, regulatory conformance, or possible alternatives.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 3% | 2.5 h50 min to 1 work day | Stays with people | |
| Prepare reports, using statistics, charts, and graphs, to illustrate planning studies in areas such as population, land use, or zoning. | 3% | 1.3 work days3.3 h to 3.8 work days | 4%Half by Nov 2027 | |
| Review and evaluate environmental impact reports pertaining to private or public planning projects or programs.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 2% | 1 work day2.5 h to 4.2 work days | 5%Half by Dec 2027 |
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.
- Transportation Planners2% now, 62% by 2028
- Project Management Specialists45% now, 85% by 2028
- Chief Sustainability Officers4% now, 72% by 2028
- Sustainability Specialists14% now, 92% by 2028
- Brownfield Redevelopment Specialists and Site Managers3% now, 27% by 2028
- Climate Change Policy Analysts4% now, 92% by 2028
Where this job works
The industry groups that employ the most of it (BLS, May 2025).
Where the most of these jobs are
The metro areas with the most people in it (BLS, May 2025).