Cashier Salary (2026), outlook and how to become one

Cashiers earn a median of $32,880 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025), 36% below the $50,980 median for all US occupations. That works out at $15.81/hr. The middle half earn between $28,720 and $36,330. The top 10% earn $40,410 or more.

The median hourly wage for cashiers is $15.81 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). On a full-year basis the $32,880 annual median works out to about $2,740 a month before tax.

BLS does not publish a starting salary. The nearest measure is the low end of the pay range: the lowest-paid 10% of cashiers earn less than $24,530 a year and the bottom quarter less than $28,720 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). New workers often start near that end, but where a particular job starts depends on the employer, the state and the credentials you bring, so read these as the bottom of the range rather than a guaranteed entry wage.

The highest state medians for Cashiers are District of Columbia ($38,880), Washington ($38,720), California ($37,100) (BLS OEWS, May 2025). Adjusted for local prices using BEA Regional Price Parities, Vermont moves to the top at $36,465.

BLS does not split cashiers' pay by specialty or employer, but its range shows how far the top end runs: the highest-paid 10% earn more than $40,410, against a median of $32,880 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). Location moves pay the most in the published data: the best-paying states are District of Columbia ($38,880), Washington ($38,720), California ($37,100).

No. BLS lists no formal educational credential as the typical entry requirement for Cashiers, and O*NET rates the preparation needed as some preparation. BLS also lists short-term on-the-job training as typical on-the-job training. In O*NET's survey of people already doing the job, 44.3% hold high school diploma or the equivalent (such as a ged).

BLS does not publish a fixed length; it depends on the route. What it does publish: the typical way in for cashiers is no formal educational credential. Once hired, BLS lists short-term on-the-job training as typical. O*NET classes the work as needing some preparation.

No. BLS projects employment to fall 6.5% over 2025–2035, a loss of 200,600 jobs (BLS EP, 2025–2035). BLS still projects about 521,300 openings a year, mostly from workers retiring or moving to other work.

Cashiers process payments and disburse money in retail settings using cash registers, point-of-sale systems, or related equipment. A core O*NET task: receive payment by cash, check, credit cards, vouchers, or automatic debits. Employers most often ask for Internet browser software, Office suite software, Operating system software.

Most work fewer than 40. In O*NET's survey of people in the job, 11% of cashiers usually work more than 40 hours a week, 32% work exactly 40 and 57% work fewer. 83% say their schedule is regular and 17% irregular. Source: O*NET 31.0 Database, Work Context.

O*NET scores Cashiers highest on the Conventional and Enterprising interest areas, so the work mixes organising, following procedures and working precisely with data with leading, persuading, selling and making decisions. On NueCareer's MBTI-to-interest mapping the closest types are ESTJ, ESFJ. Personality is a fit signal, not a gate. The free NueCareer quiz scores your own profile against all 1,731 careers in the bank.

Women make up 68.5% of cashiers, against 47.1% of all employed people: more women than in the workforce as a whole. Only 15.3% are 55 or older (23.2% across all jobs): a young workforce, with 48.7% under 25. The median worker is 26.1 years old (all workers: 42.1). Source: BLS Current Population Survey, 2025 annual averages, for the Census group "Cashiers".