Parts Salesperson Salary (2026), outlook and how to become one

Parts Salespersons earn a median of $38,630 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025), 24% below the $50,980 median for all US occupations. That works out at $18.57/hr. The middle half earn between $33,110 and $49,850. The top 10% earn $62,890 or more.

The median hourly wage for parts salespersons is $18.57 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). On a full-year basis the $38,630 annual median works out to about $3,220 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 parts salespersons earn less than $28,240 a year and the bottom quarter less than $33,110 (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 Parts Salespersons are North Dakota ($48,600), Colorado ($47,660), Minnesota ($47,030) (BLS OEWS, May 2025).

BLS does not split parts salespersons' pay by specialty or employer, but its range shows how far the top end runs: the highest-paid 10% earn more than $62,890, against a median of $38,630 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). Location moves pay the most in the published data: the best-paying states are North Dakota ($48,600), Colorado ($47,660), Minnesota ($47,030).

No. BLS lists no formal educational credential as the typical entry requirement for Parts Salespersons, and O*NET rates the preparation needed as some preparation. BLS also lists moderate-term on-the-job training as typical on-the-job training. In O*NET's survey of people already doing the job, 46.9% 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 parts salespersons is no formal educational credential. Once hired, BLS lists moderate-term on-the-job training as typical. O*NET classes the work as needing some preparation.

It is stable rather than fast-growing: employment is projected to change 3.0% over 2025–2035, about the same as the 3.5% projected across all occupations (BLS EP, 2025–2035). BLS still projects about 30,000 openings a year, mostly from workers retiring or moving to other work.

Retail sales workers sell merchandise, such as furniture, motor vehicles, appliances, or apparel, to customers. A core O*NET task: examine returned parts for defects, and exchange defective parts or refund money. Employers most often ask for Document management software, Electronic mail software, Enterprise resource planning ERP software.

Most work more than 40. In O*NET's survey of people in the job, 66% of parts salespersons usually work more than 40 hours a week, 22% work exactly 40 and 12% work fewer. 92% say their schedule is regular and 7% irregular. Source: O*NET 31.0 Database, Work Context.

O*NET scores Parts Salespersons highest on the Realistic, Conventional and Enterprising interest areas, so the work mixes hands-on, practical work with tools, machines or the outdoors with organising, following procedures and working precisely with data. On NueCareer's MBTI-to-interest mapping the closest types are ESTJ, ISTJ. 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 16.2% of parts salespersons, against 47.1% of all employed people: a heavily male-dominated occupation. 20.2% are 55 or older, close to the 23.2% across all jobs. The median worker is 38.3 years old (all workers: 42.1). Source: BLS Current Population Survey, 2025 annual averages.