---
title: "Will AI Replace Data Entry Keyers? (2026)"
description: "BLS rates data entry keyers' exposure to AI as very high. What that means, which parts of the work AI touches, and the 2025–2035 outlook (-25.5%…"
canonical: "https://nuecareer.com/careers/will-ai-replace-data-entry-keyers"
last-updated: "2026-10-15T08:19:32.066Z"
---

# Will AI Replace Data Entry Keyers? (2026)

**Short answer:** This is one of the most exposed jobs, and BLS projects it to shrink. Exposure is not a forecast of job loss on its own, but here the two point the same way.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics places data entry keyers in its very high AI exposure category, among the occupations most exposed to current AI. BLS projects employment to fall by 25.5% over 2025–2035, against 3.5% for all occupations, with about 7,700 openings a year.

| Measure | Value | Source |
| --- | --- | --- |
| BLS relative AI exposure | Very high | BLS Employment Projections, AI exposure categories |
| NueCareer AI-resilience score | 10/100 | NueCareer analysis of O\*NET 31.0 Database |
| Projected employment change | -25.5% | BLS EP 2025–2035 |
| Openings a year | 7,700 | BLS EP 2025–2035 |
| Median annual wage | $41,340 | BLS OEWS May 2025 |

## Exposure categories

| BLS category | Occupations |
| --- | --- |
| Low | 203 |
| Moderate | 194 |
| High | 190 |
| Very high (this job) | 199 |

Exposure means AI could be or has been used to assist with or complete some of the work. BLS says it does not imply job loss, productivity gains, automation probability or wage effects. Method: https://www.bls.gov/emp/publications/ai-exposure-categories.htm

## What holds up

- Face-to-face discussions: 4.4/5 (O\*NET work context)
- Making decisions and solving problems: 4.2/5 (O\*NET work activity importance)
- Establishing and maintaining interpersonal relationships: 3.6/5 (O\*NET work activity importance)

## What AI reaches first

- Processing information: 4.5/5 (O\*NET work activity importance)
- Repeating the same tasks: 4.8/5 (O\*NET work context)
- Documenting/recording information: 4.4/5 (O\*NET work activity importance)
- Working with computers: 4.7/5 (O\*NET work activity importance)

## O\*NET tasks

- Locate and correct data entry errors, or report them to supervisors.
- Store completed documents in appropriate locations.
- Compare data with source documents, or re-enter data in verification format to detect errors.
- Select materials needed to complete work assignments.
- Compile, sort, and verify the accuracy of data before it is entered.

## Related careers less exposed to AI than data entry keyers

- [Postal Service Mail Sorter, Processor, and Processing Machine Operator](https://nuecareer.com/careers/postal-service-mail-sorter-processor-and-processing-machine-operator): BLS exposure Low, median $58,470; [Will AI replace postal service mail sorters?](https://nuecareer.com/careers/will-ai-replace-postal-service-mail-sorters)
- [Mail Clerk and Mail Machine Operator, Except Postal Service](https://nuecareer.com/careers/mail-clerk-and-mail-machine-operator): BLS exposure Moderate, median $39,280
- [Shipping, Receiving, and Inventory Clerk](https://nuecareer.com/careers/shipping-receiving-and-inventory-clerk): BLS exposure High, median $45,260; [Will AI replace shipping clerks?](https://nuecareer.com/careers/will-ai-replace-shipping-clerks)
- [Office Machine Operator, Except Computer](https://nuecareer.com/careers/office-machine-operator): BLS exposure High, median $40,960

## FAQ

**Will AI replace data entry keyers?**

This is one of the most exposed jobs, and BLS projects it to shrink. Exposure is not a forecast of job loss on its own, but here the two point the same way. BLS defines exposure as AI being able to assist with or complete some of the work, and says it does not imply job loss, productivity gains or wage effects. BLS projects employment to fall by 25.5% over 2025–2035, against 3.5% for all occupations, with about 7,700 openings a year.

**How exposed are data entry keyers to AI?**

BLS sorts 786 occupations into four relative categories: low, moderate, high and very high. Data Entry Keyers are in the very high category, alongside 198 other occupations. The categories combine five public measures of where AI could be or already is used, and they compare occupations with each other rather than giving an absolute risk.

**What parts of a data entry keyer's job can AI do?**

In O\*NET's description of the work, the parts that overlap most with what AI handles well are processing information, repeating the same tasks and documenting/recording information. The parts that hold up best are face-to-face discussions, making decisions and solving problems and establishing and maintaining interpersonal relationships. These come from O\*NET ratings of how important each activity is to the job, read through NueCareer's AI-resilience method.

**Is being a data entry keyer a safe career from AI?**

On NueCareer's AI-resilience score, built from O\*NET work activities, data entry keyers score 10 out of 100, higher than 3% of the occupations we score. The job pays a median of $41,340 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025). No job is fully safe from technological change, but the federal exposure category and the projected openings are the two numbers worth weighing.

**What careers similar to data entry keyers are less exposed to AI?**

Postal Service Mail Sorter, Processor, and Processing Machine Operator (low exposure, $58,470 median), Mail Clerk and Mail Machine Operator, Except Postal Service (moderate exposure, $39,280 median), Shipping, Receiving, and Inventory Clerk (high exposure, $45,260 median), Office Machine Operator, Except Computer (high exposure, $40,960 median). Each is in a lower BLS exposure category than data entry keyers, and most are listed by O\*NET as related to the work.

Full profile: https://nuecareer.com/careers/data-entry-keyer.

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This bank includes information from the O\*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). O\*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. NueCareer has transformed the data by joining it to BLS wage and projection data and deriving facet, personality-fit and AI-resilience scores. BLS and BEA data are public domain (17 U.S.C. §105).

O\*NET content is used under [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). How these figures are sourced and derived: https://nuecareer.com/careers/methodology