---
title: "Will AI Replace Delivery Drivers? (2026)"
description: "BLS rates delivery drivers' exposure to AI as moderate. What that means, which parts of the work AI touches, and the 2025–2035 outlook (+7.9% projected)."
canonical: "https://nuecareer.com/careers/will-ai-replace-delivery-drivers"
last-updated: "2026-10-15T08:19:32.066Z"
---

# Will AI Replace Delivery Drivers? (2026)

**Short answer:** Unlikely. BLS rates the work's exposure to AI as moderate, below the middle of the pack, and still projects employment to grow faster than average.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics places delivery drivers in its moderate AI exposure category, below the middle of the pack: some of the work overlaps with what AI can do, much of it does not. BLS projects employment to change by +7.9% over 2025–2035, against 3.5% for all occupations, with about 45,500 openings a year.

| Measure | Value | Source |
| --- | --- | --- |
| BLS relative AI exposure | Moderate | BLS Employment Projections, AI exposure categories |
| NueCareer AI-resilience score | 52/100 | NueCareer analysis of O\*NET 31.0 Database |
| Projected employment change | +7.9% | BLS EP 2025–2035 |
| Openings a year | 45,500 | BLS EP 2025–2035 |
| Median annual wage | $38,770 | BLS OEWS May 2025 |

## Exposure categories

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

- Performing general physical activities: 4.4/5 (O\*NET work activity importance)
- Handling and moving objects: 4.6/5 (O\*NET work activity importance)
- Working outdoors in all weather: 5.0/5 (O\*NET work context)
- Face-to-face discussions: 4.6/5 (O\*NET work context)

## What AI reaches first

- Repeating the same tasks: 4.4/5 (O\*NET work context)
- Repetitive motions: 4.2/5 (O\*NET work context)
- Getting information: 3.9/5 (O\*NET work activity importance)
- Being exact or highly accurate: 4.2/5 (O\*NET work context)

## O\*NET tasks

- Drive trucks to deliver such items as food, medical supplies, or newspapers.
- Listen to and resolve customers' complaints regarding products or services.
- Record sales or delivery information on daily sales or delivery record.
- Inform regular customers of new products or services and price changes.
- Collect money from customers, make change, and record transactions on customer receipts.
- Maintain trucks and food-dispensing equipment and clean inside of machines that dispense food or beverages.

## Related careers less exposed to AI than delivery drivers

- [Crane and Tower Operator](https://nuecareer.com/careers/crane-and-tower-operator): BLS exposure Low, median $68,080; [Will AI replace crane operators?](https://nuecareer.com/careers/will-ai-replace-crane-operators)
- [Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendant](https://nuecareer.com/careers/automotive-and-watercraft-service-attendant): BLS exposure Low, median $35,670; [Will AI replace automotive and watercraft service attendants?](https://nuecareer.com/careers/will-ai-replace-automotive-and-watercraft-service-attendants)
- [Industrial Truck and Tractor Operator](https://nuecareer.com/careers/industrial-truck-and-tractor-operator): BLS exposure Low, median $46,420; [Will AI replace forklift operators?](https://nuecareer.com/careers/will-ai-replace-forklift-operators)
- [Cleaner of Vehicles and Equipment](https://nuecareer.com/careers/cleaner-of-vehicles-and-equipment): BLS exposure Low, median $35,830; [Will AI replace cleaners of vehicles and equipment?](https://nuecareer.com/careers/will-ai-replace-cleaners-of-vehicles-and-equipment)
- [Laborer and Freight, Stock, and Material Mover, Hand](https://nuecareer.com/careers/laborer-and-freight-stock-and-material-mover-hand): BLS exposure Low, median $40,240; [Will AI replace warehouse workers?](https://nuecareer.com/careers/will-ai-replace-warehouse-workers)
- [Packer and Packager, Hand](https://nuecareer.com/careers/packer-and-packager-hand): BLS exposure Low, median $36,280; [Will AI replace packers and packagers?](https://nuecareer.com/careers/will-ai-replace-packers-and-packagers)

## FAQ

**Will AI replace delivery drivers?**

Unlikely. BLS rates the work's exposure to AI as moderate, below the middle of the pack, and still projects employment to grow faster than average. 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 change by +7.9% over 2025–2035, against 3.5% for all occupations, with about 45,500 openings a year.

**How exposed are delivery drivers to AI?**

BLS sorts 786 occupations into four relative categories: low, moderate, high and very high. Delivery Drivers are in the moderate category, alongside 193 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 driver/sales worker's job can AI do?**

In O\*NET's description of the work, the parts that overlap most with what AI handles well are repeating the same tasks, repetitive motions and getting information. The parts that hold up best are performing general physical activities, handling and moving objects and working outdoors in all weather. 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 driver/sales worker a safe career from AI?**

On NueCareer's AI-resilience score, built from O\*NET work activities, delivery drivers score 52 out of 100, higher than 66% of the occupations we score. The job pays a median of $38,770 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 delivery drivers are less exposed to AI?**

Crane and Tower Operator (low exposure, $68,080 median), Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendant (low exposure, $35,670 median), Industrial Truck and Tractor Operator (low exposure, $46,420 median), Cleaner of Vehicles and Equipment (low exposure, $35,830 median). Each is in a lower BLS exposure category than delivery drivers, and most are listed by O\*NET as related to the work.

Full profile: https://nuecareer.com/careers/driver-sales-worker.

---

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