---
title: "Will AI Replace Electricians? (2026)"
description: "BLS rates electricians' exposure to AI as moderate. What that means, which parts of the work AI touches, and the 2025–2035 outlook (+9.2% projected)."
canonical: "https://nuecareer.com/careers/will-ai-replace-electricians"
last-updated: "2026-10-15T08:19:32.066Z"
---

# Will AI Replace Electricians? (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 electricians 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 +9.2% over 2025–2035, against 3.5% for all occupations, with about 72,700 openings a year.

| Measure | Value | Source |
| --- | --- | --- |
| BLS relative AI exposure | Moderate | BLS Employment Projections, AI exposure categories |
| NueCareer AI-resilience score | 72/100 | NueCareer analysis of O\*NET 31.0 Database |
| Projected employment change | +9.2% | BLS EP 2025–2035 |
| Openings a year | 72,700 | BLS EP 2025–2035 |
| Median annual wage | $63,190 | 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: 4.7/5 (O\*NET work activity importance)
- Face-to-face discussions: 4.9/5 (O\*NET work context)
- Hands-on work with tools and objects: 4.9/5 (O\*NET work context)
- Handling and moving objects: 4.3/5 (O\*NET work activity importance)

## What AI reaches first

- Repetitive motions: 4.3/5 (O\*NET work context)
- Getting information: 4.5/5 (O\*NET work activity importance)
- Processing information: 3.5/5 (O\*NET work activity importance)
- Evaluating information to determine compliance with standards: 3.9/5 (O\*NET work activity importance)

## O\*NET tasks

- Prepare sketches or follow blueprints to determine the location of wiring or equipment and to ensure conformance to building and safety codes.
- Place conduit, pipes, or tubing, inside designated partitions, walls, or other concealed areas, and pull insulated wires or cables through the conduit to complete circuits between boxes.
- Work from ladders, scaffolds, or roofs to install, maintain, or repair electrical wiring, equipment, or fixtures.
- Use a variety of tools or equipment, such as power construction equipment, measuring devices, power tools, and testing equipment, such as oscilloscopes, ammeters, or test lamps.
- Assemble, install, test, or maintain electrical or electronic wiring, equipment, appliances, apparatus, or fixtures, using hand tools or power tools.
- Test electrical systems or continuity of circuits in electrical wiring, equipment, or fixtures, using testing devices, such as ohmmeters, voltmeters, or oscilloscopes, to ensure compatibility and safety of system.

## Related careers less exposed to AI than electricians

- [Derrick Operator, Oil and Gas](https://nuecareer.com/careers/derrick-operator-oil-and-gas): BLS exposure Low, median $58,620
- [Electrical Power-Line Installer and Repairer](https://nuecareer.com/careers/electrical-power-line-installer-and-repairer): BLS exposure Low, median $95,320; [Will AI replace linemen?](https://nuecareer.com/careers/will-ai-replace-linemen)
- [Helpers--Electrician](https://nuecareer.com/careers/helpers-electrician): BLS exposure Low, median $42,670
- [Earth Driller, Except Oil and Gas](https://nuecareer.com/careers/earth-driller): BLS exposure Low, median $60,190

## FAQ

**Will AI replace electricians?**

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 +9.2% over 2025–2035, against 3.5% for all occupations, with about 72,700 openings a year.

**How exposed are electricians to AI?**

BLS sorts 786 occupations into four relative categories: low, moderate, high and very high. Electricians 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 an electrician's job can AI do?**

In O\*NET's description of the work, the parts that overlap most with what AI handles well are repetitive motions, getting information and processing information. The parts that hold up best are performing general physical activities, face-to-face discussions and hands-on work with tools and objects. These come from O\*NET ratings of how important each activity is to the job, read through NueCareer's AI-resilience method.

**Is being an electrician a safe career from AI?**

On NueCareer's AI-resilience score, built from O\*NET work activities, electricians score 72 out of 100, higher than 99% of the occupations we score. The job pays a median of $63,190 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 electricians are less exposed to AI?**

Derrick Operator, Oil and Gas (low exposure, $58,620 median), Electrical Power-Line Installer and Repairer (low exposure, $95,320 median), Helpers--Electrician (low exposure, $42,670 median), Earth Driller, Except Oil and Gas (low exposure, $60,190 median). Each is in a lower BLS exposure category than electricians, and most are listed by O\*NET as related to the work.

Full profile: https://nuecareer.com/careers/electrician.

---

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