---
title: "Will AI Replace Packers and Packagers? (2026)"
description: "BLS rates packers and packagers' exposure to AI as low. What that means, which parts of the work AI touches, and the 2025–2035 outlook (-5.0% projected)."
canonical: "https://nuecareer.com/careers/will-ai-replace-packers-and-packagers"
last-updated: "2026-10-15T08:19:32.066Z"
---

# Will AI Replace Packers and Packagers? (2026)

**Short answer:** Very unlikely. BLS rates packers and packagers among the occupations least exposed to AI, and most of the work is the kind current AI tools cannot do.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics places packers and packagers in its low AI exposure category, among the occupations least exposed to current AI. BLS projects employment to fall by 5.0% over 2025–2035, against 3.5% for all occupations, with about 61,800 openings a year.

| Measure | Value | Source |
| --- | --- | --- |
| BLS relative AI exposure | Low | BLS Employment Projections, AI exposure categories |
| NueCareer AI-resilience score | 56/100 | NueCareer analysis of O\*NET 31.0 Database |
| Projected employment change | -5.0% | BLS EP 2025–2035 |
| Openings a year | 61,800 | BLS EP 2025–2035 |
| Median annual wage | $36,280 | BLS OEWS May 2025 |

## Exposure categories

| BLS category | Occupations |
| --- | --- |
| Low (this job) | 203 |
| Moderate | 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

- Face-to-face discussions: 4.6/5 (O\*NET work context)
- Handling and moving objects: 4.3/5 (O\*NET work activity importance)
- Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials: 4.3/5 (O\*NET work activity importance)
- Hands-on work with tools and objects: 4.1/5 (O\*NET work context)

## What AI reaches first

- Getting information: 4.6/5 (O\*NET work activity importance)
- Repeating the same tasks: 3.9/5 (O\*NET work context)
- Repetitive motions: 3.9/5 (O\*NET work context)
- Being exact or highly accurate: 4.3/5 (O\*NET work context)

## O\*NET tasks

- Examine and inspect containers, materials, or products to ensure that product quality and packing specifications are met.
- Mark and label containers, container tags, or products, using marking tools.
- Measure, weigh, and count products and materials.
- Record product, packaging, and order information on specified forms and records.
- Assemble, line, and pad cartons, crates, and containers, using hand tools.
- Clean containers, materials, supplies, or work areas, using cleaning solutions and hand tools.

## Related careers that are also low-exposure

- [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)
- [Paper Goods Machine Setter, Operator, and Tender](https://nuecareer.com/careers/paper-goods-machine-setter-operator-and-tender): BLS exposure Low, median $50,270
- [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)
- [Helpers--Production Worker](https://nuecareer.com/careers/helpers-production-worker): BLS exposure Low, median $39,070; [Will AI replace production worker helpers?](https://nuecareer.com/careers/will-ai-replace-production-worker-helpers)

## FAQ

**Will AI replace packers and packagers?**

Very unlikely. BLS rates packers and packagers among the occupations least exposed to AI, and most of the work is the kind current AI tools cannot do. 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 5.0% over 2025–2035, against 3.5% for all occupations, with about 61,800 openings a year.

**How exposed are packers and packagers to AI?**

BLS sorts 786 occupations into four relative categories: low, moderate, high and very high. Packers and Packagers are in the low category, alongside 202 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 packer and packager, hand's job can AI do?**

In O\*NET's description of the work, the parts that overlap most with what AI handles well are getting information, repeating the same tasks and repetitive motions. The parts that hold up best are face-to-face discussions, handling and moving objects and inspecting equipment, structures, or materials. 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 packer and packager, hand a safe career from AI?**

On NueCareer's AI-resilience score, built from O\*NET work activities, packers and packagers score 56 out of 100, higher than 75% of the occupations we score. The job pays a median of $36,280 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 packers and packagers are less exposed to AI?**

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), Paper Goods Machine Setter, Operator, and Tender (low exposure, $50,270 median). Each is also in the low category, and most are listed by O\*NET as related to the work.

Full profile: https://nuecareer.com/careers/packer-and-packager-hand.

---

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