Optometrists
SOC Code: 29-1041
Optometrists carries a 24% AI exposure score (Medium automation risk), with a median annual wage of $134,830 and +8.0% projected employment growth from 2024 to 2034 (BLS), affecting approximately 47,800 workers. Full task breakdown, skills, and employer data are below.
Proportion of tasks susceptible to AI automation (O*NET analysis)
At 24% AI exposure, Optometrists sits 13 points below the 37.2% average across 832 U.S. occupations - more exposed than 13% of them. It ranks among the more AI-resilient roles in the dataset.
Career outlook score
90/100
Optometrists, weighted across 3 of 3 tracked dimensions
A weighted composite of median wage, projected growth, and AI-automation security (inverted exposure), each benchmarked against every other tracked occupation. It describes this occupation's standing across those three dimensions, not a guarantee of future outcomes.
- Median wage A+ $134,830
Annual median wage, percentile rank vs all tracked occupations
- Projected growth A +8.0%
Projected employment change, 2024-2034, BLS Employment Projections
- AI exposure (inverted) A 24% exposure
Lower O*NET task-automability scores lower risk; this dimension scores security, not exposure
Home health and personal care aides is #1 of 832 occupations by employment (4.3M, AI exposure rank #392 at 35%) vs. Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks #1 by AI task exposure (95%, employment rank #17 at 1.6M).
Automation-risk inventory
Exclusive cut of 832 occupations by PlainWorkforce automation-risk band. Orthogonal to the continuous AI-exposure distribution chart below and to this occupation's single risk badge, this is the corpus band mix, with Optometrists in the Medium band.
Credential × growth standing
Graduate credential among the thinner entry shelves
Optometrists is in the Graduate band (113 of 832) with BLS pace Fast growth (67/832). Graduate entry is a minority shelf - pairing it with fast growth growth is the standing that separates this SOC from bachelor-dominated neighbors.
Where Optometrists sits among all occupations
AI-exposure score distribution across 832 U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis). This occupation is marked in rose.
Where Optometrists sits by AI exposure
AI-exposure score distribution across U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis)
24% Among the lowest lower than 87% of 832 occupations
Occupations, banded by AI-exposure score
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more occupations. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source O*NET task data (U.S. Department of Labor) · BLS 2024–2034
Source: O*NET task data (U.S. Department of Labor); AI-exposure scores are PlainWorkforce's analysis. As of BLS 2024–2034.
Optometrists vs. its occupational neighbors
AI exposure (horizontal) vs projected 2024–2034 growth (vertical) for occupations in the same SOC group. Optometrists is marked in rose; the top-left corner is the most future-proof.
Source: BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034 (growth) and O*NET (AI-exposure analysis by PlainWorkforce).
Employment Projections
Where This Score Comes From
Optometrists's Medium automation-risk tier is computed from O*NET Database 30.0 task-level analysis, where each documented task the occupation performs is evaluated against current generative AI, robotic process automation, and machine-learning capabilities. A score below 40% reflects tasks anchored in physical dexterity, unstructured environments, or high-touch human interaction that current AI cannot reliably replicate.
The employment, wage, and education figures above come from a second, separate federal source: BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034, matched to the O*NET task data by Standard Occupational Classification (SOC 29-1041) code, with the wage figure cross-validated against the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024 survey. BLS figures are presented exactly as published, with no adjustment on our part; the SOC-code match is what lets Optometrists be compared directly against every other tracked occupation on the same basis, not just roles that happen to share a job title.
For career planners, this profile should be read alongside the task, skill, and knowledge breakdowns below and the list of employers whose workforce composition includes Optometrists. Adjacent occupations shown further down offer lateral moves that preserve industry knowledge while potentially reducing exposure.
Education & Entry Requirements
Top Tasks (O*NET)
- 1. Examine eyes, using observation, instruments, and pharmaceutical agents, to determine visual acuity and perception, focus, and coordination and to diagnose diseases and other abnormalities, such as glaucoma or color blindness.
- 2. Analyze test results and develop a treatment plan.
- 3. Prescribe, supply, fit and adjust eyeglasses, contact lenses, and other vision aids.
- 4. Prescribe medications to treat eye diseases if state laws permit.
- 5. Educate and counsel patients on contact lens care, visual hygiene, lighting arrangements, and safety factors.
- 6. Remove foreign bodies from the eye.
- 7. Provide patients undergoing eye surgeries, such as cataract and laser vision correction, with pre- and post-operative care.
- 8. Consult with and refer patients to ophthalmologist or other health care practitioner if additional medical treatment is determined necessary.
- 9. Prescribe therapeutic procedures to correct or conserve vision.
- 10. Provide vision therapy and low-vision rehabilitation.
Key Skills Required
- Reading Comprehension
- Active Listening
- Critical Thinking
- Writing
- Speaking
- Social Perceptiveness
- Science
- Coordination
- Complex Problem Solving
- Judgment and Decision Making
Knowledge Areas
- Medicine and Dentistry
- Biology
- Customer and Personal Service
- English Language
- Mathematics
- Education and Training
- Therapy and Counseling
- Psychology
- Administration and Management
- Economics and Accounting
Frequently Asked Questions
Will AI replace Optometrists?
Optometrists has an AI exposure score of 24%, indicating a medium level of automation risk. The majority of tasks in this role require human judgment, creativity, or physical presence that AI cannot easily replicate.
What is the job outlook for Optometrists?
According to BLS Employment Projections 2024-2034, Optometrists is projected to grow by 8.0% over the decade. Current employment stands at approximately 47,800 workers.
What skills are needed for Optometrists?
Key skills for Optometrists include Reading Comprehension, Active Listening, Critical Thinking, and others. Typical entry-level education is Doctoral or professional degree.
How much do Optometrists earn?
The median annual wage for Optometrists is $134,830, according to BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2024). Actual earnings vary by location, experience, industry, and employer. The BLS publishes detailed wage percentiles by region in its Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program.
What education is required for Optometrists?
The typical entry-level education for Optometrists is Doctoral or professional degree. Employers generally expect None of related work experience. On-the-job training typically involves None. Requirements can vary by employer and specialization.
Which companies employ Optometrists?
Optometrists roles exist across many industries and employers. Workforce composition is estimated from BLS industry-occupation employment distributions matched to SEC-registered public companies.
AI Exposure Rating
Medium automation risk based on 10 analyzed tasks. Most tasks require human judgment and are resistant to automation.
Nationwide occupations with similar workforce profiles
Two data-derived peer sets for Optometrists: AI-exposure neighbors and BLS 2034 growth neighbors (distinct comparison neighborhoods, cross-occupation).
Similar AI exposure score
Nearest O*NET task-automability scores nationwide (24% here).
- Audiologists · AI exposure 24%
- Brickmasons and blockmasons · AI exposure 24%
- Dental laboratory technicians · AI exposure 24%
- Extruding and drawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic · AI exposure 24%
Similar projected growth (2024–2034)
Nearest BLS employment change rates nationwide (+8.0% here).
- Engineering teachers, postsecondary · growth +8.1%
- Heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers · growth +8.1%
- Tour and travel guides · growth +8.1%
- Avionics technicians · growth +8.2%
Peers are nearest-neighbor matches on published BLS + O*NET metrics among occupations with ≥10,000 workers in 2024; corpus ranks above sort the full tracked set.
Related Occupations
Showing 6 of 45 occupations with a comparable automation-risk profile.
What to do with this
Use Optometrists' numbers above to compare, not just read in isolation.
- Compare Optometrists side by side against another occupation on wage, growth, and AI exposure. Workforce comparison tool
- Understand how the AI exposure score above is actually calculated before treating it as a verdict. Reading AI exposure scores
- See the full ranked list of occupations with the lowest automation exposure nationwide. Safest occupations from AI
AI exposure scores estimate task automatability from O*NET data; they are not a certainty of job loss, and BLS growth projections are estimates, not guarantees.
Data sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections 2024–2034 and O*NET Database 30.0. Employment figures are rounded. Wage data from BLS Occupational Employment Statistics (OES).