Pharmacists
SOC Code: 29-1051
Pharmacists carries a 53% AI exposure score (High automation risk), with a median annual wage of $137,480 and +4.6% projected employment growth from 2024 to 2034 (BLS), affecting approximately 335,100 workers. Full task breakdown, skills, and employer data are below.
Proportion of tasks susceptible to AI automation (O*NET analysis)
At 53% AI exposure, Pharmacists sits 16 points above the 37.2% average across 832 U.S. occupations - more exposed than 90% of them. Most of its core tasks still require human judgment.
Career outlook score
62/100
Pharmacists, 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+ $137,480
Annual median wage, percentile rank vs all tracked occupations
- Projected growth B +4.6%
Projected employment change, 2024-2034, BLS Employment Projections
- AI exposure (inverted) F 53% 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 Pharmacists in the High band.
Credential × growth standing
Graduate credential among the thinner entry shelves
Pharmacists is in the Graduate band (113 of 832) with BLS pace Average (378/832). Graduate entry is a minority shelf - pairing it with average growth is the standing that separates this SOC from bachelor-dominated neighbors.
Where Pharmacists sits among all occupations
AI-exposure score distribution across 832 U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis). This occupation is marked in rose.
Where Pharmacists sits by AI exposure
AI-exposure score distribution across U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis)
53% Higher than most higher than 90% 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.
Pharmacists vs. its occupational neighbors
AI exposure (horizontal) vs projected 2024–2034 growth (vertical) for occupations in the same SOC group. Pharmacists 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
Pharmacists's High 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 in the 40–70% range indicates meaningful automation pressure on specific task categories, but the role as a whole still requires human judgment for coordination, exception handling, or client interaction.
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 29-1051) 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 Pharmacists 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 Pharmacists. Adjacent occupations shown further down offer lateral moves that preserve industry knowledge while potentially reducing exposure.
Education & Entry Requirements
Top Tasks (O*NET)
- 1. Review prescriptions to assure accuracy, to ascertain the needed ingredients, and to evaluate their suitability.
- 2. Assess the identity, strength, or purity of medications.
- 3. Provide information and advice regarding drug interactions, side effects, dosage, and proper medication storage.
- 4. Analyze prescribing trends to monitor patient compliance and to prevent excessive usage or harmful interactions.
- 5. Maintain records, such as pharmacy files, patient profiles, charge system files, inventories, control records for radioactive nuclei, or registries of poisons, narcotics, or controlled drugs.
- 6. Collaborate with other health care professionals to plan, monitor, review, or evaluate the quality or effectiveness of drugs or drug regimens, providing advice on drug applications or characteristics.
- 7. Plan, implement, or maintain procedures for mixing, packaging, or labeling pharmaceuticals, according to policy and legal requirements, to ensure quality, security, and proper disposal.
- 8. Order and purchase pharmaceutical supplies, medical supplies, or drugs, maintaining stock and storing and handling it properly.
- 9. Compound and dispense medications as prescribed by doctors and dentists, by calculating, weighing, measuring, and mixing ingredients, or oversee these activities.
- 10. Contact insurance companies to resolve billing issues.
Key Skills Required
- Reading Comprehension
- Active Listening
- Speaking
- Writing
- Critical Thinking
- Monitoring
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Active Learning
- Social Perceptiveness
- Service Orientation
Knowledge Areas
- Medicine and Dentistry
- Mathematics
- Customer and Personal Service
- English Language
- Chemistry
- Biology
- Psychology
- Computers and Electronics
- Education and Training
- Administrative
Frequently Asked Questions
Will AI replace Pharmacists?
Pharmacists has an AI exposure score of 53%, indicating a high level of automation risk. Some tasks in this role can be augmented or partially automated by AI, but core responsibilities require human judgment.
What is the job outlook for Pharmacists?
According to BLS Employment Projections 2024-2034, Pharmacists is projected to grow by 4.6% over the decade. Current employment stands at approximately 335,100 workers.
What skills are needed for Pharmacists?
Key skills for Pharmacists include Reading Comprehension, Active Listening, Speaking, and others. Typical entry-level education is Doctoral or professional degree.
How much do Pharmacists earn?
The median annual wage for Pharmacists is $137,480, 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 Pharmacists?
The typical entry-level education for Pharmacists 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 Pharmacists?
Pharmacists 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
High automation risk based on 10 analyzed tasks. A moderate share of tasks may be augmented by AI tools.
Nationwide occupations with similar workforce profiles
Two data-derived peer sets for Pharmacists: AI-exposure neighbors and BLS 2034 growth neighbors (distinct comparison neighborhoods, cross-occupation).
Similar AI exposure score
Nearest O*NET task-automability scores nationwide (53% here).
- Baggage porters and bellhops · AI exposure 53%
- Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels · AI exposure 53%
- Financial risk specialists · AI exposure 53%
- Food science technicians · AI exposure 53%
Similar projected growth (2024–2034)
Nearest BLS employment change rates nationwide (+4.6% here).
- Accountants and auditors · growth +4.6%
- Administrative services managers · growth +4.6%
- Community and social service specialists, all other · growth +4.6%
- Electrical, electronic, and electromechanical assemblers, except coil winders, tapers, and finishers · growth +4.6%
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 14 occupations with a comparable automation-risk profile.
What to do with this
Use Pharmacists' numbers above to compare, not just read in isolation.
- Compare Pharmacists 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).