Production
Inspectors & Testers
SOC 51-9061
Check products against specs and reject what fails.
The job
Median pay
$49k
$40k to $61k typical range
Outlook, 2025 to 2035
Growing
+2.5% projected
Openings a year
67k
BLS projection
Typical education
High school
Our model
AI displacement risk
Moderate
How much of this job AI may do instead of the person
Works with AI
11/100
AI alongside the person rather than instead of them
AI exposure
43rd pct
More exposed than 43% of occupations · modeled estimate · 32nd pct in Microsoft's data
Future-proof
43/100
Key skills
- Writing
- Critical Thinking
- Reading Comprehension
- Active Listening
- Speaking
- Monitoring
Pay and jobs by state
BLS OEWS May 2025, 51 states. Sorted by jobs; per 1,000 is jobs per thousand workers in the state; vs national compares that rate with the country's.
| State | Jobs | Per 1,000 | vs national | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | 61,130 | 3.4 | 0.9× | $54k |
| Texas | 56,390 | 4.0 | 1.0× | $46k |
| Ohio | 32,060 | 5.8 | 1.5× | $47k |
| Illinois | 31,700 | 5.2 | 1.4× | $48k |
| Michigan | 27,980 | 6.4 | 1.6× | $44k |
| Pennsylvania | 25,870 | 4.3 | 1.1× | $48k |
| Indiana | 24,790 | 7.7 | 2.0× | $48k |
| Florida | 22,630 | 2.3 | 0.6× | $48k |
| Georgia | 19,980 | 4.1 | 1.1× | $46k |
| New York | 19,790 | 2.0 | 0.5× | $50k |
All 51 states
| State | Jobs | Per 1,000 | vs national | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Carolina | 19,700 | 4.0 | 1.0× | $46k |
| Wisconsin | 17,670 | 6.0 | 1.6× | $50k |
| Tennessee | 17,140 | 5.2 | 1.4× | $46k |
| South Carolina | 13,360 | 5.8 | 1.5× | $47k |
| Alabama | 13,120 | 6.2 | 1.6× | $40k |
| Kentucky | 12,880 | 6.4 | 1.7× | $46k |
| Missouri | 12,480 | 4.3 | 1.1× | $54k |
| New Jersey | 12,280 | 2.9 | 0.8× | $49k |
| Washington | 12,010 | 3.4 | 0.9× | $64k |
| Arizona | 11,120 | 3.4 | 0.9× | $52k |
| Massachusetts | 10,650 | 2.9 | 0.8× | $52k |
| Virginia | 9,830 | 2.4 | 0.6× | $50k |
| Minnesota | 9,710 | 3.3 | 0.9× | $57k |
| Kansas | 9,300 | 6.5 | 1.7× | $54k |
| Louisiana | 8,110 | 4.2 | 1.1× | $49k |
| Connecticut | 7,460 | 4.4 | 1.1× | $57k |
| Oklahoma | 7,430 | 4.4 | 1.1× | $50k |
| Iowa | 7,230 | 4.6 | 1.2× | $51k |
| Mississippi | 6,970 | 6.0 | 1.6× | $41k |
| Utah | 6,630 | 3.8 | 1.0× | $49k |
| Arkansas | 5,880 | 4.5 | 1.2× | $45k |
| Oregon | 5,690 | 2.9 | 0.8× | $54k |
| Colorado | 5,220 | 1.8 | 0.5× | $58k |
| Maryland | 4,600 | 1.7 | 0.4× | $62k |
| Nevada | 4,040 | 2.6 | 0.7× | $49k |
| Nebraska | 3,350 | 3.3 | 0.8× | $51k |
| New Hampshire | 3,050 | 4.5 | 1.2× | $55k |
| Idaho | 2,900 | 3.4 | 0.9× | $45k |
| West Virginia | 2,720 | 3.9 | 1.0× | $47k |
| Maine | 1,800 | 2.8 | 0.7× | $54k |
| North Dakota | 1,800 | 4.2 | 1.1× | $51k |
| Rhode Island | 1,790 | 3.6 | 0.9× | $55k |
| New Mexico | 1,550 | 1.8 | 0.5× | $50k |
| South Dakota | 1,090 | 2.4 | 0.6× | $47k |
| Delaware | 1,020 | 2.1 | 0.6× | $57k |
| Wyoming | 990 | 3.5 | 0.9× | $58k |
| Vermont | 900 | 3.0 | 0.8× | $46k |
| Hawaii | 650 | 1.0 | 0.3× | $60k |
| Montana | 580 | 1.1 | 0.3× | $58k |
| Alaska | 300 | 0.9 | 0.2× | $78k |
| Washington DC | 70 | 0.1 | 0.0× | $60k |
Top metro areas
- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN23,080 jobs · $48k median
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA22,610 jobs · $52k median
- Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX16,520 jobs · $47k median
- Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX16,440 jobs · $46k median
- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ16,370 jobs · $50k median
- Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI10,610 jobs · $45k median
- Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA9,260 jobs · $47k median
- Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD8,520 jobs · $52k median
Explore the rankings
Explore Inspectors & Testers interactively →Pay and outlook from BLS (OEWS 2025, Employment Projections 2025-2035). Skills and work activities from O*NET 30.3. AI exposure and future-proof scores are modeled estimates. How these numbers are made.