Business & Financial

Purchasing Agents

SOC 13-1023

Buy the goods and services a company needs at the best price and terms.

The job

Median pay

$78k

$61k to $101k typical range

BLS figure for Buyers and Purchasing Agents

Outlook, 2025 to 2035

Growing fast

+6.0% projected

BLS figure for Buyers and Purchasing Agents

Openings a year

47k

BLS figure for Buyers and Purchasing Agents

Typical education

Bachelor's

Our model

AI displacement risk

High

How much of this job AI may do instead of the person

Works with AI

4/100

AI alongside the person rather than instead of them

AI exposure

77th pct

More exposed than 77% of occupations · modeled estimate

Future-proof

49/100

Take the next step

Weigh it against LogisticiansPay, outlook, entry and AI exposure side by side See where it pays mostWashington DC leads at $124k; every state is below Find careers like itOpen the map at Purchasing Agents and explore its neighbours See open jobsPurchasing Agents roles hiring now Learn the skillsCourses for Purchasing Agents, who lean most on reading comprehension Real pay & reviewsWhat Purchasing Agents say they actually earn

Key skills

Reading Comprehension
Active Listening
Writing
Speaking
Critical Thinking
Active Learning

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. A tilde marks a figure estimated from the parent occupation group where BLS publishes none.

State	Jobs	Per 1,000	vs national	Median pay
California	48,010	2.6	0.8×	$83k
Texas	44,030	3.1	1.0×	$76k
New York	31,240	3.2	1.0×	$79k
Florida	30,270	3.0	1.0×	$73k
Virginia	22,120	5.4	1.7×	$89k
Ohio	21,640	3.9	1.2×	$76k
Illinois	19,660	3.2	1.0×	$78k
Pennsylvania	17,430	2.9	0.9×	$74k
Michigan	16,680	3.8	1.2×	$76k
Georgia	15,710	3.2	1.0×	$75k

All 51 states

State	Jobs	Per 1,000	vs national	Median pay
Washington	15,400	4.3	1.4×	$85k
North Carolina	14,290	2.9	0.9×	$76k
Massachusetts	12,820	3.5	1.1×	$86k
New Jersey	12,180	2.8	0.9×	$93k
Tennessee	11,420	3.5	1.1×	$65k
Minnesota	10,960	3.7	1.2×	$80k
Arizona	10,870	3.4	1.1×	$75k
Indiana	10,720	3.3	1.1×	$69k
Colorado	10,080	3.5	1.1×	$84k
Wisconsin	9,240	3.1	1.0×	$71k
Alabama	8,960	4.2	1.3×	$74k
Maryland	8,900	3.2	1.0×	$91k
Missouri	8,070	2.7	0.9×	$66k
Oregon	7,090	3.6	1.1×	$75k
Kansas	6,470	4.5	1.4×	$70k
South Carolina	6,150	2.7	0.8×	$76k
Connecticut	5,530	3.3	1.0×	$83k
Kentucky	5,440	2.7	0.9×	$65k
Oklahoma	4,750	2.8	0.9×	$72k
Iowa	4,570	2.9	0.9×	$70k
Arkansas	4,510	3.5	1.1×	$76k
Utah	4,090	2.4	0.8×	$75k
Louisiana	3,440	1.8	0.6×	$66k
Nebraska	2,850	2.8	0.9×	$75k
New Hampshire	2,580	3.8	1.2×	$77k
Nevada	2,310	1.5	0.5×	$73k
New Mexico	2,250	2.6	0.8×	$77k
Mississippi	2,240	1.9	0.6×	$72k
Washington DC	1,880	2.7	0.8×	$124k
Rhode Island	1,824	3.6	1.1×	$86k~
Hawaii	1,720	2.7	0.9×	$74k
Idaho	1,610	1.9	0.6×	$69k
Delaware	1,400	2.9	0.9×	$83k
Montana	1,230	2.4	0.8×	$63k
Maine	1,180	1.8	0.6×	$78k
South Dakota	1,180	2.6	0.8×	$74k
West Virginia	1,130	1.6	0.5×	$76k
Vermont	1,010	3.3	1.1×	$65k
Alaska	890	2.7	0.9×	$83k
North Dakota	880	2.0	0.7×	$76k
Wyoming	570	2.0	0.6×	$72k

Top metro areas

New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ29,360 jobs · $83k median
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA18,270 jobs · $83k median
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN14,260 jobs · $79k median
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV14,240 jobs · $105k median
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX14,160 jobs · $79k median
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX10,880 jobs · $76k median
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA10,450 jobs · $75k median
Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH10,090 jobs · $93k median

Explore the rankings

Explore Purchasing Agents interactively →

BLS does not publish this occupation on its own. Pay and outlook here are BLS's figures for Buyers and Purchasing Agents (SOC 13-1020), the occupation it is grouped with, so the real figures for this job could sit either side of them. Skills and work activities from O*NET 30.3. AI exposure and future-proof scores are modeled estimates. How these numbers are made.