Protective Service
Transportation Security Screeners
SOC 33-9093
Screen passengers and baggage and hold the line on aviation security.
The job
Median pay
$67k
$57k to $73k typical range
Outlook, 2025 to 2035
Declining
-4.2% projected
Openings a year
5k
BLS projection
Typical education
High school
Our model
AI displacement risk
Low
How much of this job AI may do instead of the person
Works with AI
7/100
AI alongside the person rather than instead of them
AI exposure
6th pct
More exposed than 6% of occupations · modeled estimate · 72nd pct in Microsoft's data
Future-proof
49/100
Key skills
- Speaking
- Monitoring
- Active Listening
- Critical Thinking
- Reading Comprehension
- Writing
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Florida | 6,920 | 0.7 | 2.1× | $63k |
| California | 5,410 | 0.3 | 0.9× | $74k |
| Texas | 4,300 | 0.3 | 0.9× | $69k |
| New York | 4,240 | 0.4 | 1.4× | $72k |
| Illinois | 1,970 | 0.3 | 1.0× | $71k |
| Virginia | 1,870 | 0.5 | 1.4× | $70k |
| Georgia | 1,850 | 0.4 | 1.2× | $67k |
| Pennsylvania | 1,460 | 0.2 | 0.7× | $67k |
| Arizona | 1,380 | 0.4 | 1.3× | $64k |
| Massachusetts | 1,380 | 0.4 | 1.2× | $74k |
All 51 states
| State | Jobs | Per 1,000 | vs national | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nevada | 1,350 | 0.9 | 2.7× | $65k |
| North Carolina | 1,300 | 0.3 | 0.8× | $65k |
| Colorado | 1,250 | 0.4 | 1.3× | $72k |
| New Jersey | 1,200 | 0.3 | 0.9× | $74k |
| Michigan | 1,070 | 0.2 | 0.8× | $67k |
| Washington | 1,037 | 0.3 | 0.9× | $83k~ |
| Hawaii | 1,010 | 1.6 | 5.0× | $70k |
| Missouri | 930 | 0.3 | 1.0× | $51k |
| Tennessee | 840 | 0.3 | 0.8× | $61k |
| Minnesota | 740 | 0.3 | 0.8× | $67k |
| Ohio | 690 | 0.1 | 0.4× | $66k |
| Maryland | 570 | 0.2 | 0.6× | $72k |
| Oklahoma | 566 | 0.3 | 1.0× | $62k~ |
| Wisconsin | 540 | 0.2 | 0.6× | $63k |
| Connecticut | 511 | 0.3 | 0.9× | $81k~ |
| Oregon | 511 | 0.3 | 0.8× | $79k~ |
| Kentucky | 510 | 0.3 | 0.8× | $63k |
| Utah | 510 | 0.3 | 0.9× | $61k |
| South Carolina | 480 | 0.2 | 0.6× | $63k |
| Indiana | 460 | 0.1 | 0.4× | $62k |
| Louisiana | 460 | 0.2 | 0.7× | $63k |
| Alaska | 440 | 1.4 | 4.2× | $71k |
| Washington DC | 395 | 0.6 | 1.7× | $99k~ |
| Montana | 330 | 0.6 | 2.0× | $55k |
| Nebraska | 290 | 0.3 | 0.9× | $62k |
| Alabama | 260 | 0.1 | 0.4× | $64k |
| Idaho | 250 | 0.3 | 0.9× | $63k |
| Iowa | 220 | 0.1 | 0.4× | $62k |
| New Mexico | 200 | 0.2 | 0.7× | $64k |
| Arkansas | 190 | 0.1 | 0.5× | $61k |
| Mississippi | 170 | 0.1 | 0.5× | $63k |
| North Dakota | 170 | 0.4 | 1.2× | $55k |
| Maine | 160 | 0.2 | 0.8× | $63k |
| Rhode Island | 160 | 0.3 | 1.0× | $72k |
| Delaware | 139 | 0.3 | 0.9× | $69k~ |
| Kansas | 120 | 0.1 | 0.3× | $63k |
| West Virginia | 90 | 0.1 | 0.4× | $63k |
| Wyoming | 90 | 0.3 | 1.0× | $61k |
| New Hampshire | 80 | 0.1 | 0.4× | $76k |
| Vermont | 80 | 0.3 | 0.8× | $65k |
| South Dakota | 60 | 0.1 | 0.4× | $56k |
Top metro areas
- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ4,610 jobs · $72k median
- Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL3,250 jobs · $65k median
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA2,670 jobs · $74k median
- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN1,780 jobs · $71k median
- Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX1,690 jobs · $69k median
- Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA1,570 jobs · $67k median
- Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL1,490 jobs · $62k median
- Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV1,360 jobs · $70k median
Explore the rankings
Explore Transportation Security Screeners 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.