Construction & Extraction
Underground Utilities Locators
SOC 47-5099
Locate buried utilities before excavation to prevent strikes.
The job
Median pay
$57k
$44k to $65k typical range
Outlook, 2025 to 2035
Growing
+3.4% projected
Openings a year
600
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
10/100
AI alongside the person rather than instead of them
AI exposure
50th pct
More exposed than 50% of occupations · modeled estimate
Future-proof
51/100
Key skills
- Utility detection
- Safety
- GPS
- Communication
- Precision
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Louisiana | 1,650 | 0.9 | 23.9× | $48k |
| Texas | 1,070 | 0.1 | 2.1× | $61k |
| California | 580 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $51k~ |
| West Virginia | 470 | 0.7 | 18.8× | $64k |
| Florida | 398 | 0.0 | 1.1× | $47k~ |
| Nevada | 390 | 0.3 | 7.1× | $67k |
| Wyoming | 370 | 1.3 | 37.0× | $59k |
| Pennsylvania | 189 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $80k~ |
| Georgia | 180 | 0.0 | 1.0× | $46k |
| North Carolina | 170 | 0.0 | 1.0× | $47k~ |
All 51 states
| State | Jobs | Per 1,000 | vs national | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ohio | 170 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $45k |
| Illinois | 161 | 0.0 | 0.7× | $77k~ |
| Montana | 160 | 0.3 | 8.8× | $51k |
| Virginia | 153 | 0.0 | 1.1× | $54k~ |
| Arizona | 150 | 0.0 | 1.3× | $56k~ |
| Washington | 145 | 0.0 | 1.1× | $72k~ |
| Michigan | 139 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $59k~ |
| Indiana | 126 | 0.0 | 1.1× | $59k~ |
| Massachusetts | 115 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $74k~ |
| New Jersey | 109 | 0.0 | 0.7× | $70k~ |
| Wisconsin | 101 | 0.0 | 1.0× | $61k~ |
| Missouri | 100 | 0.0 | 1.0× | $59k~ |
| Utah | 98 | 0.1 | 1.6× | $45k~ |
| Maryland | 96 | 0.0 | 1.0× | $57k~ |
| Alabama | 77 | 0.0 | 1.0× | $46k~ |
| Oregon | 77 | 0.0 | 1.1× | $63k~ |
| Oklahoma | 74 | 0.0 | 1.2× | $47k~ |
| South Carolina | 74 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $47k~ |
| Arkansas | 70 | 0.1 | 1.5× | $47k |
| Tennessee | 70 | 0.0 | 0.6× | $49k |
| Kentucky | 66 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $51k~ |
| Iowa | 61 | 0.0 | 1.1× | $57k~ |
| Colorado | 60 | 0.0 | 0.6× | $78k |
| Kansas | 53 | 0.0 | 1.0× | $53k~ |
| New Mexico | 51 | 0.1 | 1.6× | $48k~ |
| New York | 50 | 0.0 | 0.1× | $64k |
| Connecticut | 44 | 0.0 | 0.7× | $69k~ |
| Nebraska | 44 | 0.0 | 1.2× | $52k~ |
| Mississippi | 43 | 0.0 | 1.0× | $45k~ |
| Idaho | 40 | 0.0 | 1.3× | $71k |
| Minnesota | 40 | 0.0 | 0.4× | $47k |
| North Dakota | 30 | 0.1 | 2.0× | $59k~ |
| Maine | 28 | 0.0 | 1.2× | $58k~ |
| Hawaii | 26 | 0.0 | 1.2× | $79k~ |
| South Dakota | 23 | 0.1 | 1.4× | $48k~ |
| New Hampshire | 22 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $58k~ |
| Alaska | 19 | 0.1 | 1.6× | $72k~ |
| Delaware | 16 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $57k~ |
| Rhode Island | 15 | 0.0 | 0.8× | $60k~ |
| Vermont | 12 | 0.0 | 1.1× | $57k~ |
| Washington DC | 11 | 0.0 | 0.4× | $67k~ |
Top metro areas
- Lafayette, LA390 jobs · $53k median
- Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX260 jobs · $65k median
- New Orleans-Metairie, LA140 jobs · $55k median
- Baton Rouge, LA120 jobs · $48k median
- Wheeling, WV-OH120 jobs · $63k median
- Casper, WY110 jobs · $51k median
- Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX100 jobs · $67k median
- Beckley, WV70 jobs · $70k median
Explore the rankings
Explore Underground Utilities Locators 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.