Insurance Underwriters
Also called: Account Underwriter, Life Underwriter, Personal Lines Underwriter, UnderwriterReview individual applications for insurance to evaluate degree of risk involved and determine acceptance of applications.
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What the data says: AI could halve the time on 6 of its 7 tasks, and jobs are projected to shrink 3.8% by 2035. In the most exposed occupations, the squeeze shows up first among early-career workers. How to think about this →
About this projection
BLS builds AI into its projections where the research supports it: “BLS generally applies adjustments based on this research conservatively, where there is convincing evidence for a change.”
It also notes a limit: “BLS projection methods are not designed to capture extremely rapid technological change.”
On its AI exposure groups, BLS says exposure “does not imply job loss.”
Recent conditions
- In 2024, 1.6% of people in this work were unemployed, against 3.8% across all occupations Census ACS 2024
- From Sep 2025 to Aug 2026, 4.3 hires for every 10 job openings in finance and insurance, which employs about 95% of people in this work, against 7.3 across all industries BLS JOLTS
One box per opening, filled for each hire; hires beyond the openings are added in a lighter shade. Higher can mean openings get filled, or that people leave often; lower, that jobs go unfilled, or hiring is slow.4.3 this industry7.3 all industries
Median pay by state BLS OEWS May 2025, state estimates
Tap a state for its figures.
Median pay in every state
| State | Median | Middle half earn | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $62,220 | $54,400 to $98,450 | 1,540 |
| Alaska | $81,620 | $59,530 to $91,010 | 100 |
| Arizona | $77,740 | $62,630 to $101,390 | 3,360 |
| Arkansas | $82,130 | $50,180 to $110,920 | 290 |
| California | $95,320 | $77,370 to $124,660 | 6,580 |
| Colorado | $100,640 | $76,860 to $130,880 | 2,040 |
| Connecticut | $100,690 | $79,710 to $129,850 | 2,010 |
| Delaware | not published | not published | 210 |
| District of Columbia | $82,070 | $78,290 to $131,000 | not published |
| Florida | $78,720 | $61,110 to $105,410 | 7,300 |
| Georgia | $85,980 | $70,940 to $129,630 | 7,160 |
| Hawaii | $73,260 | $59,890 to $100,050 | 230 |
| Idaho | $62,530 | $49,350 to $82,220 | 360 |
| Illinois | $89,620 | $74,500 to $125,330 | not published |
| Indiana | $77,440 | $61,440 to $95,130 | 2,170 |
| Iowa | $75,160 | $63,730 to $97,390 | 1,490 |
| Kansas | $77,070 | $60,100 to $117,540 | 1,230 |
| Kentucky | $79,830 | $57,910 to $100,990 | 900 |
| Louisiana | $76,540 | $59,660 to $91,640 | 1,050 |
| Maine | $95,510 | $71,100 to $109,400 | 520 |
| Maryland | $92,120 | $68,930 to $116,990 | 1,310 |
| Massachusetts | $106,640 | $80,250 to $135,110 | 2,890 |
| Michigan | $77,380 | $61,910 to $99,850 | 2,590 |
| Minnesota | $80,700 | $73,330 to $124,980 | 2,550 |
| Mississippi | $59,250 | $47,790 to $67,810 | 600 |
| Missouri | $80,040 | $62,520 to $95,370 | 2,130 |
| Montana | $63,140 | $52,750 to $82,770 | 140 |
| Nebraska | $75,120 | $60,060 to $92,450 | 1,410 |
| Nevada | $101,440 | $64,450 to $122,630 | 480 |
| New Hampshire | $103,940 | $86,010 to $129,530 | 270 |
| New Jersey | $96,220 | $79,230 to $120,970 | 3,150 |
| New Mexico | $64,000 | $48,450 to $93,590 | 100 |
| New York | $97,450 | $79,250 to $131,530 | 6,900 |
| North Carolina | $77,120 | $58,950 to $100,680 | 3,460 |
| North Dakota | $74,130 | $60,470 to $91,490 | 210 |
| Ohio | $79,260 | $63,120 to $104,180 | 5,110 |
| Oklahoma | $66,770 | $49,170 to $85,750 | 600 |
| Oregon | $79,200 | $65,570 to $102,000 | 570 |
| Pennsylvania | $78,950 | $63,440 to $103,720 | 5,160 |
| Puerto Rico | $46,990 | $34,660 to $56,650 | 870 |
| Rhode Island | $84,720 | $63,920 to $103,950 | 250 |
| South Carolina | $79,570 | $59,740 to $103,500 | 910 |
| South Dakota | $83,130 | $61,050 to $115,550 | 210 |
| Tennessee | $78,840 | $60,540 to $100,640 | 1,250 |
| Texas | $78,890 | $61,620 to $105,040 | 9,980 |
| Utah | $72,730 | $51,590 to $92,980 | 490 |
| Vermont | $77,990 | $63,430 to $90,730 | 210 |
| Virginia | $81,870 | $66,670 to $104,010 | 2,470 |
| Washington | $99,400 | $78,680 to $127,550 | 1,740 |
| West Virginia | not published | not published | 190 |
| Wisconsin | $97,370 | $74,090 to $123,320 | 3,110 |
| Wyoming | $62,290 | $47,520 to $80,650 | 50 |
Nationally: $81,370. Shades run from the lowest state median to the highest; a territory below that range takes the lightest. How to read this
How AI touches the work
What AI could speed up, task by task, and where people already use it.
AI could halve the time on 6 of its 7 tasks
| AI rating | Its main tasks | Share of Claude conversations May 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| AI + software | Examine documents to determine degree of risk from factors such as applicant health, financial standing and value, and condition of property. | under 0.01% |
| Not much | Decline excessive risks. | Not published |
| AI alone | Write to field representatives, medical personnel, or others to obtain further information, quote rates, or explain company underwriting policies. | Not published |
| AI + software | Evaluate possibility of losses due to catastrophe or excessive insurance. | Not published |
| AI + software | Decrease value of policy when risk is substandard and specify applicable endorsements or apply rating to ensure safe, profitable distribution of risks, using reference materials. | Not published |
| AI + software | Review company records to determine amount of insurance in force on single risk or group of closely related risks. | Not published |
See all 7 tasks
| AI + software | Authorize reinsurance of policy when risk is high. | Not published |
Ordered by how important O*NET's respondents rate each task (1 to 5) times the share who say it is part of their job. The ordering is ours. 1 of the 7 have a published share of Claude conversations; “not published” means too few conversations for Anthropic to publish a figure.
Where people already use AI
The tasks above say what AI could speed up. This shows what people are using it for. Its 7 tasks fall under 6 work activities that many occupations share, and Microsoft counted how often each one came up in 200,000 conversations with its Copilot assistant in 2024.
- #12 Explain regulations, policies, or procedures
| Work activity | This occupation's tasks under it | People asked AI for help in 10,000 conversations |
AI did it for them in 10,000 conversations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Authorize business activities or transactions | |||
| Explain regulations, policies, or procedures | |||
| Evaluate the quality or accuracy of data | |||
| Analyze health or medical data | |||
| Analyze business or financial risks | |||
| Evaluate condition of financial assets, property, or other resources |
How people in this work use Claude
What people in this work made with Claude % of conversations
- An analysis or summary38%
- Advice or a recommendation24%
- An email or message10%
- An explanation or answer10%
- Creative writing5%
How they worked with Claude
71% of these conversations were about work. Anthropic Economic Index, May 2026.
How to read this
Work activities come from O*NET, which links every task to the broader activities it involves. Microsoft's figures are for the activity across everyone who used Copilot, not for insurance underwriters specifically. Copilot is a general chat assistant; dedicated coding tools are not included, so programming help is under-counted here. Activities are listed by how many of this occupation's tasks fall under them.
The task ratings say whether AI could halve the time a task takes: on its own (“AI alone”), or with software built on it (“AI + software”). They were made by people in 2023 (Eloundou et al.). Claude's share is the task's share of all Claude.ai conversations in May 2026; Anthropic doesn't publish a task with too few conversations. None of these add up to the BLS exposure group, which combines five research measures.
More in the Guide: task ratings · task order · work activities · Copilot figures · Claude
High exposure doesn't mean fewer jobs
BLS projects most occupations in its two most exposed groups to grow: 141 of 206 rated Very high and 165 of 206 rated High. Each dot is one of the 831 occupations BLS rates.
Career moves into and out of this occupation
From moves between occupations found in online resumes, 2002–2016. Career changes only: a first job after school isn't a move.
Where people moved next
of 26,915 moves out
- 1 Loan Officers Very high +1.1% 15%
- 2 Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products Very high -0.9% 6%
- 3 General and Operations Managers High +5.0% 5%
- 4 Managers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 4%
- 5 Management Analysts Very high +10.1% 3%
Where people moved in from
of 26,378 moves in
- 1 Loan Officers Very high +1.1% 15%
- 2 Customer Service Representatives Very high -5.3% 7%
- 3 Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products Very high -0.9% 5%
- 4 General and Operations Managers High +5.0% 4%
- 5 Loan Interviewers and Clerks Very high -2.4% 4%
Resumes over-represent younger, white-collar job-seekers and moves into management. Schubert, Stansbury and Taska (resume data).
Education and training for the occupation
O*NET survey of workers in this occupation
- 10% high school
- 7% some college
- 10% associate's
- 70% bachelor's
- 3% post-bachelor's certificate
O*NET 31.0 survey of workers in this occupation · 30 people answered.
Census survey (American Community Survey)
- 1% less than high school
- 9% high school
- 16% some college
- 9% associate's
- 53% bachelor's
- 10% master's
- 2% professional degree
Census ACS 2024, all workers in this occupation · 1,295 people surveyed.
Why the two can differ
O*NET asks about 20 people in each occupation, which makes its shares uncertain, but it reports the exact occupation and counts certificates. The Census survey reaches thousands, but it groups some occupations together and counts degrees only. More in the Guide
Median pay by highest degree full-time, year-round · Census ACS 2024, all workers in this occupation
4 programs, such as Risk Management, Financial Risk Management and Actuarial Science.
See all
- Risk Management
- Financial Risk Management
- Actuarial Science
- Insurance
Jobs that require a credential BLS Occupational Requirements Survey 2023
56.9% this occupation
45.3% all occupations
| By kind | This occupation | All occupations |
|---|---|---|
| a license | 11.0% | 19.1% |
| an educational certificate | <0.5% | 2.8% |
| a certification | not published |
Share of jobs whose employer requires it. BLS doesn't say which credential. How to read this
Look up certifications, training and licenses U.S. Department of Labor
- Certification Finder ↗ certifications CareerOneStop lists for this occupation
- Training Finder ↗ schools and programs, nationwide; narrow the place there
- License Finder ↗ licenses by state
- Apprenticeships: DOL's list of apprenticeable occupations doesn't include this one.
These open in a new tab and send only the occupation's public code. More in the Guide
BLS AI exposure categories (Aug 2026) · BLS Employment Projections 2025–35 · O*NET 31.0 · Task ratings: Eloundou et al., Science (2024) · Microsoft "Working with AI" v1.1 · Anthropic Economic Index (2026-06-26) · Schubert, Stansbury and Taska · NCES CIP–SOC · Census ACS 2024 · BLS JOLTS · Brynjolfsson, Chandar and Chen, Stanford (Aug 2026)
See it online, and explore any career: https://www.pathmosaic.com/card/13-2053.00