Pharmacy Technicians
Also called: Certified Pharmacy Technician (CPhT), Chemotherapy Pharmacy Technician (Chemo Pharmacy Technician), OR Pharmacy Tech (Operating Room Pharmacy Tech), RPhT (Registered Pharmacy Technician)Prepare medications under the direction of a pharmacist. May measure, mix, count out, label, and record amounts and dosages of medications according to prescription orders.
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What the data says: AI could halve the time on 13 of its 21 tasks, yet jobs are projected to grow 6.4% by 2035. 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, 2.4% of people in this work were unemployed, against 3.8% across all occupations Census ACS 2024
- From Sep 2025 to Aug 2026, 9.1 hires for every 10 job openings in retail trade, which employs about 70% 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.9.1 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 | $39,030 | $36,730 to $46,260 | 8,510 |
| Alaska | $52,640 | $47,140 to $59,350 | 800 |
| Arizona | $47,640 | $45,890 to $54,060 | 12,970 |
| Arkansas | $38,680 | $36,600 to $45,470 | 4,560 |
| California | $55,110 | $46,430 to $65,590 | 39,860 |
| Colorado | $49,970 | $46,300 to $58,300 | 6,010 |
| Connecticut | $47,050 | $38,760 to $54,270 | 5,200 |
| Delaware | $46,430 | $38,090 to $48,040 | 1,480 |
| District of Columbia | $47,410 | $46,270 to $59,470 | 1,130 |
| Florida | $43,590 | $37,040 to $47,570 | 38,460 |
| Georgia | $41,910 | $37,130 to $48,490 | 14,680 |
| Guam | $36,010 | $28,780 to $36,640 | 140 |
| Hawaii | $46,760 | $38,520 to $59,010 | 1,540 |
| Idaho | $46,420 | $39,670 to $50,460 | 2,950 |
| Illinois | $46,650 | $38,190 to $49,150 | 21,340 |
| Indiana | $44,560 | $37,700 to $47,850 | 10,790 |
| Iowa | $44,860 | $37,790 to $48,670 | 4,630 |
| Kansas | $43,310 | $37,510 to $47,140 | 4,270 |
| Kentucky | $39,200 | $36,330 to $46,470 | 8,870 |
| Louisiana | $44,410 | $37,740 to $47,970 | 6,700 |
| Maine | $45,400 | $38,620 to $48,870 | 2,070 |
| Maryland | $45,120 | $37,400 to $50,120 | 7,990 |
| Massachusetts | $46,470 | $39,050 to $59,580 | 10,150 |
| Michigan | $44,340 | $37,520 to $48,730 | 14,240 |
| Minnesota | $48,300 | $43,490 to $54,440 | 7,340 |
| Mississippi | $39,040 | $36,840 to $46,060 | 4,040 |
| Missouri | $40,100 | $36,270 to $47,100 | 12,610 |
| Montana | $49,400 | $45,920 to $55,690 | 1,340 |
| Nebraska | $46,610 | $38,860 to $49,270 | 2,660 |
| Nevada | $47,980 | $39,600 to $52,090 | 4,070 |
| New Hampshire | $47,360 | $38,650 to $52,610 | 1,970 |
| New Jersey | $39,610 | $36,710 to $49,600 | 14,020 |
| New Mexico | $46,630 | $40,560 to $50,250 | 2,550 |
| New York | $43,930 | $37,740 to $49,980 | 24,400 |
| North Carolina | $44,530 | $37,480 to $48,480 | 17,260 |
| North Dakota | $47,560 | $41,380 to $54,250 | 890 |
| Ohio | $40,650 | $36,650 to $48,200 | 17,820 |
| Oklahoma | $40,500 | $37,010 to $46,750 | 5,500 |
| Oregon | $54,900 | $48,190 to $62,560 | 4,320 |
| Pennsylvania | $40,040 | $36,160 to $46,870 | 18,880 |
| Puerto Rico | $29,520 | $25,890 to $43,130 | 5,820 |
| Rhode Island | $44,380 | $38,590 to $50,940 | 1,540 |
| South Carolina | $42,120 | $36,990 to $47,810 | 8,070 |
| South Dakota | $46,170 | $39,050 to $48,870 | 1,230 |
| Tennessee | $41,920 | $37,060 to $48,270 | 11,870 |
| Texas | $45,900 | $37,730 to $48,960 | 41,740 |
| Utah | $48,140 | $41,750 to $52,570 | 5,030 |
| Vermont | $47,940 | $38,890 to $53,040 | 760 |
| Virgin Islands | $40,620 | $37,150 to $58,240 | 40 |
| Virginia | $44,610 | $37,960 to $49,150 | 10,720 |
| Washington | $58,900 | $50,400 to $67,630 | 8,150 |
| West Virginia | $38,210 | $35,750 to $45,070 | 3,560 |
| Wisconsin | $45,970 | $37,960 to $50,070 | 9,540 |
| Wyoming | $48,260 | $42,890 to $53,540 | 600 |
Nationally: $45,750. 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 13 of its 21 tasks
| AI rating | Its main tasks | Share of Claude conversations May 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Not much | Maintain proper storage and security conditions for drugs. | Not published |
| Not much | Receive and store incoming supplies, verify quantities against invoices, check for outdated medications in current inventory, and inform supervisors of stock needs and shortages. | Not published |
| AI alone | Answer telephones, responding to questions or requests. | Not published |
| AI alone | Receive written prescription or refill requests and verify that information is complete and accurate. | Not published |
| AI + software | Establish or maintain patient profiles, including lists of medications taken by individual patients. | Not published |
| AI + software | Assist customers by answering simple questions, locating items, or referring them to the pharmacist for medication information. | Not published |
See all 21 tasks
| Not much | Clean and help maintain equipment or work areas and sterilize glassware, according to prescribed methods. | Not published |
| AI + software | Enter prescription information into computer databases. | Not published |
| AI + software | Order, label, and count stock of medications, chemicals, or supplies and enter inventory data into computer. | Not published |
| Not much | Mix pharmaceutical preparations, according to written prescriptions. | Not published |
| Not much | Prepack bulk medicines, fill bottles with prescribed medications, and type and affix labels. | Not published |
| AI alone | Price and file prescriptions that have been filled. | Not published |
| AI alone | Operate cash registers to accept payment from customers. | Not published |
| AI + software | Prepare and process medical insurance claim forms and records. | Not published |
| Not much | Deliver medications or pharmaceutical supplies to patients, nursing stations, or surgery. | Not published |
| Not much | Transfer medication from vials to the appropriate number of sterile, disposable syringes, using aseptic techniques. | Not published |
| AI + software | Compute charges for medication or equipment dispensed to hospital patients and enter data in computer. | Not published |
| AI + software | Supply and monitor robotic machines that dispense medicine into containers and label the containers. | Not published |
| AI + software | Price stock and mark items for sale. | Not published |
| Not much | Restock intravenous (IV) supplies and add measured drugs or nutrients to IV solutions under sterile conditions to prepare IV packs for various uses, such as chemotherapy medication. | Not published |
| AI + software | Maintain and merchandise home healthcare products or services. | 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. 0 of the 21 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 21 tasks fall under 15 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.
- #5 Provide information or assistance to the public
- #11 Provide information to guests, clients, or customers
- #30 Perform administrative or clerical activities
- and 1 more, in the table below
| 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Replenish inventories of materials, equipment, or products | |||
| Prepare mixtures or solutions | |||
| Perform administrative or clerical activities | |||
| Process digital or online data | |||
| Execute financial transactions | |||
| Sell products or services | |||
| Provide information or assistance to the public | |||
| Provide information to guests, clients, or customers |
Show all 15 activities
| Verify personal information | |||
| Direct organizational operations, activities, or procedures | |||
| Monitor resources or inventories | |||
| Move materials, equipment, or supplies | |||
| Maintain health or medical records | |||
| Maintain medical equipment or instruments | |||
| Clean medical equipment or facilities |
How people in this work use Claude
What people in this work made with Claude % of conversations
- An explanation or answer74%
- Advice or a recommendation8%
- Ideas or a brainstorm2%
- An email or message1%
- An analysis or summary1%
How they worked with Claude
6% 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 pharmacy technicians 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 116,801 moves out
- 1 Customer Service Representatives Very high -5.3% 6%
- 2 Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive Very high -6.0% 4%
- 3 Managers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 3%
- 4 First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers High -3.7% 3%
- 5 Pharmacists High +5.2% 3%
Where people moved in from
of 77,872 moves in
- 1 Customer Service Representatives Very high -5.3% 7%
- 2 Cashiers High -6.5% 6%
- 3 Retail Salespersons Very high -0.3% 5%
- 4 Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive Very high -6.0% 4%
- 5 First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers High -3.7% 3%
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
- 36% high school
- 42% postsecondary certificate
- 15% some college
- 4% associate's
- 4% bachelor's
O*NET 31.0 survey of workers in this occupation · 31 people answered.
Census survey (American Community Survey)
- 2% less than high school
- 27% high school
- 36% some college
- 15% associate's
- 16% bachelor's
- 2% master's
- 1% doctorate
Census ACS 2024, all workers in this occupation · 4,084 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
1 program: Pharmacy Technician/Assistant.
Jobs that require a credential BLS Occupational Requirements Survey 2023
87.6% this occupation
45.3% all occupations
| By kind | This occupation | All occupations |
|---|---|---|
| a license | 71.0% | 19.1% |
| a certification | 26.2% | 5.8% |
| an educational certificate | 7.4% | 2.8% |
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
- Apprenticeship Finder ↗ DOL lists 4 registered apprenticeships in this occupation. Apprenticeship.gov can't be linked to one occupation, so search for “Pharmacy Technicians” there.
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
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