Musical Instrument Repairers and Tuners
Also called: Instrument Repair Technician (Instrument Repair Tech), Luthier, Piano Technician (Piano Tech), Piano TunerRepair percussion, stringed, reed, or wind instruments. May specialize in one area, such as piano tuning.
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What the data says: AI couldn't halve the time on any of its 24 tasks, and jobs are projected to grow 1.9% 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, 1.6% of people in this work were unemployed, against 3.8% across all occupations Census ACS 2024, all workers in the Census group “Precision instrument and equipment repairers”
- From Sep 2025 to Aug 2026, 9.1 hires for every 10 job openings in retail trade, which employs about 68% 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 | not published | not published | 40 |
| Arizona | $37,850 | $36,330 to $48,100 | 110 |
| California | $47,580 | $44,360 to $57,400 | 520 |
| Colorado | $43,670 | $40,610 to $47,820 | 70 |
| Connecticut | $52,940 | $36,650 to $54,430 | 40 |
| Florida | $44,030 | $31,500 to $46,840 | 140 |
| Georgia | $29,640 | $26,080 to $48,260 | 100 |
| Illinois | $49,250 | $37,610 to $78,870 | 200 |
| Indiana | $38,440 | $38,190 to $46,190 | 150 |
| Iowa | $38,700 | $31,340 to $55,370 | 90 |
| Kansas | $43,680 | $35,060 to $50,250 | 80 |
| Maine | $48,530 | $40,400 to $57,670 | 90 |
| Maryland | $55,130 | $46,670 to $59,900 | 160 |
| Massachusetts | $46,820 | $39,570 to $61,450 | 130 |
| Michigan | $59,570 | $36,800 to $62,670 | 210 |
| Minnesota | $44,230 | $36,550 to $45,850 | 100 |
| Mississippi | $23,980 | $22,880 to $36,250 | not published |
| Missouri | $47,220 | $33,810 to $48,730 | 110 |
| Nevada | $38,500 | $37,490 to $55,410 | 90 |
| New Jersey | $58,730 | $51,060 to $62,820 | 200 |
| New York | $53,420 | $41,550 to $60,930 | 270 |
| North Carolina | $42,970 | $37,370 to $46,000 | not published |
| North Dakota | $46,780 | $44,450 to $46,840 | 30 |
| Ohio | $39,900 | $31,220 to $54,770 | 230 |
| Oklahoma | $31,160 | $29,480 to $33,940 | 60 |
| Oregon | $54,800 | $39,120 to $63,360 | 40 |
| Pennsylvania | $47,520 | $38,790 to $53,750 | 240 |
| South Carolina | $44,870 | $37,350 to $50,710 | 90 |
| Tennessee | $58,730 | $38,610 to $68,100 | 300 |
| Texas | $48,250 | $38,350 to $61,670 | 580 |
| Utah | $50,180 | $39,020 to $53,620 | 60 |
| Virginia | $45,140 | $37,550 to $47,960 | 120 |
| Washington | $43,330 | $40,160 to $46,980 | 150 |
| West Virginia | $38,920 | $33,300 to $51,390 | 30 |
| Wisconsin | $46,540 | $31,760 to $52,040 | 180 |
Nationally: $46,420. 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 none of its 24 tasks
| AI rating | Its main tasks | Share of Claude conversations May 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Not much | Play instruments to evaluate their sound quality and to locate any defects. | Not published |
| Not much | Disassemble instruments and parts for repair and adjustment. | Not published |
| Not much | Repair or replace musical instrument parts and components, such as strings, bridges, felts, and keys, using hand and power tools. | Not published |
| Not much | Reassemble instruments following repair, using hand tools and power tools and glue, hair, yarn, resin, or clamps, and lubricate instruments as necessary. | Not published |
| Not much | Compare instrument pitches with tuning tool pitches to tune instruments. | Not published |
| Not much | Inspect instruments to locate defects, and to determine their value or the level of restoration required. | Not published |
See all 24 tasks
| Not much | Shape old parts and replacement parts to improve tone or intonation, using hand tools, lathes, or soldering irons. | Not published |
| Not much | Adjust string tensions to tune instruments, using hand tools and electronic tuning devices. | Not published |
| Not much | Mix and measure glue that will be used for instrument repair. | Not published |
| Not much | Polish instruments, using rags and polishing compounds, buffing wheels, or burnishing tools. | Not published |
| Not much | Repair cracks in wood or metal instruments, using pinning wire, lathes, fillers, clamps, or soldering irons. | Not published |
| Not much | String instruments, and adjust trusses and bridges of instruments to obtain specified string tensions and heights. | Not published |
| Not much | Solder posts and parts to hold them in their proper places. | Not published |
| Not much | Remove irregularities from tuning pins, strings, and hammers of pianos, using wood blocks or filing tools. | Not published |
| Not much | Align pads and keys on reed or wind instruments. | Not published |
| Not much | Make wood replacement parts, using woodworking machines and hand tools. | Not published |
| Not much | Adjust felt hammers on pianos to increase tonal mellowness or brilliance, using sanding paddles, lacquer, or needles. | Not published |
| Not much | Refinish instruments to protect and decorate them, using hand tools, buffing tools, and varnish. | Not published |
| Not much | Remove dents and burrs from metal instruments, using mallets and burnishing tools. | Not published |
| Not much | Assemble and install new pipe organs and pianos in buildings. | Not published |
| Not much | Refinish and polish piano cabinets or cases to prepare them for sale. | Not published |
| Not much | Strike wood, fiberglass, or metal bars of instruments, and use tuned blocks, stroboscopes, or electronic tuners to evaluate tones made by instruments. | Not published |
| Not much | Wash metal instruments in lacquer-stripping and cyanide solutions to remove lacquer and tarnish. | Not published |
| Not much | Deliver pianos to purchasers or to locations of their use. | 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 24 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 24 tasks fall under 16 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.
| 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adjust equipment to ensure adequate performance | |||
| Smooth surfaces of objects or equipment | |||
| Test performance of equipment or systems | |||
| Repair tools or equipment | |||
| Apply protective solutions or coatings | |||
| Assemble equipment or components | |||
| Prepare mixtures or solutions | |||
| Maintain tools or equipment |
Show all 16 activities
| Clean tools, equipment, facilities, or work areas | |||
| Disassemble equipment | |||
| Position materials or components for assembly | |||
| Operate transportation equipment or vehicles | |||
| Inspect commercial, industrial, or production systems or equipment | |||
| Fabricate devices or components | |||
| Install commercial or production equipment | |||
| Join parts using soldering, welding, or brazing techniques |
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 musical instrument repairers and tuners 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 1,477 moves out
- 1 Managers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 9%
- 2 Art, Drama, and Music Teachers, Postsecondary Very high +2.2% 7%
- 3 Camera Operators, Television, Video, and Film High +1.3% 7%
- 4 Management Analysts Very high +10.1% 5%
- 5 Sales Representatives of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel Very high +2.7% 5%
Where people moved in from
of 1,812 moves in
- 1 Art, Drama, and Music Teachers, Postsecondary Very high +2.2% 11%
- 2 Camera Operators, Television, Video, and Film High +1.3% 9%
- 3 Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technicians 7%
- 4 Managers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 7%
- 5 Bartenders Moderate +5.0% 6%
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
- 18% less than high school
- 9% high school
- 55% postsecondary certificate
- 5% some college
- 5% associate's
- 9% bachelor's
O*NET 31.0 survey of workers in this occupation · 22 people answered.
Census survey (American Community Survey)
- 5% less than high school
- 23% high school
- 25% some college
- 18% associate's
- 23% bachelor's
- 4% master's
- 1% doctorate
Census ACS 2024, all workers in the Census group “Precision instrument and equipment repairers” · 664 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 the Census group “Precision instrument and equipment repairers”
1 program: Musical Instrument Fabrication and Repair.
Jobs that require a credential BLS Occupational Requirements Survey 2023
BLS publishes no credential figures for this occupation.
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 5 registered apprenticeships in this occupation. Apprenticeship.gov can't be linked to one occupation, so search for “Musical Instrument Repairers and Tuners” 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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