Prepress Technicians and Workers
Also called: Electronic Prepress Operator (EPP Operator), Plate Maker, Prepress Operator, Prepress TechnicianFormat and proof text and images submitted by designers and clients into finished pages that can be printed. Includes digital and photo typesetting. May produce printing plates.
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What the data says: AI could halve the time on 3 of its 15 tasks, and jobs are projected to shrink 15.3% 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, 4.6% of people in this work were unemployed, against 3.8% across all occupations Census ACS 2024
- From Sep 2025 to Aug 2026, 8.4 hires for every 10 job openings in nondurable goods manufacturing, which employs about 71% 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.8.4 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 | $35,020 | $29,240 to $39,320 | 130 |
| Arizona | $38,830 | $36,350 to $60,090 | 210 |
| Arkansas | $52,800 | $38,580 to $59,540 | 160 |
| California | $53,860 | $46,650 to $61,780 | 2,020 |
| Colorado | $51,730 | $48,890 to $57,300 | 150 |
| Connecticut | $48,780 | $44,200 to $66,950 | 430 |
| District of Columbia | $100,980 | $100,980 to $100,980 | 180 |
| Florida | $45,660 | $39,260 to $51,310 | 840 |
| Georgia | $50,280 | $46,150 to $60,320 | 320 |
| Idaho | $47,220 | $38,810 to $55,230 | 50 |
| Illinois | $49,450 | $44,130 to $65,240 | 680 |
| Indiana | $49,050 | $42,300 to $57,550 | 670 |
| Iowa | $47,770 | $40,030 to $55,560 | 210 |
| Kansas | $45,290 | $36,670 to $59,750 | 520 |
| Kentucky | $45,830 | $40,950 to $53,150 | 1,130 |
| Louisiana | $38,060 | $32,740 to $46,490 | 90 |
| Maine | $47,350 | $45,910 to $51,940 | 50 |
| Maryland | $60,770 | $45,000 to $69,090 | 480 |
| Massachusetts | $57,250 | $47,670 to $64,020 | 460 |
| Michigan | $46,960 | $44,250 to $57,230 | 540 |
| Minnesota | $49,130 | $46,840 to $62,390 | 2,880 |
| Missouri | $45,860 | $35,530 to $52,160 | 510 |
| Montana | $51,910 | $48,110 to $53,470 | 40 |
| Nebraska | $40,930 | $40,930 to $47,700 | 400 |
| Nevada | $55,680 | $46,730 to $61,120 | 130 |
| New Hampshire | $48,580 | $42,950 to $54,120 | 120 |
| New Jersey | $56,840 | $49,390 to $70,390 | 880 |
| New Mexico | $39,830 | $36,400 to $42,180 | 30 |
| New York | $52,420 | $42,470 to $58,450 | 1,110 |
| North Carolina | $49,760 | $45,050 to $59,230 | 600 |
| Ohio | $47,810 | $40,110 to $56,070 | 1,070 |
| Oklahoma | $45,730 | $30,660 to $50,330 | 80 |
| Oregon | $54,360 | $46,450 to $59,220 | 230 |
| Pennsylvania | $49,100 | $43,140 to $57,550 | 910 |
| Puerto Rico | $33,030 | $28,880 to $38,060 | 120 |
| Rhode Island | $45,930 | $43,500 to $81,950 | not published |
| South Carolina | $45,900 | $37,400 to $50,130 | 200 |
| South Dakota | $46,370 | $37,910 to $47,770 | 50 |
| Tennessee | $47,790 | $38,340 to $50,840 | 640 |
| Texas | $38,410 | $35,810 to $48,070 | 2,320 |
| Utah | $44,230 | $37,880 to $52,900 | 210 |
| Vermont | $55,880 | $50,220 to $58,580 | 40 |
| Virginia | $49,100 | $43,990 to $51,370 | 330 |
| Washington | $53,770 | $46,630 to $60,780 | 380 |
| West Virginia | $35,320 | $28,930 to $42,990 | 50 |
| Wisconsin | $48,410 | $44,970 to $59,730 | 1,160 |
Nationally: $48,690. 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 3 of its 15 tasks
| AI rating | Its main tasks | Share of Claude conversations May 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Not much | Generate prepress proofs in digital or other format to approximate the appearance of the final printed piece. | Not published |
| Not much | Proofread and perform quality control of text and images. | Not published |
| AI + software | Enter, store, and retrieve information on computer-aided equipment. | under 0.01% |
| AI + software | Enter, position, and alter text size, using computers, to make up and arrange pages so that printed materials can be produced. | Not published |
| Not much | Perform "preflight" check of required font, graphic, text and image files to ensure completeness prior to delivery to printer. | Not published |
| Not much | Operate and maintain laser plate-making equipment that converts electronic data to plates without the use of film. | Not published |
See all 15 tasks
| Not much | Maintain, adjust, and clean equipment, and perform minor repairs. | Not published |
| Not much | Examine photographic images for obvious imperfections prior to plate making. | Not published |
| Not much | Examine finished plates to detect flaws, verify conformity with master plates, and measure dot sizes and centers, using light boxes and microscopes. | Not published |
| Not much | Set scanners to specific color densities, sizes, screen rulings, and exposure adjustments, using scanner keyboards or computers. | Not published |
| Not much | Analyze originals to evaluate color density, gradation highlights, middle tones, and shadows, using densitometers and knowledge of light and color. | Not published |
| Not much | Examine unexposed photographic plates to detect flaws or foreign particles prior to printing. | Not published |
| AI + software | Select proper types of plates according to press run lengths. | Not published |
| Not much | Operate presses to print proofs of plates, monitoring printing quality to ensure that it is adequate. | Not published |
| Not much | Scale copy for reductions and enlargements, using proportion wheels. | 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 15 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 15 tasks fall under 11 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.
- #31 Program computer systems or production equipment
- #35 Process digital or online data
- #38 Select materials or equipment for operations or projects
| 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Operate industrial processing or production equipment | |||
| Inspect completed work or finished products | |||
| Program computer systems or production equipment | |||
| Maintain tools or equipment | |||
| Process digital or online data | |||
| Select materials or equipment for operations or projects | |||
| Inspect characteristics or conditions of materials or products | |||
| Measure physical characteristics of materials, products, or equipment |
Show all 11 activities
| Clean tools, equipment, facilities, or work areas | |||
| Repair tools or equipment | |||
| Monitor equipment operation |
How people in this work use Claude
What people in this work made with Claude % of conversations
- Configuration or infrastructure42%
- A script or snippet10%
- An analysis or summary5%
- An explanation or answer4%
- An image or graphic4%
How they worked with Claude
65% 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 prepress technicians and workers 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 15,433 moves out
- 1 Managers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 6%
- 2 Graphic Designers Very high -1.7% 6%
- 3 Retail Salespersons Very high -0.3% 4%
- 4 Education Administrators, Postsecondary High +1.8% 3%
- 5 Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers Moderate +3.8% 3%
Where people moved in from
of 13,955 moves in
- 1 Retail Salespersons Very high -0.3% 7%
- 2 Graphic Designers Very high -1.7% 5%
- 3 Managers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 4%
- 4 Customer Service Representatives Very high -5.3% 3%
- 5 Cashiers High -6.5% 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
- 2% less than high school
- 39% high school
- 9% postsecondary certificate
- 21% some college
- 23% associate's
- 5% bachelor's
O*NET 31.0 survey of workers in this occupation · 33 people answered.
Census survey (American Community Survey)
- 4% less than high school
- 40% high school
- 22% some college
- 11% associate's
- 19% bachelor's
- 3% master's
- 1% professional degree
Census ACS 2024, all workers in this occupation · 191 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
8 programs, such as Graphic Communications, General, Printing Management and Prepress/Desktop Publishing and Digital Imaging Design.
See all
- Graphic Communications, General
- Printing Management
- Prepress/Desktop Publishing and Digital Imaging Design
- Graphic and Printing Equipment Operator, General Production
- Platemaker/Imager
- Printing Press Operator
- Computer Typography and Composition Equipment Operator
- Graphic Communications, Other
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 27 registered apprenticeships in this occupation. Apprenticeship.gov can't be linked to one occupation, so search for “Prepress Technicians and Workers” 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
See it online, and explore any career: https://www.pathmosaic.com/card/51-5111.00