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Retail Salespersons

General Information

Description

Sell merchandise, such as furniture, motor vehicles, appliances, or apparel to consumers.

Business Breakdown

People in this career work in these sectors.

  1. Private, for profit90.56%
  2. Self-employed6.92%
  3. Private, not for profit1.40%
  4. State and local government0.56%
  5. Federal government0.21%

Workplace at a Glance

What you can expect to experience while on the job

  • Responsibility
  • Exposure to job hazards
  • Physical activity
  • Decision making
  • Repetitiveness
  • Level of competition
  • Time pressure

Industry areas

  • Marketing

Job Outlook

Overall employment of retail sales workers is projected to show little or no change from 2021 to 2031. Despitelimitedemployment growth, about 594,400 openings for retail sales workers are projected each year, on average, over the decade. Most of those openings are expected to result from the need to replace workers who transfer to different occupations or exit the labor force, such as to retire.

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Job Outlook

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Overall employment of retail sales workers is projected to show little or no change from 2021 to 2031. Despitelimitedemployment growth, about 594,400 openings for retail sales workers are projected each year, on average, over the decade. Most of those openings are expected to result from the need to replace workers who transfer to different occupations or exit the labor force, such as to retire.

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No Information for this section

Salary

Average Salary

Salary

$29,120

State-by-state Salary

Gray states indicate no data available

$34,160
$18,310
No Information for this section

Education

Most Common Education Levels

People in this career achieve this level of education.

  • High school 63%
  • Less than high school 19%
  • Associate's degree 9%
  • Bachelor's degree 4%
  • Post-secondary certificate 2%
  • Some college 1%
  • Master's degree 0%
  • Doctoral degree 0%
  • Post baccalaureate 0%
  • Post-doctoral training 0%
  • Post-master's certificate 0%
  • First professional degree 0%

Knowledge

  • Sales and Marketing
  • Customer and Personal Service
  • English Language
  • Administrative
  • Computers and Electronics

Skills at a Glance

Skills helpful in this career

  • Verbal skills
  • Critical thinking & problem solving
  • Equipment operation & maintenance
  • Math & science skills
  • Technology design & control
  • Leadership
No Information for this section

* Military pay may be higher based on specialty pays or bonuses. Learn more about Military benefits.

Data supplied by Bureau of Labor Statistics, National Center of Education Statistics, Defense Manpower Data Center (View our update schedule). Contact any business, college or military service branch to answer additional questions.