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Buyers and Purchasing Agents
Also filed here: Procurement, Purchase executive, Buyer, Sourcing
Lightly edited
AI performs some of this work. Most of it still needs a person. The BLS expects 6% more of these jobs by 2035, faster than the 3.5% average.
- Rank
- #235 of 785 jobs, by how much of the work AI does
- US jobs, 2025 to 2035
- +6% All jobs: +3.5%
- Median US pay
- $77,710 a year, 2025
- People doing it
- 516,100 in the US, with about 47,200 openings a year
The work, 29 activities
The job description, marked up.
Every activity in this job, the biggest first. Tap a line for the evidence.
- deleAI does this
- +AIAI helps
- stetStill yours
AI helps with this: Purchase goods or services14%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 214 conversations, and it got them there 91% of the time.
AI helps with this: Execute financial transactions9%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 1,073 conversations, and it got them there 93% of the time.
AI does this: Communicate with others about business strategies8%
AI performed this in about 1 in 1,508 Copilot conversations and completed it 95% of the time.
Still yours: Negotiate contracts or agreements8%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Monitor resources or inventories6%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI does this: Obtain information about goods or services5%
AI performed this in about 1 in 225 Copilot conversations and completed it 85% of the time.
AI does this: Analyze market or industry conditions4%
AI performed this in about 1 in 1,486 Copilot conversations and completed it 91% of the time.
Still yours: Maintain operational records4%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI helps with this: Determine values or prices of goods or services4%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 224 conversations, and it got them there 86% of the time. In this job the work is hands-on, so AI can only assist.
Still yours: Supervise personnel activities4%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI does this: Train others on operational or work procedures3%
AI performed this in about 1 in 348 Copilot conversations and completed it 92% of the time.
AI does this: Assess characteristics or impacts of regulations or policies3%
AI performed this in about 1 in 640 Copilot conversations and completed it 93% of the time.
AI helps with this: Analyze business or financial data3%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 719 conversations, and it got them there 72% of the time.
Still yours: Analyze data to improve operations3%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI does this: Advise others on business or operational matters3%
AI performed this in about 1 in 290 Copilot conversations and completed it 92% of the time.
Still yours: Develop organizational policies, systems, or processes2%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Coordinate activities with clients, agencies, or organizations2%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Direct organizational operations, activities, or procedures2%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Monitor operations to ensure adequate performance2%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Authorize business activities or transactions2%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI does this: Develop technical specifications for products or operations1%
AI performed this in about 1 in 1,901 Copilot conversations and completed it 90% of the time.
Still yours: Perform recruiting or hiring activities1%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI does this: Communicate with others about operational plans or activities1%
AI performed this in about 1 in 354 Copilot conversations and completed it 90% of the time.
AI helps with this: Develop professional relationships or networks1%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 1,715 conversations, and it got them there 95% of the time.
AI does this: Develop marketing or promotional materials1%
AI performed this in about 1 in 690 Copilot conversations and completed it 85% of the time.
Still yours: Investigate the environmental impact of industrial or development activities1%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Evaluate condition of financial assets, property, or other resources1%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Develop business or marketing plans1%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI helps with this: Identify business or organizational opportunities1%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 1,883 conversations, and it got them there 90% of the time.
2025 to 2035
Ten years from now.
For every 100 of these jobs in 2025, the BLS projects 106 in 2035. Across all US jobs, about 104.
About 47,200 openings a year, from growth and from people who retire or move on.
Nearby
Where your skills travel.
Jobs that share the most work with this one, where AI does less of it.
- Shares 27% of the workIndustrial Production Managers22% AI does, against 30% here+2.6% by 2035 · $126,060 · Bachelor’s degree
- Shares 27% of the workProperty, Real Estate, and Community Association Managers17% AI does, against 30% here+3.7% by 2035 · $69,990 · High school diploma
- Shares 26% of the workPurchasing Managers21% AI does, against 30% here+4% by 2035 · $148,080 · Bachelor’s degree
The wire
On the wire.
Nothing filed about this job yet. The latest from the Work front:
How to read this file.
deleAI does this. In US Bing Copilot conversations from January to September 2024, AI itself performed the activity, completed it and made a real difference often enough to count.
+AIAI helps. People brought the activity to AI as their own goal, and it usually got them there.
stetStill yours. It barely shows up in AI use, AI rarely finishes it, or in this job it needs hands.
Shares are weighted by how much each activity matters in the job, using O*NET. Microsoft’s own AI applicability score for this job is 0.20, higher than 69% of jobs.
Doing an activity is not doing a job. The researchers behind this data warn against reading it as job loss, and so do we. It is US data; the shape of the work travels.
Sources: Microsoft Research, Working with AI (2025) · O*NET OnLine, 13-1020 · BLS Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
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