Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers

High Risk
68%

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Vote Comments (7)
AUTOMATION RISK
CALCULATED
85%
(Imminent Risk)
POLLING
50%
(Moderate Risk, Based on 125 votes)
Average: 68%
LABOR DEMAND
GROWTH
-6.5%
by year 2033
WAGES
$36,650
or $17.62 per hour
Volume
14,950
as of 2023
SUMMARY
What does this snowflake show?
The Snowflake is a visual summary of the five badges: Automation Risk (calculated), Risk (polled), Growth, Wages and Volume. It gives you an instant snapshot of an occupations profile. The colour of the Snowflake relates to its size. The better the occupation scores in relation to others, the larger and greener the Snowflake becomes.
JOB SCORE
1.6/10
What's this?
Job Score (higher is better):

We rate jobs using four factors. These are:

- Chance of being automated
- Job growth
- Wages
- Volume of available positions

These are some key things to think about when job hunting.

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Calculated automation risk

85% (Imminent Risk)

Imminent Risk (81-100%): Occupations in this level have an extremely high likelihood of being automated in the near future. These jobs consist primarily of repetitive, predictable tasks with little need for human judgment.

More information on what this score is, and how it is calculated is available here.

Some quite important qualities of the job are difficult to automate:

  • Finger Dexterity

  • Manual Dexterity

  • Originality

User poll

50% chance of full automation within the next two decades

Our visitors have voted they are unsure if this occupation will be automated. However, the automation risk level we have generated suggests a much higher chance of automation: 85% chance of automation.

What do you think the risk of automation is?

What is the likelihood that Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers will be replaced by robots or artificial intelligence within the next 20 years?

Sentiment

The following graph is shown where there are enough votes to produce meaningful data. It displays user poll results over time, providing a clear indication of sentiment trends.

Sentiment over time (yearly)

Growth

Very slow growth relative to other professions.

The number of 'Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers' job openings is expected to decline 6.5% by 2033

Total employment, and estimated job openings

* Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics for the period between 2023 and 2033
Updated projections are due 09-2025.

Wages

Very low paid relative to other professions

In 2023, the median annual wage for 'Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers' was 36.650 $, or 18 $ per hour

'Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers' were paid 23.7% lower than the national median wage, which stood at 48.060 $

Wages over time

* Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics

Volume

Lower range of job opportunities compared to other professions

As of 2023 there were 14,950 people employed as 'Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers' within the United States.

This represents around < 0.001% of the employed workforce across the country

Put another way, around 1 in 10 thousand people are employed as 'Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers'.

Job description

Design, make, alter, repair, or fit garments.

SOC Code: 51-6052.00

Comments (7)

Leave a comment
pam (Low)
04 Feb 2026 03:41
It takes humans years to master alterations, not sewing a new garment, I mean altering the fit on an already made garment, on all kinds of fabrics and constructions. not to mention mastering how to adjust sewing machines to handle all the different fabrics being sewn. Who's going to program a robot to handle all the complexities that it took me years to learn and that I'm still learning every day? And if a robot takes all our jobs, what will we do to make money to be able to pay the bills and make a living? Will everything be free? I don't understand where all this is going.
Pat (Low)
12 Sep 2025 01:23
Dexterity, evaluating and deciding what needs to be done and how to do it on a human body, measuring human body and making clothes fit, communication
JD
16 Aug 2025 13:37
At present or in the near future, there is no way AI can replicate the knowledge, dexterity and physical ability to manipulate fabric like a human using a sewing machine. This is an under appreciated high level skill which will take a very long time, if ever for a robot(AI) to achieve.
sum (Low)
17 Apr 2025 04:12
requires analyzation of a person, knowing their exact measurements and how to measure them. It also requires dexterity and multiple fittings, as well as a vast knowledge of how things look on humans and personal taste.
Lyn hissey (Low)
07 Feb 2024 23:52
Although AI could complete tasks such as design and cutting the actual job of sewing a garment is complicated and difficult, the most they could do would be straight seams that require no adjustments or manipulation, I’ve been sewing for 35 years it is a lot more complicated than most realise
sorrin (Uncertain)
06 Jan 2022 16:26
This career takes a lot of dexterity and situational awareness that would be hard to replace by an AI
Jo L (Highly likely)
19 May 2021 00:09
With the advent of AI, many fashion and clothing sales companies are looking forward to a system of cameras, algorithmic processing, and automated machines to do the same work that tailors, seamstresses, and garment alternators could previously do.
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