AI exposure by occupation, O*NET 35-3011.00

Will AI replace Bartenders?

Bartenders: AI can already handle 3 of 20 tasks; most of the work is hands-on, and the part AI can address mostly needs a frontier-tier model.

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Every task, scored

The 20 tasks O*NET 30.3 lists for Bartenders, from most to least exposed. 3 reach 60 or more, the level at which AI already handles a task.

Task AI exposure Evidence Model tier Importance
Serve wine, and bottled or draft beer. 85 Estimated Efficient 4.5
Check identification of customers to verify age requirements for purchase of alcohol. 80 Estimated Efficient 4.7
Create drink recipes. 65 Observed Frontier 3.4
Plan, organize, and control the operations of a cocktail lounge or bar. 50 Estimated Frontier 4.5
Plan bar menus. 50 Estimated Frontier 3.6
Clean glasses, utensils, and bar equipment. 15 Estimated No tier 4.8
Collect money for drinks served. 15 Estimated No tier 4.8
Balance cash receipts. 15 Estimated No tier 4.7
Clean bars, work areas, and tables. 15 Estimated No tier 4.7
Attempt to limit problems and liability related to customers' excessive drinking by taking steps such as persuading customers to stop drinking, or ordering taxis or other transportation for intoxicated patrons. 15 Estimated No tier 4.6
Take beverage orders from serving staff or directly from patrons. 15 Estimated No tier 4.6
Stock bar with beer, wine, liquor, and related supplies such as ice, glassware, napkins, or straws. 15 Estimated No tier 4.5
Serve snacks or food items to customers seated at the bar. 15 Estimated No tier 4.4
Supervise the work of bar staff and other bartenders. 15 Estimated No tier 4.4
Mix ingredients, such as liquor, soda, water, sugar, and bitters, to prepare cocktails and other drinks. 15 Estimated No tier 4.3
Order or requisition liquors and supplies. 15 Estimated No tier 4.1
Ask customers who become loud and obnoxious to leave, or physically remove them. 15 Estimated No tier 3.8
Arrange bottles and glasses to make attractive displays. 15 Estimated No tier 3.8
Prepare appetizers such as pickles, cheese, and cold meats. 15 Estimated No tier 3.1
Slice and pit fruit for garnishing drinks. 12 Estimated No tier 4.0

Observed: scored from AI use recorded in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), 1 of 20 tasks. Estimated: scored from the task's O*NET 30.3 work activity, 19 of 20. Importance is O*NET's 1 to 5 rating of how central the task is. Model tier is the lowest tier that can do the task under the published rubric; "No tier" marks hands-on work.

The model tier this role needs

A frontier-tier model or lower covers 24% of the role's importance-weighted task work. 24% of the work is something AI can address at some tier, and 76% is hands-on.

Efficient, standard and frontier tiers come from the JobRoute model tier reference. The recommended tier is the lowest one that covers 80% of the work AI can address. How the method works.

Wages, employment and outlook

US employment
756,390
Median annual wage
$34,340
Middle half of earners
$27,400 to $47,570
Projected change, 2024 to 2034
+5.9%

Employment and wages: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, national. Projection: BLS Employment Projections 2024 to 2034.

Adjacent roles

The occupations that reuse the most of this role's skills, with the usual time to move. These are the first places to look when you plan to redeploy or retrain people in this role.

Skill overlap and transition time from the JobRoute role adjacency graph on O*NET 30.3 skills.

Questions about Bartenders and AI

Will AI replace Bartenders?

AI already handles 3 of the 20 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation, at a task exposure of 60 or more, and the role's importance-weighted exposure is 28 out of 100. JobRoute scores tasks, not whole jobs, so the score shows how much of the work changes rather than whether the job disappears. BLS projects employment to change by +5.9% from 2024 to 2034.

What is the AI exposure of Bartenders?

28 out of 100 on JobRoute's task exposure measure, the importance-weighted average of the role's O*NET task scores. Higher means more of the work is AI-doable today. 1 of the 20 task scores are observed in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), and the other 19 are estimated from each task's O*NET work activity.

Which Bartenders tasks can AI already do?

The tasks with the highest exposure are: Serve wine, and bottled or draft beer; Check identification of customers to verify age requirements for purchase of alcohol; Create drink recipes. They are the tasks that reach 60 or more.

What AI model tier does this role need?

A frontier-tier model or lower covers 24% of the role's importance-weighted task work, and 76% is hands-on work that no model tier covers. JobRoute assigns each task the lowest tier that can do it under a published rubric and recommends the lowest tier that covers 80% of the work AI can address.

How many people work as Bartenders, and what do they earn?

756,390 people in the United States, with a median annual wage of $34,340 (BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025). BLS Employment Projections expect a change of +5.9% from 2024 to 2034.

How to cite

Data version 2026-11-02, JobRoute method v1.0.0. Download all occupations or this occupation as JSON. Methodology.

JobRoute (2026). AI exposure: Bartenders. Data version 2026-11-02, method v1.0.0. Built on O*NET 30.3, BLS OEWS May 2025 and the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026). CC BY 4.0. https://www.jobroute.ai/jobs/bartenders

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