AI exposure by occupation, O*NET 41-2021.00
Will AI replace Counter and Rental Clerks?
Counter and Rental Clerks: AI can already handle 2 of 16 tasks; the work mostly needs a standard-tier model.
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Every task, scored
The 16 tasks O*NET 30.3 lists for Counter and Rental Clerks, from most to least exposed. 2 reach 60 or more, the level at which AI already handles a task.
| Task | AI exposure | Evidence | Model tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| Recommend and provide advice on a wide variety of products and services. | Observed | Frontier | |
| Advise customers on use and care of merchandise. | Observed | Frontier | |
| Compute charges for merchandise or services and receive payments. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Explain rental fees, policies, and procedures. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Provide information about rental items, such as availability, operation, or description. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Greet customers and discuss the type, quality, and quantity of merchandise sought for rental. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Answer telephones to provide information and receive orders. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Prepare rental forms, obtaining customer signature and other information, such as required licenses. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Rent items, arrange for provision of services to customers, and accept returns. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Keep records of transactions and of the number of customers entering an establishment. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Reserve items for requested times and keep records of items rented. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Prepare merchandise for display or for purchase or rental. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Allocate equipment to participants in sporting events or recreational activities. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Receive orders for services, such as rentals, repairs, dry cleaning, and storage. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Inspect and adjust rental items to meet needs of customer. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Receive, examine, and tag articles to be altered, cleaned, stored, or repaired. | Estimated | Efficient |
Observed: scored from AI use recorded in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), 2 of 16 tasks. Estimated: scored from the task's O*NET 30.3 work activity, 14 of 16. 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 standard-tier model or lower covers 88% of the role's importance-weighted task work. 100% of the work is something AI can address at some tier.
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
- 400,810
- Median annual wage
- $41,300
- Middle half of earners
- $35,630 to $50,190
- Projected change, 2024 to 2034
- +3.2%
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.
- Order Clerks 66% skill overlap, about 12 months to move Exposure43
- Receptionists and Information Clerks 65% skill overlap, about 13 months to move Exposure72
- Reservation and Transportation Ticket Agents and Travel Clerks 64% skill overlap, about 13 months to move Exposure67
- Cashiers 64% skill overlap, about 13 months to move Exposure44
- Office Clerks, General 62% skill overlap, about 14 months to move Exposure53
Skill overlap and transition time from the JobRoute role adjacency graph on O*NET 30.3 skills.
Questions about Counter and Rental Clerks and AI
Will AI replace Counter and Rental Clerks?
AI already handles 2 of the 16 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation, at a task exposure of 60 or more, and the role's importance-weighted exposure is 36 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 +3.2% from 2024 to 2034.
What is the AI exposure of Counter and Rental Clerks?
36 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. 2 of the 16 task scores are observed in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), and the other 14 are estimated from each task's O*NET work activity.
Which Counter and Rental Clerks tasks can AI already do?
The tasks with the highest exposure are: Recommend and provide advice on a wide variety of products and services; Advise customers on use and care of merchandise. They are the tasks that reach 60 or more.
What AI model tier does this role need?
A standard-tier model or lower covers 88% of the role's importance-weighted task work. 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 Counter and Rental Clerks, and what do they earn?
400,810 people in the United States, with a median annual wage of $41,300 (BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025). BLS Employment Projections expect a change of +3.2% 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: Counter and Rental Clerks. 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/counter-and-rental-clerks
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