AI exposure by occupation, O*NET 51-6052.00
Will AI replace Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers?
Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers: AI does not yet handle any of the role's 22 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 22 tasks O*NET 30.3 lists for Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers, from most to least exposed. None reaches 60, the level at which AI already handles a task.
| Task | AI exposure | Evidence | Model tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fit, alter, repair, and make made-to-measure clothing, according to customers' and clothing manufacturers' specifications and fit, and applying principles of garment design, construction, and styling. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Develop, copy, or adapt designs for garments, and design patterns to fit measurements, applying knowledge of garment design, construction, styling, and fabric. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Maintain garment drape and proportions as alterations are performed. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Repair or replace defective garment parts, such as pockets, zippers, snaps, buttons, and linings. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Measure parts, such as sleeves or pant legs, and mark or pin-fold alteration lines. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Remove stitches from garments to be altered, using rippers or razor blades. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Sew garments, using needles and thread or sewing machines. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Let out or take in seams in suits and other garments to improve fit. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Fit and study garments on customers to determine required alterations. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Measure customers, using tape measures, and record measurements. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Trim excess material, using scissors. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Assemble garment parts and join parts with basting stitches, using needles and thread or sewing machines. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Make garment style changes, such as tapering pant legs, narrowing lapels, and adding or removing padding. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Take up or let down hems to shorten or lengthen garment parts, such as sleeves. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Press garments, using hand irons or pressing machines. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Estimate how much a garment will cost to make, based on factors such as time and material requirements. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Position patterns of garment parts on fabric, and cut fabric along outlines, using scissors. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Record required alterations and instructions on tags, and attach them to garments. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Confer with customers to determine types of material and garment styles desired. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Examine tags on garments to determine alterations that are needed. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Put in padding and shaping materials. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Sew buttonholes and attach buttons to finish garments. | Estimated | No tier |
Observed: scored from AI use recorded in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), 0 of 22 tasks. Estimated: scored from the task's O*NET 30.3 work activity, 22 of 22. 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 18% of the role's importance-weighted task work. 18% of the work is something AI can address at some tier, and 82% 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
- 13,920
- Median annual wage
- $41,640
- Middle half of earners
- $35,230 to $50,200
- Projected change, 2024 to 2034
- -4.5%
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.
- Sewers, Hand 79% skill overlap, about 7 months to move Exposure15
- Sewing Machine Operators 70% skill overlap, about 11 months to move Exposure22
- Fashion Designers 68% skill overlap, about 11 months to move Exposure45
- Fabric and Apparel Patternmakers 68% skill overlap, about 11 months to move Exposure40
- Costume Attendants 64% skill overlap, about 13 months to move Exposure62
Skill overlap and transition time from the JobRoute role adjacency graph on O*NET 30.3 skills.
Questions about Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers and AI
Will AI replace Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers?
Not on current evidence. None of the 22 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation reaches a task exposure of 60, the level at which JobRoute counts a task as handled by AI, and the role's importance-weighted exposure is 19 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.
What is the AI exposure of Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers?
19 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. 0 of the 22 task scores are observed in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), and the other 22 are estimated from each task's O*NET work activity.
Which Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers tasks can AI already do?
None reaches 60 yet. The most exposed task is: Fit, alter, repair, and make made-to-measure clothing, according to customers' and clothing manufacturers' specifications and fit, and applying principles of garment design, construction, and styling, at 50 out of 100.
What AI model tier does this role need?
A frontier-tier model or lower covers 18% of the role's importance-weighted task work, and 82% 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 Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers, and what do they earn?
13,920 people in the United States, with a median annual wage of $41,640 (BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025). BLS Employment Projections expect a change of -4.5% 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: Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers. 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/tailors-dressmakers-and-custom-sewers
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