# Will AI replace bricklayers? Updated October 2026 Bricklayers score 15 of 100 for AI exposure. 77% of their task time still needs a person. AI speeds up the other 23%. - **23%** AI helps - **77%** Needs a person Low exposure Lower than 89% of the 923 occupations we scored. ## Task by task We graded 14 tasks, listed here from most to least exposed. AI can't do any of them end to end yet. It speeds up 3 and leaves 11 to people. | Task | AI exposure | | --- | --- | | Interpret blueprints and drawings to determine specifications and to calculate the materials required. AI can read drawings and estimate materials, but errors need checking. | 50% AI helps | | Calculate angles and courses and determine vertical and horizontal alignment of courses. AI can help calculate angles and courses, but alignment checks are physical. | 35% AI helps | | Examine brickwork or structure to determine need for repair. Photo analysis and report drafting help, but inspection needs presence. | 20% AI helps | | Measure distance from reference points and mark guidelines to lay out work, using plumb bobs and levels. Site layout with plumb bobs and levels is hands-on physical work. | 12% Needs a person | | Mix specified amounts of sand, clay, dirt, or mortar powder with water to form refractory mixtures. Mixing materials with water is physical; recipe math is trivial. | 10% Needs a person | ## How bricklayers compare All occupations (923) Construction and extraction (61) **Bricklayers score 15**, marked by the dark line. Each dot is a score, darker where more occupations share it. The short marks show the averages, 37 for all occupations and 15 for construction and extraction. ## Pay and outlook in the US Median pay $62,120 a year, May 2025 People employed 52,550 in the US, May 2025 Projected change in jobs +1.1% from 2024 to 2034 ## Skills to build - Check material takeoffs against drawings in Microsoft Excel - Run estimates and bids in ProEst or Tradesman's Master Estimator - Read structural loads in RISA-3D or Daystar iStructural - Examine brickwork on site to set repair scope - Complete a registered masonry apprenticeship through a JATC ## Safer roles nearby 5 related occupations with lower scores. - [Mason helpers12 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/mason-helpers/) - [Refractory materials repairers9 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/refractory-materials-repairers/) - [Stonemasons10 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/stonemasons/) - [Cement masons8 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/cement-masons/) - [Terrazzo workers11 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/terrazzo-workers/) ## Questions about bricklayers and AI Will bricklayers be replaced by AI? Partly. About 1 in 10 working hours go to tasks AI can already do, mostly reading blueprints and calculating angles and courses. Laying brick, cutting units, tooling joints and checking alignment by eye stay with people because they need hands on the wall. Which bricklayer tasks is AI taking over? Interpreting blueprints scores 50 on exposure, the highest in this job, because AI can read drawings and total materials quickly. Calculating angles and courses scores 35, since AI can run the geometry while a person still checks the result on site. Which bricklayer tasks stay human? Laying and aligning brick scores 3 on exposure because it takes hands on the wall. Cutting units and tooling mortar joints score 4 each, since a saw, trowel and eye do the work. Site layout with plumb bobs and levels also stays with people, scoring 12. How can bricklayers stay valuable as AI spreads? Check AI material takeoffs against the drawings in Microsoft Excel before ordering. Learn ProEst or Tradesman's Master Estimator so you can price jobs from the output. Read load paths in RISA-3D or Daystar iStructural for repair work. Finish a registered masonry apprenticeship and keep your state contractor license. ## Related jobs - [Carpenters18 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/carpenters/) - [Construction workers13 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/construction-laborers/) - [Drywall installers9 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/drywall-installers/) - [Structural steel workers15 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/structural-steel-workers/) ## Next steps for bricklayers - ### Check your job Your job title is a rough guide. Your actual tasks decide your score. Paste your job description or CV and see which of your tasks AI can do. [Check your job](https://www.aigentcy.com/tools/ai-exposure-checker/) [Check your CV](https://www.aigentcy.com/tools/cv-checker/) ### Check which roles in your team AI can take on We map your team's tasks, show what AI can do today and build the automations that pay back first. [Book an AI audit](https://www.aigentcy.com/audit/) ## Related topics - [**Jobs AI can't replace**Cement masons score lowest, at 8.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/jobs-ai-cant-replace/) - [**Jobs most at risk from AI**Proofreaders score highest, at 76.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/jobs-most-exposed-to-ai/) - [**High-paying jobs with low AI exposure**Radiologists earn a median $420,860 and score 46.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/high-paying-jobs-low-ai-exposure/) - [**Entry-level jobs with low AI exposure**Cement masons need little prior training and score 8.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/entry-level-jobs-low-ai-exposure/) - [**Jobs AI speeds up the most**For natural sciences managers, AI speeds up 96% of task time.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/jobs-ai-speeds-up/) - [**AI and jobs in Malta**15 iGaming roles graded task by task.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/malta/) - [**Skills that keep work human**The skills to build in the jobs AI changes least.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/skills/) - [**Jobs A to Z**Every job we publish, by first letter.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/jobs/) - [**AI exposure by industry**Average scores for 22 occupation groups.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/industries/) - [**Write a CV screening software can read**How applicant tracking systems read a CV, and what to change.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/cv-screening-guide/) - [**AI for businesses**The tasks to automate first in each team and industry.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-for/) - [**How we score AI exposure**The grading, the weights and every source.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/methodology/) Occupation data from the O\*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) and modified by Aigentcy. O\*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. Wage, employment and projection data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. EU occupation names from ESCO, European Commission. AI usage signals from the Anthropic Economic Index (CC BY) and Microsoft Research (CC BY 4.0). [Methodology and sources](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/methodology/). Scores © Aigentcy. Quote them with a link to the page.