# Will AI replace maintenance technicians? Updated October 2026 Maintenance workers score 21 of 100 for AI exposure. 66% of their task time still needs a person. AI can do 9% today and speed up another 25%. - **9%** AI can do it - **25%** AI helps - **66%** Needs a person Low exposure Lower than 78% of the 923 occupations we scored. ## Task by task We graded 27 tasks, listed here from most to least exposed. AI can do 2 of them today, speeds up 6 and leaves 19 to people. | Task | AI exposure | | --- | --- | | Record type and cost of maintenance or repair work. Logging repair type and cost is structured data entry. | 80% AI can do it | | Order parts, supplies, or equipment from catalogs or suppliers. Ordering from catalogs and suppliers is routine digital work. | 70% AI can do it | | Estimate costs to repair machinery, equipment, or building structures. AI can draft estimates from quotes, site visit needed. | 55% AI helps | | Diagnose mechanical problems and determine how to correct them, checking blueprints, repair manuals, or parts catalogs, as necessary. AI can search manuals and suggest diagnoses, technician decides. | 45% AI helps | | Plan and lay out repair work, using diagrams, drawings, blueprints, maintenance manuals, or schematic diagrams. AI can read diagrams and draft repair layouts. | 40% AI helps | ## How maintenance workers compare All occupations (923) Installation, maintenance and repair (50) **Maintenance workers score 21**, 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 21 for installation, maintenance and repair. ## Pay and outlook in the US Median pay $49,590 a year, May 2025 People employed 1.5 million in the US, May 2025 Projected change in jobs +4.2% from 2024 to 2034 ## Skills to build - Diagnose faults from repair manuals and parts catalogs on site - Hold a journeyman license in plumbing, electrical, or HVAC - Run pipe fitting, welding, and insulation work manually - Check AI-drafted repair layouts against blueprints in Autodesk AutoCAD - Keep SAP maintenance records and cost logs accurate in Excel - Balance and align new HVAC equipment during installation ## Safer roles nearby 5 related occupations with lower scores. - [Millwrights12 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/millwrights/) - [Aircraft assemblers16 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/aircraft-assemblers/) - [Maintenance helpers16 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/maintenance-helpers/) - [Mobile heavy equipment mechanics20 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/mobile-heavy-equipment-mechanics/) - [Boilermakers11 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/boilermakers/) ## Questions about maintenance workers and AI Will maintenance technicians be replaced by AI? Partly. About 2 in 10 working hours of a maintenance worker go to tasks AI can already do, mostly recording repair type and cost and ordering parts. Hands-on repair, welding, insulating, and pipe work stay with people because they need a person physically working on the equipment. Which tasks is AI taking over for maintenance workers? Recording repair type and cost is the most exposed task, scoring 80, because it is structured data entry. Ordering parts from catalogs and suppliers scores 70 because it is routine digital work. AI can also draft cost estimates from quotes, scoring 55, though a site visit still confirms the numbers. Which maintenance worker tasks stay human? Assembling, installing, or repairing wiring, pipe systems, and machinery scores 4 on exposure, and insulating or welding scores 3. These tasks need a person physically in the building or on the machine. Groundskeeping scores 2 because landscaping and snow removal are outdoor physical work. How do maintenance workers stay valuable as AI spreads? Hold a journeyman license in one trade such as plumbing or electrical, since installs and repairs need a licensed person on site. Learn to check AI-drafted layouts against the real building in AutoCAD. Use SAP work orders and Excel cost tracking to catch errors in logged repair data. ## Related jobs - [Plumbers23 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/plumbers/) - [Industrial machinery mechanics31 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/industrial-machinery-mechanics/) - [Electrical maintenance technicians37 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/electrical-maintenance-technicians/) - [HVAC technicians23 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/hvac-technicians/) ## Next steps for maintenance workers - ### 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.