Will postal service mail carriers be replaced by AI?
Updated
Postal service mail carriers score 26 of 100 for AI exposure. 69% of their task time still needs a person. AI can do 13% today and speed up another 18%.
- 13% AI can do it
- 18% AI helps
- 69% Needs a person
Low exposure
Lower than 69% of the 923 occupations we scored.
Task by task
We graded 21 tasks, listed here from most to least exposed. AI can do 3 of them today, speeds up 4 and leaves 14 to people.
| Task | AI exposure |
|---|---|
| Complete forms that notify publishers of address changes. Filling notification forms from address data is routine digital work. | 70% AI can do it |
| Record address changes and redirect mail for those addresses. Entering address changes and redirects is structured data entry. | 68% AI can do it |
| Maintain accurate records of deliveries. Delivery records are largely scanner-generated, routine logging remains. | 62% AI can do it |
| Answer customers' questions about postal services and regulations. AI can answer regulation questions, but live customer interaction stays human. | 45% AI helps |
| Return incorrectly addressed mail to senders. AI can flag bad addresses, but physical return handling remains. | 35% AI helps |
| Turn in money and receipts collected along mail routes. Cash handover is physical, but reconciliation paperwork can be automated. | 30% AI helps |
| Register, certify, and insure parcels and letters. Service selection and labeling are software-assisted, acceptance is physical. | 25% AI helps |
| Report any unusual circumstances concerning mail delivery, including the condition of street letter boxes. Observing box condition is physical, reporting text is easy. | 20% Needs a person |
| Obtain signed receipts for registered, certified, and insured mail, collect associated charges, and complete any necessary paperwork. Needs in-person recipient signature and cash collection. | 15% Needs a person |
| Hold mail for customers who are away from delivery locations. Holding mail is physical; request handling is minor. | 15% Needs a person |
Show the other 11 tasks
| Task | AI exposure |
|---|---|
| Scan labels on letters or parcels to confirm receipt. Handheld scanner use is physical and already automated. | 12% Needs a person |
| Sort mail for delivery, arranging it in delivery sequence. Physical letter sorting, mostly done by machines already. | 12% Needs a person |
| Sign for cash-on-delivery and registered mail before leaving the post office. Signing manifests at the counter is mostly physical handling. | 12% Needs a person |
| Leave notices telling patrons where to collect mail that could not be delivered. Physically placing notices, though notice text is templated. | 12% Needs a person |
| Provide customers with change of address cards and other forms. Handing out physical cards and forms to people. | 10% Needs a person |
| Sell stamps and money orders. Counter sale of stamps and money orders is physical retail. | 10% Needs a person |
| Meet schedules for the collection and return of mail. Schedule adherence is physical execution, little AI help. | 8% Needs a person |
| Bundle mail in preparation for delivery or transportation to relay boxes. Physical bundling of mail for transport. | 8% Needs a person |
| Return to the post office with mail collected from homes, businesses, and public mailboxes. Driving mail back to the post office. | 3% Needs a person |
| Deliver mail to residences and business establishments along specified routes by walking or driving, using a combination of satchels, carts, cars, and small trucks. Physical walking or driving delivery along a route. | 2% Needs a person |
| Travel to post offices to pick up the mail for routes or pick up mail from postal relay boxes. Traveling to pick up mail is physical driving. | 2% Needs a person |
How postal service mail carriers compare
All occupations (923)
Office and administrative support (51)
Pay and outlook in the US
- Median pay
- $60,550 a year, May 2025
- People employed
- 328,820 in the US, May 2025
- Projected change in jobs
- -0.3% from 2024 to 2034
Skills to build
- Walk or drive a fixed route with the Delivery Routing System DRS sequence
- Log scans and exceptions in the Automated Data Collection System ADCS
- Clock in and out on the Electronic Time Clock ETC accurately
- Handle cash and receipts at hand-over with clean paperwork
- Recognize hazards and dogs safely on foot or in a postal vehicle
- Explain change of address forms to customers face to face
Safer roles nearby
2 related occupations with lower scores.
Questions about postal service mail carriers and AI
Will AI replace postal service mail carriers?
Partly. About 2 in 10 of a postal service mail carrier's working hours go to tasks AI can already do, mostly completing address change notification forms and recording address changes and redirects. Delivering mail on foot or by vehicle, and collecting it from post offices and relay boxes, stays with people because it is physical work along a route.
Which tasks of postal service mail carriers is AI taking over?
Form completion and data entry are the most exposed. Notification forms to publishers score 70 on exposure and record address changes score 68, because both turn address data into routine digital entries. Delivery record logging also scores 62, since scanners already generate most of those records.
Which tasks of postal service mail carriers stay human?
Route delivery and transport stay human, with exposure scores of 2 and 3. Walking or driving to homes and businesses, driving collected mail back to the post office, and bundling mail for transport all need a person physically moving through the route. These tasks make up most of the job's weight, at 69 percent of task weight staying human.
How can postal service mail carriers stay valuable as AI takes over paperwork?
Focus on the parts of the route that need a person. Get faster at sequencing stops in the Delivery Routing System DRS, and keep scan and exception records clean in the Automated Data Collection System ADCS. Learn to explain change of address cards face to face, since handing out physical forms stays human work.
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