# Will surveying technicians be replaced by AI? Updated October 2026 Surveying technicians score 49 of 100 for AI exposure. The largest share of their task time, 64%, is work AI speeds up while they stay in charge. AI can take over 15% outright, and 21% stays with people. - **15%** AI can do it - **64%** AI helps - **21%** Needs a person Moderate exposure Higher than 72% of the 923 occupations we scored. ## Task by task We graded 30 tasks, listed here from most to least exposed. AI can do 5 of them today, speeds up 19 and leaves 6 to people. | Task | AI exposure | | --- | --- | | Enter Global Positioning System (GPS) data, legal deeds, field notes, or land survey reports into geographic information system (GIS) workstations so that information can be transformed into graphic land descriptions, such as maps and drawings. Extracting deed and field note data into GIS is routine data entry. | 82% AI can do it | | Perform calculations to determine earth curvature corrections, atmospheric impacts on measurements, traverse closures or adjustments, azimuths, level runs, or placement of markers. Corrections, closures and azimuths are standard calculations software performs. | 80% AI can do it | | Calculate latitudes, longitudes, angles, areas, or other information for mapmaking, using survey field notes or reference tables. Coordinate and area calculations are pure computation software handles well. | 80% AI can do it | | Identify and compile database information to create requested maps. Database queries and compilation are routine; person reviews output. | 62% AI can do it | | Answer questions and provide information to the public or to staff members regarding assessment maps, surveys, boundaries, easements, property ownership, roads, zoning, or similar matters. AI answers routine map and property queries from records; staff reviews. | 62% AI can do it | ## How surveying technicians compare All occupations (923) Architecture and engineering (56) **Surveying technicians score 49**, 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 47 for architecture and engineering. ## Pay and outlook in the US Median pay $54,240 a year, May 2025 People employed 58,010 in the US, May 2025 Projected change in jobs +5.8% from 2024 to 2034 ## Skills to build - Operate total stations and GPS receivers in the field - Check contour drafts built from AutoCAD Civil 3D surfaces - Verify deed and field note entries loaded into ArcGIS software - Set out and recover monuments, property irons and section corners - Produce topographic maps in Bentley MicroStation - Hold a state-issued surveying technician credential where available ## Safer roles nearby 5 related occupations with lower scores. - [Surveyors44 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/surveyors/) - [Geological technicians43 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/geological-technicians/) - [Geoscientists46 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/geoscientists/) - [Civil engineers45 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/civil-engineers/) - [Traffic technicians38 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/traffic-technicians/) ## Questions about surveying technicians and AI Will AI replace surveying technicians? Partly. About 4 in 10 working hours go to tasks AI can already do, mostly GPS and deed data entry into GIS and coordinate or traverse calculations. Field work stays with people, because holding rods, setting monuments and operating instruments need a person on site. Which surveying technician tasks is AI taking over? Entering GPS data, legal deeds and field notes into GIS workstations has an exposure score of 82, since it is routine data entry from structured records. Traverse closures, azimuths and earth curvature corrections score 80, because software runs these standard formulas in seconds. Compiling database information for requested maps scores 62, and a person then reviews the output. Which surveying technician tasks stay human? Holding the rods that theodolite operators sight through scores 3 on exposure, because it needs a person physically placed on site. Setting out and recovering stakes and marks scores 4, since it is physical fieldwork. Operating prisms, theodolites and electronic data collectors scores 10, because it needs hands on the instrument in the field. How can surveying technicians stay valuable? Keep field skills current on GPS receivers and total stations, since field tasks stay human. Learn AutoCAD Civil 3D surfaces well enough to verify the contour maps AI drafts from survey data. Check every GIS record loaded from deeds in ArcGIS software against the original field notes. Pursue a state survey technician credential where your state offers one. ## Related jobs - [Cad designers50 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/architectural-drafters/) - [Civil engineering technicians52 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/civil-engineering-technicians/) - [Data scientists67 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/data-scientists/) ## Next steps for surveying technicians - ### 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.