Will tree trimmers be replaced by AI?
Updated
Tree trimmers score 12 of 100 for AI exposure. 82% of their task time still needs a person. AI speeds up the other 18%.
- 18% AI helps
- 82% Needs a person
Low exposure
Lower than 93% of the 923 occupations we scored.
Task by task
We graded 24 tasks, listed here from most to least exposed. AI can't do any of them end to end yet. It speeds up 4 and leaves 20 to people.
| Task | AI exposure |
|---|---|
| Provide information to the public regarding trees, such as advice on tree care. AI can draft tree care advice; arborist reviews and delivers it. | 55% AI helps |
| Plan and develop budgets for tree work, and estimate the monetary value of trees. AI can build budgets and estimates; judgment on tree value. | 50% AI helps |
| Inspect trees to determine if they have diseases or pest problems. On-site visual inspection; AI can help identify pests and diseases. | 30% AI helps |
| Supervise others engaged in tree trimming work and train lower-level employees. People leadership; AI can help draft training materials. | 25% AI helps |
| Clean, sharpen, and lubricate tools and equipment. Hands-on tool cleaning and maintenance, little AI help. | 12% Needs a person |
| Spray trees to treat diseased or unhealthy trees, including mixing chemicals and calibrating spray equipment. Hands-on chemical mixing and spray equipment calibration; AI helps little. | 12% Needs a person |
| Operate shredding and chipping equipment, and feed limbs and brush into the machines. Physically feeding and running chippers and shredders on site. | 10% Needs a person |
| Operate boom trucks, loaders, stump chippers, brush chippers, tractors, power saws, trucks, sprayers, and other equipment and tools. Hands-on operation of trucks, loaders, and power equipment. | 8% Needs a person |
| Prune, cut down, fertilize, and spray trees as directed by tree surgeons. Directed physical pruning, felling, and spraying in the field. | 6% Needs a person |
| Hoist tools and equipment to tree trimmers, and lower branches with ropes or block and tackle. Physically hoisting gear and lowering limbs with rigging. | 5% Needs a person |
Show the other 14 tasks
| Task | AI exposure |
|---|---|
| Trim, top, and reshape trees to achieve attractive shapes or to remove low-hanging branches. Artistic on-tree pruning requires hands-on skill and judgment. | 5% Needs a person |
| Cable, brace, tie, bolt, stake, and guy trees and branches to provide support. Physical bracing, cabling, and guying of trees on site. | 5% Needs a person |
| Cut away dead and excess branches from trees, or clear branches around power lines, using climbing equipment or buckets of extended truck booms, or chainsaws, hooks, handsaws, shears, and clippers. Physical cutting from climbing gear or truck buckets. | 4% Needs a person |
| Trim jagged stumps, using saws or pruning shears. Physical saw and shear work on jagged stumps. | 4% Needs a person |
| Clear sites, streets, and grounds of woody and herbaceous materials, such as tree stumps and fallen trees and limbs. Physical site clearing of stumps and fallen limbs. | 4% Needs a person |
| Water, root-feed, and fertilize trees. Physical watering, root-feeding, and fertilizing in the field. | 4% Needs a person |
| Apply tar or other protective substances to cut surfaces or seal surfaces and to protect them from fungi and insects. Physical application of sealants to fresh cuts. | 4% Needs a person |
| Load debris and refuse onto trucks and haul it away for disposal. Physical loading of debris and driving haul trucks. | 3% Needs a person |
| Remove broken limbs from wires, using hooked extension poles. Physically reaching wires with hooked poles near power lines. | 3% Needs a person |
| Scrape decayed matter from cavities in trees and fill holes with cement to promote healing and to prevent further deterioration. Physical scraping of cavities and filling with cement. | 3% Needs a person |
| Transplant and remove trees and shrubs, and prepare trees for moving. Physical transplanting and removal of trees and shrubs. | 3% Needs a person |
| Climb trees, using climbing hooks and belts, or climb ladders to gain access to work areas. Physical climbing with hooks and belts. | 2% Needs a person |
| Collect debris and refuse from tree trimming and removal operations into piles, using shovels, rakes, or other tools. Manual shoveling and raking of debris piles. | 2% Needs a person |
| Split logs or wooden blocks into bolts, pickets, posts, or stakes, using hand tools such as ax wedges, sledgehammers, and mallets. Manual splitting of logs with axes and mallets. | 2% Needs a person |
How tree trimmers compare
All occupations (923)
Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance (8)
Pay and outlook in the US
- Median pay
- $50,960 a year, May 2025
- People employed
- 55,160 in the US, May 2025
- Projected change in jobs
- +4.2% from 2024 to 2034
Skills to build
- Build tree valuation budgets in Microsoft Excel
- Write client tree care advice in Microsoft Word
- Hold the ISA Certified Arborist credential
- Climb and rig under ANSI Z133 safety standards
- Diagnose pests and diseases through on-site visual inspection
- Train crew members on climbing and cutting safety
Safer roles nearby
5 related occupations with lower scores.
Questions about tree trimmers and AI
Will AI replace tree trimmers?
Partly. About 1 in 10 working hours go to tasks AI can already do, mostly giving tree care advice and building budgets. Climbing, cutting, and hauling debris stay with people because they need a body in the canopy.
Which tasks AI is taking over?
Public advice on tree care and budgeting for tree work are the most exposed, with exposure scores of 55 and 50. AI can draft the advice and build budgets and value estimates, and the arborist reviews each one before it goes out.
Which tasks stay human?
Climbing with hooks and belts, loading debris, and removing broken limbs from wires score 2 or 3 on exposure. Each one needs a person's hands on a tree, a truck, or a live line, so AI adds very little to them.
How can tree trimmers stay valuable?
Build valuation budgets in Excel, then check every AI draft line by line. Write client advice in Word with AI for a first pass. Hold the ISA Certified Arborist credential, and keep climbing and rigging skills sharp under ANSI Z133.
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