# Will urban planners be replaced by AI? Updated October 2026 Urban planners score 53 out of 100 for AI exposure. AI helps with 60% of their task time, and they stay in charge. AI can do another 12%. 28% needs a person. - **12%** AI can do it - **60%** AI helps - **28%** Needs a person High exposure Higher than 81% of the 923 jobs we scored. ## Task by task We graded 25 tasks, most exposed first. AI can do 3 of them, helps with 15 and leaves 7 to people. | Task | AI exposure | | --- | --- | | Prepare, maintain and update files and records, including land use data and statistics. Routine record updates are structured digital tasks AI handles well. | 78% AI can do it | | Prepare reports, using statistics, charts, and graphs, to illustrate planning studies in areas such as population, land use, or zoning. AI generates charts and narrative from statistics; planner reviews. | 72% AI can do it | | Research, compile, analyze and organize information from maps, reports, investigations, and books for use in reports and special projects. Document research and synthesis is a strong LLM task. | 72% AI can do it | | Prepare, develop and maintain maps and databases. Mostly digital work; AI writes GIS scripts and cleans data. | 60% AI helps | | Respond to public inquiries and complaints. AI drafts replies and triages inquiries; complaints need human judgment. | 60% AI helps | ## How urban planners compare All jobs (923) Life, physical and social science (60) The dark line is **urban planners, at 53**. Each dot is a score, and darker dots mean more jobs share it. The short marks are the averages, 37 for all jobs and 47 for life, physical and social science. ## Pay and outlook in the US Median pay $89,320 a year, May 2025 People employed 44,230 in the US, May 2025 Projected change in jobs +3.9% from 2024 to 2034 ## Skills to build - Run land use and zoning analysis in ESRI ArcGIS - Write GIS scripts and clean parcel data in SQL - Present zoning findings to council in Microsoft PowerPoint - Lead field site visits and impact surveys in person - Facilitate public meetings and mediate community disputes live - Supervise planning technicians on comprehensive plan updates ## Safer roles nearby 5 related jobs with lower scores. - [Chief sustainability officers51 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/chief-sustainability-officers/) - [Brownfield redevelopment specialists49 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/brownfield-redevelopment-specialists/) - [Environmental restoration planners51 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/environmental-restoration-planners/) - [Landscape architects43 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/landscape-architects/) - [Conservation scientists43 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/conservation-scientists/) ## Questions about urban planners and AI Will AI replace urban planners? Partly. About 4 in 10 working hours go to tasks AI can already do, mostly maintaining land use records and writing statistical reports. Planners stay in charge of field investigations, public meetings, and the judgment calls that shape a community's plan. Which tasks AI is taking over for urban planners? Record upkeep and report drafting carry the highest exposure, at 78 and 72 out of 100. AI can update land use files, build charts from population statistics, and summarize maps and reports, leaving the planner to check the numbers before they reach officials. Which tasks stay human for urban planners? Mediating community disputes scores 12 out of 100 and public meetings score 15, the lowest exposure in the job. Trust and live negotiation with residents, developers, and lawyers depend on people in the room, so these tasks stay with the planner. How can urban planners stay valuable as AI takes on more work? Take on the field work and public meetings, where exposure scores run 12 to 20 out of 100. Run GIS analysis in ArcGIS and AutoCAD, check AI-drafted reports against site visits, and lead consultant coordination with architects and economists. Planners who verify land data and defend recommendations before councils keep the parts of the job that stay with people. ## Related jobs - [Transportation planners56 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/transportation-planners/) - [Project managers53 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/project-managers/) - [Sustainability specialists60 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/sustainability-specialists/) - [Climate change policy analysts58 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/climate-change-policy-analysts/) ## Next steps for urban planners - ### Check your job Your job title is a rough guide. Your tasks decide your score. Paste your job description or CV to see which 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/) - ### Estimate team savings The score is per person. Add headcount and salary to see the hours AI can take on in a team of urban planners, and what they cost. [Estimate what AI saves a team of urban planners](https://www.aigentcy.com/tools/team-ai-audit/?role=urban-planners) [Work out the return on automation](https://www.aigentcy.com/tools/ai-savings-calculator/) ### 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**Roustabouts score lowest, at 6.](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**Pediatric surgeons earn a median $559,030 and score 29.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/high-paying-jobs-low-ai-exposure/) - [**Entry-level jobs with low AI exposure**Roustabouts need little prior training and score 6.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/entry-level-jobs-low-ai-exposure/) - [**Jobs AI speeds up the most**AI helps with 98% of the task time for health informatics specialists.](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 score, by first letter.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/jobs/) - [**AI exposure by industry**Average scores for 22 job 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/) Sources and licences 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.