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Courier / Messenger

$38,340
median pay per year
full range coming in the next data update

What the job actually is

Pick up and deliver packages, documents, and food between businesses, homes, and offices on a set route.

Where you work

On the road, on foot, or by bike

The hours

Daytime, evening, and weekend routes

By the numbers

May 2024–25 BLS wage data · 2024–34 BLS employment projections.

Median pay
$38,340
per year
What most earn
range coming soon
Openings a year
~27,900
projected, 2024–34
Outlook to 2034
+8%
Faster than average
Working in the U.S.
247,200
people, nationwide

Openings a year counts new jobs plus the ones that open when people retire or move on — a truer picture of your odds than growth alone.

“Median” means half earn more and half earn less. Your city, employer, and years on the job move it a lot — that is what the 10th-to-90th range shows.

How you get in

Typical starting education

High school / no degree

Training path: On-the-job training, paid.

License or certification

No license required to start in most places.

You can earn while you train. This field has a genuinely paid pathway in — an apprenticeship, a paid academy, or employer-funded training — so you draw a paycheck instead of taking on debt to learn it.

What it takes

NavigationTime managementReliabilitySafe driving

The honest take

Simple to start if you can drive or bike — growing with delivery demand, though pay stays modest.

Standard Occupational Classification 43-5021. Pay, employment, and outlook from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS wage survey and 2024–34 employment projections). See something off? Tell us.