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Laundry & Dry-Cleaning Worker

$34,890
median / year
$27,440 – $43,190
what most earn per year (10th–90th percentile)

What the job actually is

Wash, dry, press, and fold laundry using industrial machines, then sort and prepare items for return.

You may also see this posted as: Laundry Aide, Laundry Attendant, Laundry Housekeeper, Laundry Worker, Dry Cleaner, Laundry Assistant.

Where you work

Hotels, hospitals, and dry cleaners

The hours

Daytime, evening, and weekend shifts

The day to day

What you'd actually spend time doing

  • Load articles into washers or dry-cleaning machines, or direct other workers to perform loading.
  • Start washers, dry cleaners, driers, or extractors, and turn valves or levers to regulate machine processes and the volume of soap, detergent, water, bleach, starch, and other additives.
  • Operate extractors and driers, or direct their operation.
  • Remove items from washers or dry-cleaning machines, or direct other workers to do so.
  • Sort and count articles removed from dryers, and fold, wrap, or hang them.

Good fit if you like…

Realistic

working with tools, equipment, materials, or the physical world

Conventional

organizing information, following systems, and getting details right

Enterprising

leading, persuading, selling, or turning an idea into action

O*NET job zone 2 of 5

Some preparation—often a high school credential and on-the-job learning—is usually needed.

Work styles that matter most

DependabilityAttention to DetailCautiousnessIntegrity

Software that shows up in the work

Examples employers report—not a checklist you must already know.

Microsoft ExcelMicrosoft Office softwareMicrosoft WindowsMicrosoft WordCentsCurbside Laundries Wash and Fold POS Software

By the numbers

May 2025 BLS wage & employment data · 2024–34 BLS employment projections.

Median pay
$34,890
per year
Hourly median
$16.78
per hour
What most earn
$27,440–$43,190
yearly, 10th to 90th percentile
Openings a year
~31,900
projected, 2024–34
Outlook to 2034
+5.4%
Faster than average
Working in the U.S.
198,040
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.

BLS estimates 2.3% of workers in this occupation are self-employed.

What it pays in your state

Statewide medians are a better starting point than the national number. Your city and experience still matter.

BLS state wage tables

How you get in

Typical starting education

No formal credential

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

Related work experience: None.

On-the-job training: Short-term on-the-job training.

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.

Check the path where you live

Licensing rules and available programs change by state. These federal tools take you to the current official listings.

What it takes

Physical staminaAttention to detailMachine operationReliability

The honest take

Steady, physical entry work in hotels, hospitals, and cleaners — easy to start, rarely short of demand.

Standard Occupational Classification 51-6011. Pay and employment from the BLS May 2025 OEWS survey; outlook and openings from the 2024–34 employment projections; tasks, interests, work styles, software examples, and job zone from O*NET 30.3. See something off? Tell us.