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Travel Agent

$48,450
median pay per year
full range coming in the next data update

What the job actually is

Plan and book travel for clients, comparing flights, hotels, and tours and handling the details and changes.

Where you work

Agencies and home offices

The hours

Full-time, some part-time

By the numbers

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

Median pay
$48,450
per year
What most earn
range coming soon
Openings a year
~7,100
projected, 2024–34
Outlook to 2034
+2%
About average
Working in the U.S.
65,700
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

PlanningCustomer serviceBooking systemsAttention to detail

The honest take

Online booking hollowed this out, but specialists in complex trips and groups still find a niche.

Standard Occupational Classification 41-3041. 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.