Butchers and Meat Cutters Job Outlook
The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects employment of butchers and meat cutters to grow 2.4% from 2025 to 2035 (about 3,300 more jobs), with about 15,100 openings a year, and the May 2025 median pay of $40,140 a year ranks 725th of 825 occupations.
- Projected change
- +2.4%
- Openings a year
- 15,100
- Median pay
- $40,140
- Pay rank
- 725th of 825
Is employment of butchers and meat cutters growing or shrinking?
Growing: BLS projects employment of butchers and meat cutters to rise 2.4% (about 3,300 more jobs) from 2025 to 2035, slower than the 3.5% projected across all occupations. That is faster than the -0.4% summed from BLS's employment levels across the 105 production occupations with a projection. That change ranks 449th of 830 projected occupations.
| Measure | Figure |
|---|---|
| Employment, 2025 | 138,400 |
| Employment, 2035 | 141,700 |
| Projected change | +2.4% |
| Openings a year | 15,100 |
Source: BLS Employment Projections, 2025 to 2035. A projection is a BLS estimate, not a count. The 138,400 jobs here differ from the 136,430 on the salary page because Employment Projections also counts the self-employed and a wider set of workers, while OEWS counts wage and salary jobs in May 2025. BLS published these projections on August 27, 2026; checked November 10, 2026. Confirm any figure in the BLS Employment Projections tables.
BLS's reasons for this projection are at the Occupational Outlook Handbook. State projections are at Projections Central; projections by industry are left to BLS. Education, licensing and work context at O*NET.
How many job openings are there each year?
About 15,100 openings a year, from job growth and from workers leaving the occupation, the 197th most of 830 occupations. About 98% of them replace workers who change occupations or leave the labor force; the rest come from the 330 jobs added in an average year.
Source: BLS Employment Projections, 2025 to 2035.
How does pay for butchers and meat cutters rank?
The median of $40,140 a year ranks 725th of 825 occupations with a published median. It sits in the upper half of occupations on openings and the lower half on pay.
Source: BLS OEWS national file, May 2025. Wage and salary jobs only; the self-employed are not counted. OEWS pay excludes overtime, shift differentials and non-production bonuses. Ranks count only the occupations with that published figure: 830 for projected change, 830 for openings, 825 for median pay, which is why the totals differ.
What does it take to start?
- Typical entry-level education: no formal educational credential.
- Typical on-the-job training: moderate-term on-the-job training.
Source: BLS Employment Projections, 2025 to 2035, education and training assignments.
How do related jobs compare on outlook?
| Occupation | Change | Openings a year | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meat, Poultry, and Fish Cutters and Trimmers | +5.7% | 17,000 | $38,300 |
| Slaughterers and Meat Packers | +2.0% | 7,700 | $40,130 |
| Bakers | +5.5% | 36,500 | $37,160 |
| Food Cooking Machine Operators and Tenders | -0.3% | 3,700 | $41,590 |
| Food Batchmakers | +6.5% | 23,100 | $42,290 |
| Food and Tobacco Roasting, Baking, and Drying Machine Operators and Tenders | +0.4% | 2,500 | $44,810 |
| Cooks, Restaurant | +12.1% | 218,600 | $37,390 |
| Food Preparation Workers | -3.0% | 135,700 | $35,320 |
Related occupations from O*NET; projections from BLS Employment Projections, 2025 to 2035; pay from BLS OEWS, May 2025.