Historian Job Outlook
The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects employment of historians to grow 3.0% from 2025 to 2035 (about 100 more jobs), with about 300 openings a year, and the May 2025 median pay of $76,750 a year ranks 258th of 825 occupations.
- Projected change
- +3.0%
- Openings a year
- 300
- Median pay
- $76,750
- Pay rank
- 258th of 825
Is employment of historians growing or shrinking?
Growing: BLS projects employment of historians to rise 3.0% (about 100 more jobs) from 2025 to 2035, about the same as the 3.5% projected across all occupations. That is slower than the +7.6% summed from BLS's employment levels across the 48 life, physical, and social science occupations with a projection. That change ranks 393rd of 830 projected occupations.
| Measure | Figure |
|---|---|
| Employment, 2025 | 3,800 |
| Employment, 2035 | 3,900 |
| Projected change | +3.0% |
| Openings a year | 300 |
Source: BLS Employment Projections, 2025 to 2035. A projection is a BLS estimate, not a count. The 3,800 jobs here differ from the 3,450 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 300 openings a year, from job growth and from workers leaving the occupation, the 775th most of 830 occupations. About 97% of them replace workers who change occupations or leave the labor force; the rest come from the 10 jobs added in an average year.
Source: BLS Employment Projections, 2025 to 2035.
How does pay for historians rank?
The median of $76,750 a year ranks 258th of 825 occupations with a published median. It sits in the upper half of occupations on pay and the lower half on openings.
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: master's degree.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anthropologists and Archeologists | +6.0% | 800 | $70,770 |
| Geographers | -2.1% | 100 | $102,040 |
| Sociologists | +3.8% | 200 | $106,030 |
| Social Science Research Assistants | +5.0% | 4,900 | $61,990 |
| Archivists | +3.4% | 1,100 | $64,550 |
| Curators | +4.9% | 1,600 | $63,420 |
| History Teachers, Postsecondary | 0% | 1,500 | $83,820 |
| Anthropology and Archeology Teachers, Postsecondary | +2.6% | 400 | $99,650 |
Related occupations from O*NET; projections from BLS Employment Projections, 2025 to 2035; pay from BLS OEWS, May 2025.