Occupations · Office and Administrative Support
Couriers and Messengers
Pick up and deliver messages, documents, packages, and other items between offices or departments within an establishment or directly to other business concerns, traveling by foot, bicycle, motorcycle, automobile, or public conveyance.
O*NET 30.3 Database (USDOL/ETA) · occupation code 43-5021.00
What it pays
A single “average salary” hides the spread. This is the whole distribution — the gap between the bottom and top bar is usually the number that matters.
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2024 · national, cross-industry · annual wage
Pay over time
Median up 96% between 2003 and 2024, before inflation. The band shows the 10th to 90th percentile.
BLS OEWS, one release per year. Before May 2011 only national estimates were published, so geography detail starts there.
Where the jobs are
| Metro area | Median wage | Employed |
|---|---|---|
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA | $42,230 | 7,130 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | $44,080 | 3,500 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL | $36,910 | 1,930 |
| San Juan-Carolina-Caguas, PR | $22,310 | 1,900 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | $38,330 | 1,660 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | $45,780 | 1,380 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | $37,860 | 1,360 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA | $47,490 | 1,190 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA | $37,200 | 1,160 |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX | $38,360 | 1,070 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $45,900 | 950 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI | $41,020 | 930 |
BLS OEWS May 2024, metropolitan estimates · the 12 areas with the most people in this occupation
Typical education to enter: High school diploma or equivalent · BLS Employment Projections 2024–34
What people in this job actually do
Ordered by how important the work is rated.
- Deliver and pick up medical records, lab specimens, and medications to and from hospitals and other medical facilities.
- Obtain signatures and payments, or arrange for recipients to make payments.
- Record information, such as items received and delivered and recipients' responses to messages.
- Receive messages or materials to be delivered, and information on recipients, such as names, addresses, telephone numbers, and delivery instructions, communicated via telephone, two-way radio, or in person.
- Load vehicles with listed goods, ensuring goods are loaded correctly and taking precautions with hazardous goods.
- Walk, ride bicycles, drive vehicles, or use public conveyances to reach destinations to deliver messages or materials.
- Sort items to be delivered according to the delivery route.
- Deliver messages and items, such as newspapers, documents, and packages, between establishment departments and to other establishments and private homes.
- Unload and sort items collected along delivery routes.
- Plan and follow the most efficient routes for delivering goods.
- Check with home offices after completed deliveries to confirm deliveries and collections and to receive instructions for other deliveries.
- Collect, seal, and stamp outgoing mail, using postage meters and envelope sealers.
O*NET 30.3 task ratings, importance scale
Skills that matter most
Importance, rated 1 to 5.
O*NET 30.3 skills, importance scale
Software and tools
A dot marks what O*NET flags as in demand.
O*NET 30.3 software skills · hot-technology flag
What this work is actually like
Conditions rated against the average across all occupations — only what makes this job different is listed.
O*NET 30.3 Job Zones
Working conditions that stand out
O*NET 30.3 work context, frequency scale · observed 2016-07
How people actually get in
Share of workers by the education they hold.
O*NET 30.2 education, training and experience · observed 2016-07
What kind of person the work suits
Occupational interest profile, rated 1 to 7.
O*NET 30.2 occupational interests (RIASEC)
Tasks O*NET flags as emerging
- Deliver and pick up medical records, lab specimens, and medications to and from hospitals and other medical facilities.
O*NET 20.3 emerging tasks
What you take with you
Skills rated for how well they transfer into other occupations.
O*NET 30.3 transferable skills, importance scale
Knowledge the work draws on
Abilities it leans on
O*NET 30.3 abilities and knowledge, importance scale
How this job is advertised
The same work is posted under many titles — this is what to search for.
O*NET 30.3 job titles reported for this occupation
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What changed since 2015
Comparing O*NET release 20.1 (2015-10-01) with 30.3 (2026-05-01). Signs, not colour alone, carry the meaning.
Now listed 1
Diff across the O*NET releases held here in full since October 2015, following occupations through merges and retirements. O*NET re-surveys occupations on a rolling cycle, so “no change” can also mean “not re-surveyed”.
Related jobs
O*NET 30.3 related occupations
Also called
O*NET 30.3 alternative titles
The same work in Europe
| ESCO occupation | ISCO | Match |
|---|---|---|
| delivery driver | 8322.2 | broader |
| motorcycle delivery person | 8321.1 | broader |
| postman/postwoman | 4412.2 | broader |
| bicycle courier | 9331.1 | broader |
Official ESCO ↔ O*NET crosswalk (ESCO Secretariat with USDOL/ETA)
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