Jobs where you work alone
Most lists of jobs you can do alone are one writer's opinion. This one uses O*NET, the US Department of Labor's occupation database, where each job is rated for how much it involves contact with others and how much it involves working in a team.
We averaged those two ratings into an alone score from 0 to 100. Lower means more time on your own. Then we matched each job to its pay and outlook from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. We ranked 743 occupations and kept the lowest 40.
What the data shows
- The most solitary job on the list is Craft Artists, with an alone score of 31.
- 43% of these 40 jobs pay more than the US median wage of $50,980.
- 31 of the 40 need no more than a high school diploma to get started.
- 22 of the 40 are projected to shrink between 2025 and 2035.
- The best paid is Law Teachers, Postsecondary at $128,500 a year.
- 14 of these 40 also appear on our list of jobs that don't require talking to people.
The ranking
Click a column heading to sort. Pay is the national median annual wage. Growth is the projected change in employment from 2025 to 2035.
| # | Occupation | Alone score | Median pay | Typical entry education | Growth 2025-35 | Openings a year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Craft Artists | 31 | $46,080 | No formal educational credential | +2.0% | 1,000 |
| 2 | Musical Instrument Repairers and Tuners | 42 | $46,420 | High school diploma or equivalent | +1.9% | 600 |
| 3 | Landscaping and Groundskeeping Workers | 42 | $39,150 | No formal educational credential | +4.7% | 149,500 |
| 4 | Tool Grinders, Filers, and Sharpeners | 45 | $50,060 | High school diploma or equivalent | -6.8% | 500 |
| 5 | Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators | 46 | $55,490 | Bachelor's degree | -2.9% | 2,200 |
| 6 | Arbitrators, Mediators, and Conciliators | 47 | $75,530 | Bachelor's degree | +4.7% | 300 |
| 7 | Writers and Authors | 48 | $76,910 | Bachelor's degree | -0.3% | 11,900 |
| 8 | Cooks, Private Household | 51 | $47,940 | Postsecondary nondegree award | +5.1% | 5,000 |
| 9 | Animal Breeders | 51 | $51,130 | High school diploma or equivalent | +3.0% | 1,000 |
| 10 | Camera and Photographic Equipment Repairers | 52 | $52,720 | High school diploma or equivalent | -15.5% | 100 |
| 11 | Forging Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic | 53 | $49,030 | High school diploma or equivalent | -17.2% | 600 |
| 12 | Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic | 54 | $46,330 | High school diploma or equivalent | -10.5% | 13,200 |
| 13 | Refuse and Recyclable Material Collectors | 57 | $49,690 | No formal educational credential | +2.1% | 15,500 |
| 14 | Postal Service Mail Carriers | 58 | $60,550 | No formal educational credential | -0.3% | 19,600 |
| 15 | Administrative Law Judges, Adjudicators, and Hearing Officers | 58 | $117,860 | Doctoral or professional degree | 0.0% | 500 |
| 16 | Automotive Body and Related Repairers | 58 | $54,890 | High school diploma or equivalent | +3.7% | 12,600 |
| 17 | Economists | 58 | $124,720 | Master's degree | +4.7% | 1,100 |
| 18 | Pourers and Casters, Metal | 59 | $51,810 | High school diploma or equivalent | -5.0% | 400 |
| 19 | Law Teachers, Postsecondary | 59 | $128,500 | Doctoral or professional degree | +2.6% | 1,800 |
| 20 | Upholsterers | 59 | $46,340 | High school diploma or equivalent | -2.3% | 1,700 |
| 21 | Mathematicians | 59 | $126,710 | Master's degree | +0.6% | 100 |
| 22 | Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters | 59 | $46,680 | High school diploma or equivalent | -2.9% | 6,900 |
| 23 | Shoe and Leather Workers and Repairers | 59 | $37,800 | High school diploma or equivalent | -6.5% | 1,000 |
| 24 | Etchers and Engravers | 60 | $43,310 | High school diploma or equivalent | -0.7% | 800 |
| 25 | Model Makers, Metal and Plastic | 60 | $63,340 | High school diploma or equivalent | -17.3% | 200 |
| 26 | Tire Builders | 60 | $57,390 | High school diploma or equivalent | +0.8% | 1,900 |
| 27 | Pesticide Handlers, Sprayers, and Applicators, Vegetation | 60 | $46,340 | High school diploma or equivalent | +3.9% | 3,300 |
| 28 | Conveyor Operators and Tenders | 61 | $42,420 | No formal educational credential | -2.6% | 2,200 |
| 29 | Tax Preparers | 61 | $54,920 | High school diploma or equivalent | +4.7% | 9,400 |
| 30 | Cutters and Trimmers, Hand | 61 | $38,020 | No formal educational credential | -18.9% | 500 |
| 31 | Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners | 61 | $36,840 | No formal educational credential | +2.2% | 321,800 |
| 32 | Watch and Clock Repairers | 61 | $67,230 | High school diploma or equivalent | -0.3% | 100 |
| 33 | Textile Cutting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders | 61 | $38,760 | High school diploma or equivalent | -13.6% | 900 |
| 34 | Coin, Vending, and Amusement Machine Servicers and Repairers | 61 | $47,450 | High school diploma or equivalent | -3.4% | 3,800 |
| 35 | Pressers, Textile, Garment, and Related Materials | 61 | $35,060 | No formal educational credential | -15.7% | 2,200 |
| 36 | Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse | 61 | $35,660 | No formal educational credential | -2.4% | 72,500 |
| 37 | Sewing Machine Operators | 62 | $36,670 | No formal educational credential | -15.1% | 9,800 |
| 38 | Massage Therapists | 62 | $58,450 | Postsecondary nondegree award | +15.3% | 20,400 |
| 39 | Rock Splitters, Quarry | 62 | $48,740 | No formal educational credential | +5.8% | 400 |
| 40 | Motion Picture Projectionists | 62 | $38,270 | No formal educational credential | -6.2% | 300 |
What to keep in mind
- Alone does not mean nobody is around. The ratings describe how much of the job is spent dealing with others, not whether other people are in the building.
- O*NET scores describe what the job asks of workers. They do not measure personality, and they are not medical or psychological advice.
- Pay and growth are national figures. Local pay varies, and some occupations have small samples. We left out 5 occupations that O*NET flags as unreliable.
See every occupation in the full introvert jobs table.