Jobs with no customer interaction
O*NET rates each occupation on how much it involves dealing with external customers or the public. We took the occupations in the lowest tenth of that rating and sorted them by pay, best first.
That makes this list different from the others on this site. It shows the highest earners among jobs with almost no customer contact, not the lowest scores overall. The top 40 are below.
What the data shows
- The best paid job with almost no customer contact is Database Architects at $139,500 a year.
- 95% of these 40 jobs pay more than the US median wage of $50,980.
- 24 of the 40 need no more than a high school diploma to get started.
- 21 of the 40 are projected to shrink between 2025 and 2035.
- Between them these 40 jobs employ about 4,466,000 people.
- 16 of the 40 usually need some form of degree or postsecondary award.
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 | Customer contact | Median pay | Typical entry education | Growth 2025-35 | Openings a year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Database Architects | 29 | $139,500 | Bachelor's degree | +9.4% | 3,900 |
| 2 | Software Developers | 23 | $135,980 | Bachelor's degree | +10.2% | 95,300 |
| 3 | Actuaries | 26 | $130,000 | Bachelor's degree | +9.2% | 1,500 |
| 4 | Astronomers | 26 | $128,820 | Doctoral or professional degree | +7.8% | 100 |
| 5 | Law Teachers, Postsecondary | 24 | $128,500 | Doctoral or professional degree | +2.6% | 1,800 |
| 6 | Biochemists and Biophysicists | 20 | $127,410 | Doctoral or professional degree | +12.3% | 2,900 |
| 7 | Mathematicians | 25 | $126,710 | Master's degree | +0.6% | 100 |
| 8 | Nuclear Power Reactor Operators | 28 | $122,890 | High school diploma or equivalent | -5.9% | 400 |
| 9 | Database Administrators | 28 | $104,620 | Bachelor's degree | -0.1% | 3,300 |
| 10 | Software Quality Assurance Analysts and Testers | 28 | $104,300 | Bachelor's degree | +5.7% | 10,700 |
| 11 | Electrical and Electronics Installers and Repairers, Transportation Equipment | 28 | $84,890 | Postsecondary nondegree award | +5.4% | 500 |
| 12 | Avionics Technicians | 22 | $82,280 | Postsecondary nondegree award | +9.4% | 1,700 |
| 13 | Foreign Language and Literature Teachers, Postsecondary | 22 | $79,350 | Doctoral or professional degree | +0.2% | 1,600 |
| 14 | Roof Bolters, Mining | 2 | $78,540 | High school diploma or equivalent | -18.9% | 100 |
| 15 | Chemical Plant and System Operators | 25 | $78,120 | High school diploma or equivalent | -5.2% | 1,300 |
| 16 | Writers and Authors | 22 | $76,910 | Bachelor's degree | -0.3% | 11,900 |
| 17 | Terrazzo Workers and Finishers | 29 | $76,170 | High school diploma or equivalent | -13.0% | 100 |
| 18 | Loading and Moving Machine Operators, Underground Mining | 16 | $74,500 | No formal educational credential | -15.8% | 400 |
| 19 | Industrial Machinery Mechanics | 19 | $64,520 | High school diploma or equivalent | +17.8% | 44,400 |
| 20 | Tool and Die Makers | 21 | $64,050 | Postsecondary nondegree award | -9.2% | 4,300 |
| 21 | Model Makers, Metal and Plastic | 8 | $63,340 | High school diploma or equivalent | -17.3% | 200 |
| 22 | Timing Device Assemblers and Adjusters | 11 | $62,620 | High school diploma or equivalent | -6.1% | 0 |
| 23 | Computer User Support Specialists | 25 | $61,860 | Some college, no degree | -3.5% | 39,700 |
| 24 | Continuous Mining Machine Operators | 6 | $61,810 | No formal educational credential | +3.2% | 1,400 |
| 25 | Refractory Materials Repairers, Except Brickmasons | 16 | $61,290 | High school diploma or equivalent | -13.7% | 100 |
| 26 | Postal Service Mail Sorters, Processors, and Processing Machine Operators | 10 | $58,470 | No formal educational credential | -5.3% | 7,300 |
| 27 | Chemical Equipment Operators and Tenders | 18 | $58,040 | High school diploma or equivalent | +3.6% | 13,900 |
| 28 | Patternmakers, Metal and Plastic | 27 | $58,000 | High school diploma or equivalent | -22.8% | 100 |
| 29 | Plasterers and Stucco Masons | 28 | $57,660 | No formal educational credential | +2.8% | 1,500 |
| 30 | Tire Builders | 27 | $57,390 | High school diploma or equivalent | +0.8% | 1,900 |
| 31 | Metal-Refining Furnace Operators and Tenders | 17 | $54,430 | High school diploma or equivalent | -2.9% | 1,400 |
| 32 | Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers | 25 | $53,750 | High school diploma or equivalent | +2.4% | 40,300 |
| 33 | Milling and Planing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic | 22 | $52,800 | High school diploma or equivalent | -13.2% | 1,000 |
| 34 | Food Science Technicians | 20 | $52,130 | Associate's degree | +4.8% | 3,000 |
| 35 | Fallers | 28 | $52,100 | High school diploma or equivalent | -9.9% | 500 |
| 36 | Pourers and Casters, Metal | 3 | $51,810 | High school diploma or equivalent | -5.0% | 400 |
| 37 | Semiconductor Processing Technicians | 2 | $51,430 | High school diploma or equivalent | +8.2% | 3,400 |
| 38 | Structural Metal Fabricators and Fitters | 20 | $51,330 | High school diploma or equivalent | -6.2% | 4,800 |
| 39 | Computer Numerically Controlled Tool Operators | 23 | $50,690 | High school diploma or equivalent | -9.4% | 12,500 |
| 40 | Tool Grinders, Filers, and Sharpeners | 19 | $50,060 | High school diploma or equivalent | -6.8% | 500 |
What to keep in mind
- No customer interaction describes the job's customers. You can still work with colleagues, managers and suppliers.
- 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.