Career profile · 17-1022
Surveyors
Make exact measurements and determine property boundaries. Provide data relevant to the shape, contour, gravitation, location, elevation, or dimension of land or land features on or near the earth's surface for engineering, mapmaking, mining, land evaluation, construction, and other purposes.
What the work can involve
- Direct or conduct surveys to establish legal boundaries for properties, based on legal deeds and titles.
- Prepare and maintain sketches, maps, reports, and legal descriptions of surveys to describe, certify, and assume liability for work performed.
- Write descriptions of property boundary surveys for use in deeds, leases, or other legal documents.
- Verify the accuracy of survey data, including measurements and calculations conducted at survey sites.
- Search legal records, survey records, and land titles to obtain information about property boundaries in areas to be surveyed.
- Record the results of surveys, including the shape, contour, location, elevation, and dimensions of land or land features.
Selected core tasks from O*NET 31.0. Responsibilities vary by employer, specialization and experience.
Preparation and entry routes
This O*NET group commonly calls for substantial preparation, often including a bachelor’s degree or considerable relevant experience. An introductory vocational course alone may not provide an entry route.
Check the route for the specific occupation where you plan to work. Education, employer experience requirements, occupational licensing and industry certification can be separate steps.
Understand the different credentials →Skills used in this occupation
- Mathematics
- Reading Comprehension
- Critical Thinking
- Writing
- Speaking
Selected from the highest importance ratings available in O*NET 31.0. These describe the occupation, not a particular school's curriculum.
Knowledge to build
- Mathematics
- Engineering and Technology
- Geography
- Computers and Electronics
- Customer and Personal Service
Selected from the highest importance ratings available in O*NET 31.0. These describe the occupation, not a particular school's curriculum.
Common work activities
- Documenting/Recording Information
- Working with Computers
- Analyzing Data or Information
- Getting Information
- Processing Information
Selected from the highest importance ratings available in O*NET 31.0. These describe the occupation, not a particular school's curriculum.
Training subjects to investigate
The federal education-to-occupation crosswalk connects this role to the subjects below. These links do not endorse a school or guarantee that any particular award qualifies a graduate for the job.
Working conditions to consider
These are the most common published responses to selected O*NET work-setting questions. They describe occupation-level survey findings, not every employer or a particular job.
| Work-setting question | Most common response | Share giving that response |
|---|---|---|
| Contact With Others | Constant contact with others | 60.0%08/2023 · sample 20 |
| Exposed to Contaminants | Once a year or more but not every month | 30.0%08/2023 · sample 20 |
| Exposed to Disease or Infections | Never | 85.0%08/2023 · sample 20 |
| Exposed to Hazardous Conditions | Never | 40.0%08/2023 · sample 20 |
| Spend Time Sitting | About half the time | 40.0%08/2023 · sample 20 |
| Spend Time Standing | About half the time | 45.0%08/2023 · sample 20 |
| Spend Time Using Your Hands to Handle, Control, or Feel Objects, Tools, or Controls | Continually or almost continually | 50.0%08/2023 · sample 20 |
| Time Pressure | Once a week or more but not every day | 70.0%08/2023 · sample 20 |
| Wear Common Protective or Safety Equipment such as Safety Shoes, Glasses, Gloves, Hearing Protection, Hard Hats, or Life Jackets | Once a week or more but not every day | 30.0%08/2023 · sample 20 |
| Work Schedules | Irregular (changes with weather conditions, production demands, or contract duration) | 55.0%08/2023 · sample 20 |
O*NET 31.0 Work Context, selected topics. Only unsuppressed source responses with sample size at least 10 are shown. A most-common response need not be a majority. Sampling uncertainty applies; source dates vary. Ask employers about actual schedules, accessibility, protective equipment and working conditions.
Software used in the workplace
Use these O*NET examples to ask how a course builds practical digital skills. They are workplace examples, not a required shopping list or confirmation of a school’s curriculum.
- Analytical or scientific software: CE SURVEYOR III, Carlson SurvCE, Geocomp Systems GeoNav, Geodetic software
- Application server software: CloudWorks
- Computer aided design CAD software: Autodesk AutoCAD, Autodesk AutoCAD Civil 3D, Autodesk AutoCAD Land Desktop, Bentley MicroStation
- Data base user interface and query software: Data logging software
- Data conversion software: Cyclone
- Document management software: Data transfer software
- Geographic information system: Cadcorp desktop GIS, ESRI ArcGIS software, ESRI ArcView, Geographic information system GIS software
- Graphics or photo imaging software: Bentley GeoPak Bridge
- Information retrieval or search software: Topographic database software
- Map creation software: Bentley Systems InRoads Suite, Carlson Survey, Drafting software, Geomechanical design analysis GDA software
- Mobile location based services software: Global positioning system GPS software
- Office suite software: Latitude software, Microsoft Office software
Selected categories and examples from O*NET 31.0 Software Skills. Products and employer requirements change. These examples are not endorsements; check the complete official occupation profile.
Pay & employment outlook
Salary estimates for surveyors
The median divides workers into two equally sized groups by pay. It is not a starting salary, a school’s graduate outcome or a promise of employment. Lower percentiles are not automatically new graduates.
National outlook: 2025–2035
- Typical education for entry
- Bachelor's degree
- Related work experience
- None
- Typical on-the-job training
- Internship/residency
BLS national employment projections, 2025–2035. Openings include people leaving occupations or the labor force; these are not advertised vacancies. Education categories describe typical entry, not legal eligibility or a guarantee that any specific program is sufficient.
Compare wages across 50 state/DC estimates
| State | Annual median | Hourly median | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $66,840 | $32.13 | 910 |
| Alaska | $99,550 | $47.86 | 250 |
| Arizona | $77,490 | $37.26 | 1,360 |
| Arkansas | $51,800 | $24.91 | 550 |
| California | $105,330 | $50.64 | 4,520 |
| Colorado | $79,310 | $38.13 | 1,620 |
| Connecticut | $76,730 | $36.89 | 430 |
| Delaware | $82,890 | $39.85 | 120 |
| Florida | $65,480 | $31.48 | 4,000 |
| Georgia | $58,100 | $27.94 | 1,770 |
| Hawaii | $82,200 | $39.52 | 140 |
| Idaho | $73,940 | $35.55 | 250 |
| Illinois | $75,980 | $36.53 | 1,710 |
| Indiana | $80,510 | $38.71 | 870 |
| Iowa | $77,090 | $37.06 | 450 |
| Kansas | $75,860 | $36.47 | 350 |
| Kentucky | $71,840 | $34.54 | 670 |
| Louisiana | $63,140 | $30.36 | 1,460 |
| Maine | $83,200 | $40.00 | 270 |
| Maryland | $64,910 | $31.21 | 950 |
| Massachusetts | $94,590 | $45.48 | 1,290 |
| Michigan | $72,080 | $34.65 | 1,050 |
| Minnesota | $83,620 | $40.20 | 980 |
| Mississippi | $58,720 | $28.23 | 570 |
| Missouri | $62,110 | $29.86 | 830 |
| Montana | $84,610 | $40.68 | 350 |
| Nebraska | $68,050 | $32.71 | 430 |
| Nevada | $82,460 | $39.64 | 490 |
| New Hampshire | $65,130 | $31.31 | 280 |
| New Jersey | $77,160 | $37.10 | 900 |
| New Mexico | $74,230 | $35.69 | 290 |
| New York | $78,870 | $37.92 | 1,470 |
| North Carolina | $76,210 | $36.64 | 1,530 |
| North Dakota | $79,360 | $38.15 | 250 |
| Ohio | $70,620 | $33.95 | 1,300 |
| Oklahoma | $61,300 | $29.47 | 960 |
| Oregon | $97,070 | $46.67 | 530 |
| Pennsylvania | $75,950 | $36.51 | 1,610 |
| Rhode Island | $62,670 | $30.13 | 150 |
| South Carolina | $63,300 | $30.43 | 1,000 |
| South Dakota | $77,190 | $37.11 | 180 |
| Tennessee | $76,340 | $36.70 | 920 |
| Texas | $61,150 | $29.40 | 6,410 |
| Utah | $73,230 | $35.21 | 650 |
| Vermont | $76,450 | $36.75 | Not published |
| Virginia | $71,070 | $34.17 | 1,360 |
| Washington | $85,610 | $41.16 | 780 |
| West Virginia | $61,520 | $29.58 | 630 |
| Wisconsin | $79,650 | $38.30 | 610 |
| Wyoming | $81,250 | $39.06 | 240 |
Metropolitan and nonmetropolitan wages
Search the 300 published local-area estimates for this occupation. Metropolitan areas can cross state lines; a city’s postal name is not necessarily the statistical area’s name.
Sources: BLS May 2025 OEWS public downloads and 2025–2035 employment projections, retrieved September 9, 2026. Unpublished estimates stay unavailable. “+” means BLS’s upper reporting threshold ($239,200 annually or $115 hourly). Wages exclude self-employment and nonwage benefits. How to interpret these figures.
Compare the route and prepare for work
Questions to test the fit
- What does an entry-level working day look like, and how does it differ from the experienced role described here?
- Which tasks, work environments and schedules would I enjoy or find difficult?
- What education, supervised practice and credentials do local employers actually request?
- Can I speak with someone in the occupation or arrange a suitable workplace visit?
- How does the complete training cost compare with my realistic budget and available routes?
Related occupations to compare
- Cartographers and Photogrammetrists→
- Drafters, All Other→
- Geodetic Surveyors→
- Surveying and Mapping Technicians→
Related through shared training-subject mappings. Entry requirements can differ substantially.
Sources and attribution
This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under CC BY 4.0. Trade School Guides selects and organizes the material and adds explanatory guidance. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed or tested these modifications. Occupation code: 17-1022.00.
Training connections: CIP 2020–SOC 2018 crosswalk. Snapshot: September 8, 2026. See the methodology.