Cashiers process returns and exchanges of merchandise.
Cashiers process payments from customers purchasing goods and services.
Duties
Cashiers typically do the following:
Greet customers
Scan or register customers’ purchases
Accept payments from customers and give change and receipts
Bag or wrap customers’ purchases
Process returns and exchanges of merchandise
Answer customers’ questions and provide information about store policies
Help customers sign up for store rewards programs or credit cards
Count the money in their register at the beginning and end of each shift
In some establishments, cashiers have to check the age of their customers when selling age-restricted products, such as alcohol and tobacco. Some cashiers may have duties not directly related to sales and customer service, such as mopping floors, taking out the trash, and other custodial tasks. Others may stock shelves or mark prices on items.
Cashiers use scanners, registers, or calculators to process payments and returns or exchanges of merchandise.
Cashiers held about 3.4 million jobs in 2021. The largest employers of cashiers were as follows:
Food and beverage stores
27%
Gasoline stations
18
General merchandise stores
17
Restaurants and other eating places
11
Pharmacies and drug stores
6
The work is often repetitive, and cashiers spend most of their time standing behind counters or checkout stands. Dealing with dissatisfied customers can be stressful.
Work Schedules
Cashiers’ work hours vary by employer. Cashiers often work during weekends and holidays. Some cashiers employed in establishments that operate 24 hours a day, such as gasoline stations, work overnight shifts. Part-time work is common.
Employers may restrict the use of time off from Thanksgiving through early January because that is the busiest time of the year for most retailers.
Cashiers need to have good customer service skills.
Cashiers are trained on the job. There are no formal education requirements to become a cashier.
Education
Although most jobs for cashiers have no specific education requirements, some employers prefer applicants with a high school diploma or equivalent. Cashiers should have a basic knowledge of mathematics, because they need to be able to make change and count the money in their registers.
Training
Cashiers receive on-the-job training, which may last a few weeks. An experienced worker typically helps new cashiers learn how to operate equipment such as scanners or registers.
Note: All Occupations includes all occupations in the U.S. Economy. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
The median hourly wage for cashiers was $13.11 in May 2021.
The median wage is the wage at which half the workers in an occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $8.93, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $16.94.
In May 2021, the median hourly wages for cashiers in the top industries in which they worked were as follows:
Pharmacies and drug stores
$13.85
Food and beverage stores
13.50
General merchandise stores
12.32
Gasoline stations
11.24
Restaurants and other eating places
11.13
Many beginning or inexperienced cashiers earn the federal minimum wage ($7.25 per hour as of July, 24, 2009), but many states set minimum wages higher than the federal minimum.
Cashiers’ work hours vary by employer. Cashiers often work during weekends and holidays. Some cashiers employed in establishments that operate 24 hours a day, such as gasoline stations, work overnight shifts. Part-time work is common.
Employers may restrict the use of time off from Thanksgiving through early January because that is the busiest time of the year for most retailers.
Note: All Occupations includes all occupations in the U.S. Economy. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections program
Employment of cashiers is projected to decline 10 percent from 2021 to 2031.
Despite declining employment, about 570,700 openings for cashiers are projected each year, on average, over the decade.
All of those openings are expected to result from the need to replace workers who transfer to other occupations or exit the labor force, such as to retire.
Employment
Although retail sales are expected to increase over the projections decade, employment of cashiers is expected to decline because of advances in technology, such as the use of self-service checkout stands in retail stores and increasing online sales.
Employment projections data for cashiers, 2021-31
Occupational Title
SOC Code
Employment, 2021
Projected Employment, 2031
Change, 2021-31
Employment by Industry
Percent
Numeric
SOURCE: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections program