Cashier

Receive and disburse money in establishments other than financial institutions. May use electronic scanners, cash registers, or related equipment. May process credit or debit card transactions and validate checks.

On the job, you would:

Receive payment by cash, check, credit cards, vouchers, or automatic debits.
Answer customers' questions, and provide information on procedures or policies.
Help customers find the location of products.

Important Qualities

Communication skills. Cashiers must pay attention to customers’ questions and explain pricing.

Customer-service skills. Cashiers must be courteous and friendly when helping customers.

Dexterity. Cashiers use their hands to operate registers and scan purchases.

Near vision. Cashiers need to see well enough to scan items and process transactions accurately.

Patience. Cashiers must be able to remain calm when interacting with customers.

Physical stamina. Cashiers stand for long periods.

Personality

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Characteristics of this Career
		82%	Dependability - Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
		82%	Cooperation - Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.
		82%	Integrity - Job requires being honest and ethical.
		81%	Self-Control - Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.
		78%	Stress Tolerance - Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high-stress situations.
		77%	Attention to Detail - Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
		75%	Adaptability/Flexibility - Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace.
		75%	Independence - Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done.
		73%	Concern for Others - Job requires being sensitive to others' needs and feelings and being understanding and helpful on the job.
		69%	Social Orientation - Job requires preferring to work with others rather than alone, and being personally connected with others on the job.
		68%	Initiative - Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.
		66%	Leadership - Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction.
		64%	Persistence - Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles.
		62%	Analytical Thinking - Job requires analyzing information and using logic to address work-related issues and problems.
		62%	Innovation - Job requires creativity and alternative thinking to develop new ideas for and answers to work-related problems.
		60%	Achievement/Effort - Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Strengths
		95%	Conventional - Work involves following procedures and regulations to organize information or data, typically in a business setting. Conventional occupations are often associated with office work, accounting, mathematics/statistics, information technology, finance, or human resources.
		56%	Enterprising - Work involves managing, negotiating, marketing, or selling, typically in a business setting, or leading or advising people in political and legal situations. Enterprising occupations are often associated with business initiatives, sales, marketing/advertising, finance, management/administration, professional advising, public speaking, politics, or law.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Values of the Work Environment
		61%	Relationships - Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to provide service to others and work with co-workers in a friendly non-competitive environment. Corresponding needs are Co-workers, Moral Values and Social Service.

Aptitude

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Abilities \| Cognitive, Physical, Personality
		69%	Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
		66%	Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
		56%	Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
		53%	Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
		53%	Speech Recognition - The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.

Job Details

Responsibilities

Explain technical product or service information to customers.

Answer customer questions about goods or services.

Clean work areas.

Monitor sales activities.

Assist customers to ensure comfort or safety.

Train sales personnel.

Supervise sales or support personnel.

Provide customers with general information or assistance.

Answer telephones to direct calls or provide information.

Stock products or parts.

Process sales or other transactions.

Issue money, credit, or vouchers.

Reconcile records of sales or other financial transactions.

Greet customers, patrons, or visitors.

Calculate costs of goods or services.

Issue money, credit, or vouchers.

Process sales or other transactions.

Explain technical product or service information to customers.

Answer customer questions about goods or services.

Issue money, credit, or vouchers.

Calculate weights, volumes or other characteristics of materials.

Reconcile records of sales or other financial transactions.

Calculate costs of goods or services.

Maintain records of sales or other business transactions.

Sell products or services.

Maintain records of sales or other business transactions.

Package objects for shipping.

Prepare outgoing shipments.

Prepare cash for deposit or disbursement.

Process sales or other transactions.

Pay charges, fees, or taxes.

Communicate with other workers to coordinate activities.

Maintain records of sales or other business transactions.

Monitor sales activities.

Record sales or transactions data.

Provide customers with general information or assistance.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Attributes & Percentage of Time Spent
		96%	Contact With Others - How much does this job require the worker to be in contact with others (face-to-face, by telephone, or otherwise) in order to perform it?
		88%	Deal With External Customers - How important is it to work with external customers or the public in this job?
		87%	Face-to-Face Discussions - How often do you have to have face-to-face discussions with individuals or teams in this job?
		85%	Importance of Being Exact or Accurate - How important is being very exact or highly accurate in performing this job?
		84%	Work With Work Group or Team - How important is it to work with others in a group or team in this job?
		83%	Indoors, Environmentally Controlled - How often does this job require working indoors in environmentally controlled conditions?
		79%	Spend Time Standing - How much does this job require standing?
		77%	Telephone - How often do you have telephone conversations in this job?
		75%	Physical Proximity - To what extent does this job require the worker to perform job tasks in close physical proximity to other people?
		71%	Impact of Decisions on Co-workers or Company Results - What results do your decisions usually have on other people or the image or reputation or financial resources of your employer?
		68%	Deal With Unpleasant or Angry People - How frequently does the worker have to deal with unpleasant, angry, or discourteous individuals as part of the job requirements?
		68%	Frequency of Decision Making - How frequently is the worker required to make decisions that affect other people, the financial resources, and/or the image and reputation of the organization?
		66%	Spend Time Making Repetitive Motions - How much does this job require making repetitive motions?
		64%	Spend Time Using Your Hands to Handle, Control, or Feel Objects, Tools, or Controls - How much does this job require using your hands to handle, control, or feel objects, tools or controls?
		60%	Importance of Repeating Same Tasks - How important is repeating the same physical activities (e.g., key entry) or mental activities (e.g., checking entries in a ledger) over and over, without stopping, to performing this job?
		60%	Coordinate or Lead Others - How important is it to coordinate or lead others in accomplishing work activities in this job?
		56%	Freedom to Make Decisions - How much decision making freedom, without supervision, does the job offer?
		54%	Frequency of Conflict Situations - How often are there conflict situations the employee has to face in this job?
		54%	Structured versus Unstructured Work - To what extent is this job structured for the worker, rather than allowing the worker to determine tasks, priorities, and goals?

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Tasks & Values
		86%	Performing for or Working Directly with the Public - Performing for people or dealing directly with the public. This includes serving customers in restaurants and stores, and receiving clients or guests.
		79%	Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events - Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
		76%	Getting Information - Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
		70%	Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates - Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
		69%	Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships - Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.
		67%	Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge - Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.
		65%	Communicating with People Outside the Organization - Communicating with people outside the organization, representing the organization to customers, the public, government, and other external sources. This information can be exchanged in person, in writing, or by telephone or e-mail.
		64%	Training and Teaching Others - Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others.
		63%	Processing Information - Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or verifying information or data.
		63%	Judging the Qualities of Objects, Services, or People - Assessing the value, importance, or quality of things or people.
		61%	Assisting and Caring for Others - Providing personal assistance, medical attention, emotional support, or other personal care to others such as coworkers, customers, or patients.
		60%	Selling or Influencing Others - Convincing others to buy merchandise/goods or to otherwise change their minds or actions.
		59%	Controlling Machines and Processes - Using either control mechanisms or direct physical activity to operate machines or processes (not including computers or vehicles).
		59%	Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings - Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.
		57%	Making Decisions and Solving Problems - Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
		53%	Performing General Physical Activities - Performing physical activities that require considerable use of your arms and legs and moving your whole body, such as climbing, lifting, balancing, walking, stooping, and handling materials.
		53%	Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards - Using relevant information and individual judgment to determine whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards.
		52%	Handling and Moving Objects - Using hands and arms in handling, installing, positioning, and moving materials, and manipulating things.
		52%	Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others - Getting members of a group to work together to accomplish tasks.
		52%	Resolving Conflicts and Negotiating with Others - Handling complaints, settling disputes, and resolving grievances and conflicts, or otherwise negotiating with others.

What Cashiers Do

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.

Work Environment

Cashiers held about 3.3 million jobs in 2022. The largest employers of cashiers were as follows:

Gasoline stations	19%
General merchandise retailers	17
Restaurants and other eating places	10
Pharmacies and drug retailers	5

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.

Getting Started

Education:

68%

High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)

30%

Less than a High School Diploma

How to Become a Cashier

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.

Advancement

Working as a cashier is often a means to advance to other careers in retail. For example, with experience, cashiers may become customer service representatives or retail sales workers.

Job Outlook

Employment of cashiers is projected to decline 10 percent from 2022 to 2032.

Despite declining employment, about 577,600 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.

Contacts for More Information

The Handbook does not have contacts for more information for this occupation.

Occupational Requirements Survey

For a profile highlighting selected BLS data on occupational requirements, see

Cashiers (PDF)

Similar Occupations

This table shows a list of occupations with job duties that are similar to those of cashiers.

Occupation	Job Duties	Entry-Level Education	Median Annual Pay, May 2022
Customer Service Representatives	Customer service representatives interact with customers to handle complaints, process orders, and answer questions.	High school diploma or equivalent	$37,780
Retail Sales Workers	Retail sales workers help customers find products they want and process customers’ payments.	No formal educational credential	$30,750
Tellers	Tellers are responsible for accurately processing routine transactions at a bank.	High school diploma or equivalent	$36,380
Waiters and Waitresses	Waiters and waitresses take orders and serve food and beverages to customers in dining establishments.	No formal educational credential	$29,120
Bartenders	Bartenders mix drinks and serve them directly to customers or through wait staff.	No formal educational credential	$29,380
Food and Beverage Serving and Related Workers	Food and beverage serving and related workers take and prepare orders, clear tables, and do other tasks associated with providing food and drink to customers.	No formal educational credential	$28,130

Cashier

What they do:

On the job, you would:

Important Qualities

Personality

Characteristics of this Career

Strengths

Values of the Work Environment

Aptitude

Abilities | Cognitive, Physical, Personality

Job Details

Attributes & Percentage of Time Spent

Tasks & Values

What Cashiers Do

Duties

Work Environment

Work Schedules

Getting Started

How to Become a Cashier

Education

Training

Advancement

Job Outlook

Employment

Contacts for More Information

Occupational Requirements Survey

Similar Occupations