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Boston Career Explorer

Office and Administrative Support

Postal Service Mail Carriers

Sort and deliver mail for the United States Postal Service (USPS). Deliver mail on established route by vehicle or on foot. Includes postal service mail carriers employed by USPS contractors.

Also called: City Carrier, City Carrier Assistant (CCA), City Letter Carrier, City Mail Carrier, Letter Carrier, Mail Carrier

Median pay in Greater Boston
$62,090
$29.85/hr
Jobs in Greater Boston
5,430
Massachusetts 2024–2034
−0.7%
820 openings a year
Typical U.S. entry requirement
No formal educational credential
plus Short-term on-the-job training

Greater Boston: Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH metro area, May 2025. Growth and openings: Massachusetts statewide projection.

Pay range in Greater Boston

Yearly pay in Greater Boston by percentile
10th25thMedian75th90th
$48,940$53,310$62,090$81,040$81,040

10% of workers earn less than the first figure and 10% earn more than the last.

What you’d do

  • Scan labels on letters or parcels to confirm receipt.
  • Obtain signed receipts for registered, certified, and insured mail, collect associated charges, and complete any necessary paperwork.
  • Return to the post office with mail collected from homes, businesses, and public mailboxes.
  • Sort mail for delivery, arranging it in delivery sequence.
  • Deliver mail to residences and business establishments along specified routes by walking or driving, using a combination of satchels, carts, cars, and small trucks.
  • Meet schedules for the collection and return of mail.

AI and this job

AI exposure: how much of this job’s work AI tools can do or help with, based on national research. It is not a forecast of job loss.

Lower exposure29 of 100

The index averages three national research measures, each shown as a percentile of all jobs:

  • AIOE 14
  • Language-model AIOE 18
  • GPTs-are-GPTs 56

Observed AI use today: Little or none (Anthropic Economic Index)

AI exposure is lower for this job, and observed AI use is little or none. Tools may help with scanning, paperwork, and sorting mail into delivery order. Walking or driving the route and handing mail to people still need someone physically there.

Likely to change

  • Sorting mail into delivery order
  • Scanning labels and completing paperwork

Still relies on people

  • Delivering mail on foot or by vehicle
  • Getting signatures and dealing with customers

Written with AI from the data on this page. Check with a career coach before making a decision.

Next steps from here

Related jobs that build on what you already do.

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    Pay difference
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    AI exposure
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    MA growth
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  • Construction Laborers

    Outdoor, physical work carries over, and no formal credential is needed. It has short-term on-the-job training and faster projected growth.

    Pay difference
    +$1,330 median
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Training near Boston

College and school programs in the Boston metro area that lead to this job, with 2023-24 completions (IPEDS).

No college programs near Boston map to this job. Many people enter through on-the-job training or apprenticeship.

Talk to a career coach at the Office of Workforce Development about apprenticeships and City partner programs.

Related occupations

Talk to a career coach

A coach at the Office of Workforce Development can help you plan your next step, and connect you with training, apprenticeships and City partner programs that are not listed here.

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