Office and Administrative Support · Holland code CRI

Meter Readers, Utilities

Read meter and record consumption of electricity, gas, water, or steam.

Also called: Meter Reader, Meter Technician (Meter Tech), Water Meter Reader, Water Use Inspector, Field Technician (Field Tech), Meter Reading Clerk, Meter Service Technician (Meter Service Tech), Meter Service Worker.

O*NET 43-5041.00

At a glance

US median annual pay: $48,150; Middle half earn $39,410 to $65,750. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
Preparation needed: Job Zone 2 of 5; Some preparation. Zone 1 is little or none; zone 5 is graduate-level.

What the work involves

The tasks workers in this occupation rate as most important, from the O*NET survey.

Read electric, gas, water, or steam consumption meters and enter data in route books or hand-held computers.
Upload into office computers all information collected on hand-held computers during meter rounds, or return route books or hand-held computers to business offices so that data can be compiled.
Walk or drive vehicles along established routes to take readings of meter dials.
Verify readings in cases where consumption appears to be abnormal, and record possible reasons for fluctuations.
Install new or replace broken meters.
Inspect meters for unauthorized connections, defects, and damage, such as broken seals.
Perform preventative maintenance or minor repairs on meters.
Answer customers' questions about services and charges, or direct them to customer service centers.

Skills and knowledge it leans on

Skills

Speaking3.0 / 5
Critical Thinking3.0 / 5
Reading Comprehension2.9 / 5
Active Listening2.9 / 5
Monitoring2.6 / 5
Active Learning2.5 / 5

Knowledge areas

Customer and Personal Service3.9 / 5
Computers and Electronics3.6 / 5
Public Safety and Security3.5 / 5
Mathematics3.0 / 5
Administration and Management2.8 / 5
Engineering and Technology2.6 / 5

Importance ratings on O*NET’s 1 to 5 scale. Higher means the occupation depends on it more.

Who tends to enjoy it

How strongly this occupation draws on each of the six Holland interest types, which is the same profile the career interests test compares you against.

Realistic65
Investigative25
Artistic0
Social19
Enterprising5
Conventional93

The same work abroad

Other countries classify jobs differently, so these are the closest matches through the international ISCO-08 standard, not exact equivalents.

European occupation titles (ESCO)

meter reader · DE Zählerableser/Zählerableserin · FR releveur de compteurs/releveuse de compteurs

Closest UK occupation groups (SOC 2020)

Debt, rent and other cash collectors (7122)15,500 employed

Employment is the UK Annual Population Survey for April 2025 to March 2026, all workers in the group, which can be broader than this one occupation.

Pay across Europe, for the whole group

Median annual earnings of all employees in “Elementary occupations”. This is the broad ISCO group this occupation falls in, not the occupation itself, so treat it as context for the wage level, not as a salary for this job.

Median annual earnings, Elementary occupations, by country
Country	Median pay
Belgium	€29,579
Sweden	€28,305
Austria	€27,215
Netherlands	€24,577
Ireland	€24,331
Germany	€22,430
Italy	€22,101
France	€21,664
Spain	€17,502
Portugal	€9,424
Poland	€7,534

Eurostat Structure of Earnings Survey, businesses with ten or more employees outside public administration, in euro and not adjusted for the cost of living. Reference years differ between sources: the US, Japan and Europe figures on this page come from different survey years, so compare them as rough levels, not to the euro or yen.

Exposure to AI

This occupation sits in the lower third of the 774 occupations scored, with an exposure score of -0.97. The scores are standardized across those occupations, so 0 is the average and a score of 1 is about one standard deviation above it.

Our note on reading it: the dataset links AI applications to the abilities that occupations require, so the score reflects overlap between the two. It is a comparison between occupations, not a forecast about jobs. It does not say whether exposure means tasks are replaced or workers get more done with the tools, and it says little about one employer or one role.

Source: Felten, E., Raj, M., & Seamans, R. (2021). Occupational, industry, and geographic exposure to artificial intelligence: A novel dataset and its potential uses. Strategic Management Journal, 42(12), 2195-2217. Matched to this page by 6-digit SOC code (43-5041).

Is it a fit for you?

Interest is one input, alongside ability, pay and what is hiring near you. The career interests test takes about thirteen minutes and ranks occupations by how closely their profile matches yours.

Take the career interests test