Sales and Related · Holland code RCE
Parts Salespersons
Sell spare and replacement parts and equipment in repair shop or parts store.
Also called: Parts Consultant, Parts Counterperson, Parts Salesman, Parts Salesperson, Parts Advisor, Parts Counter Salesperson, Parts Counterman, Parts Person.
O*NET 41-2022.00
At a glance
- US median annual pay
- $38,630
- Middle half earn $33,110 to $49,850. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
- Most common education
- High School Diploma or the equivalent (such as a GED)
- 47% of workers surveyed by O*NET report this level.
- 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.
- Receive payment or obtain credit authorization.
- Assist customers, such as responding to customer complaints and updating them about back-ordered parts.
- Fill customer orders from stock, and place orders when requested items are out of stock.
- Receive and fill telephone orders for parts.
- Locate and label parts, and maintain inventory of stock.
- Prepare sales slips or sales contracts.
- Read catalogs, microfiche viewers, or computer displays to determine replacement part stock numbers and prices.
- Determine replacement parts required, according to inspections of old parts, customer requests, or customers' descriptions of malfunctions.
Skills and knowledge it leans on
Skills
- Active Listening4.0 / 5
- Speaking4.0 / 5
- Reading Comprehension3.6 / 5
- Critical Thinking3.3 / 5
- Monitoring3.1 / 5
- Writing3.0 / 5
Knowledge areas
- Customer and Personal Service4.4 / 5
- Sales and Marketing4.1 / 5
- Administration and Management4.0 / 5
- Administrative3.9 / 5
- Computers and Electronics3.8 / 5
- English Language3.6 / 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.
- Realistic77
- Investigative10
- Artistic0
- Social16
- Enterprising47
- Conventional69
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)
- sales engineer · DE Vertriebstechniker/Vertriebstechnikerin · FR ingénieur technico-commercial/ingénieure technico-commerciale
- technical sales representative in machinery and industrial equipment · DE Fachkraft technischer Vertrieb Maschinen- und Anlagenbau · FR attaché technico-commercial en machines et équipements industriels/attachée technico-commerciale en machines et équipements industriels
- technical sales representative in mining and construction machinery · DE Fachkraft technischer Vertrieb von Bergbau- und Baumaschinen · FR attaché technico-commercial en machines du secteur minier et de la construction/attachée technico-commerciale en machines du secteur minier et de la construction
- motor vehicles parts advisor · DE Kfz-Teileverkäufer/Kfz-Teileverkäuferin · FR conseiller en pièces détachées/conseillère en pièces détachées
- sales assistant · DE Verkäufer/Verkäuferin · FR vendeur/vendeuse
- motor vehicles specialised seller · DE Fachverkäufer für Kraftfahrzeuge/Fachverkäuferin für Kraftfahrzeuge · FR vendeur automobile/vendeuse automobile
Closest UK occupation groups (SOC 2020)
- Vehicle and parts salespersons and advisers (7115)37,400 employed
- Sales and retail assistants (7111)831,800 employed
- Assemblers (vehicles and metal goods) (8142)23,600 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 “Service and sales workers”. 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.
| Country | Median pay |
|---|---|
| Belgium | €32,957 |
| Sweden | €32,596 |
| Netherlands | €29,198 |
| Austria | €29,068 |
| Germany | €27,471 |
| Ireland | €26,978 |
| Italy | €24,995 |
| France | €24,971 |
| Spain | €18,303 |
| Portugal | €10,656 |
| Poland | €7,579 |
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 middle third of the 774 occupations scored, with an exposure score of -0.12. 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 (41-2022).
Related careers
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