Will AI replace Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers?
AI reaches little of this job’s work.
5/100
Low exposure
More exposed to AI than 11% of US workers.
- AI already used in
- 0% of the work
- As AI tools mature: up to
- 10% of the work
What the job involves
Operate or tend washing or dry-cleaning machines to wash or dry-clean industrial or household articles, such as cloth garments, suede, leather, furs, blankets, draperies, linens, rugs, and carpets. Includes spotters and dyers of these articles.
Where AI reaches the work
The job’s main tasks, heaviest first, by how far AI reaches them.
Within reach(3)
- Determine spotting procedures and proper solvents, based on fabric and stain types.
- Receive and mark articles for laundry or dry cleaning with identifying code numbers or names, using hand or machine markers.
- Match sample colors, applying knowledge of bleaching agent and dye properties, and types, construction, conditions, and colors of articles.
Out of reach(29)
- Remove items from washers or dry-cleaning machines, or direct other workers to do so.
- Load articles into washers or dry-cleaning machines, or direct other workers to perform loading.
- Sort and count articles removed from dryers, and fold, wrap, or hang them.
- Start washers, dry cleaners, driers, or extractors, and turn valves or levers to regulate machine processes and the volume of soap, detergent, water, bleach, starch, and other additives.
- Examine and sort into lots articles to be cleaned, according to color, fabric, dirt content, and cleaning technique required.
and 24 more
Also called
Laundry Worker · Dry Cleaner · Laundry Aide · Laundry Attendant · Fur Cleaner · Leather Cleaner · Machine Washer · Spot Cleaner
Related jobs
What these numbers mean
The score is the share of this job’s work, weighted by how important and frequent each task is, that AI could do in half the time: tasks an AI model could do alone count in full, tasks that need software built on AI count half.
“AI already used” is the share of the work in tasks where people are recorded using AI today. “As AI tools mature” counts every task AI could halve, with or without extra software.
The percentile compares the score with every job’s, weighted by how many people in the US do each one. Exposure means AI could change how the work is done, not that the job goes away. These are estimates for the typical job, not predictions.
Sources
- O*NET 31.0 Database, U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration
- GPTs are GPTs: Labor market impact potential of LLMs (task labels), Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin & Rock (2023), OpenAI and University of Pennsylvania
- Anthropic Economic Index: labor market impacts (task penetration), Anthropic
- Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 (national and metropolitan areas), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics