Career Explorer Business and finance
Grows with AI
Market research analysts and marketing specialists
Research conditions in local, regional, national, or online markets. Gather information to determine potential sales of a product or service, or plan a marketing or advertising campaign. May gather information on competitors, prices, sales, and methods of marketing and distribution. May employ search marketing tactics, analyze web metrics, and develop recommendations to increase search engine ranking and visibility to target markets.
Changing faster than most: more resilient than 21% of the 831 careers we score. AI exposure is very high (the Bureau of Labor Statistics rates it very high), and US jobs are projected to change by +7.0% by 2035, faster than average. The work leans on creative vision.
AI can help with many of the tasks, and demand is still growing. Being fluent with AI is the edge here.
- Median pay (2025)
- $78,760
- Job growth to 2035
- +7.0%
- Openings a year
- 82,000
- People doing it (2025)
- 953,000
- Usual route in
- Bachelor's degree
Where people already use AI for this work
- Analyze market or industry conditions
- Implement procedures or processes
- Design computer or information systems or applications
From Microsoft Research, Working with AI (2025).
Work AI rarely helps with
- Communicate with others about business strategies
- Direct organizational operations, activities, or procedures
- Develop organizational policies, systems, or processes
What the work looks like
- Prepare reports of findings, illustrating data graphically and translating complex findings into written text.
- Seek and provide information to help companies determine their position in the marketplace.
- Conduct research on consumer opinions and marketing strategies, collaborating with marketing professionals, statisticians, pollsters, and other professionals.
- Collect and analyze data on customer demographics, preferences, needs, and buying habits to identify potential markets and factors affecting product demand.
- Devise and evaluate methods and procedures for collecting data, such as surveys, opinion polls, or questionnaires, or arrange to obtain existing data.
From O*NET 31.0, US Department of Labor.
Careers using similar strengths, with a stronger outlook
- Operations research analystsGrows with AI, Index 23, +11.9%
- Environmental scientists and specialists, including healthGrows with AI, Index 34, +6.1%
- Data scientistsGrows with AI, Index 22, +34.6%
- Agents and business managers of artists, performers, and athletesGrows with AI, Index 46, +9.7%
Also known as: Market Analyst, Market Research Analyst, Market Research Consultant, Market Researcher, Digital Media Planner, Online Marketing Consultant, Paid Search Strategist, SEO Strategist (Search Engine Optimization Strategist).
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Sources: US Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections 2025 to 2035; O*NET 31.0; Microsoft Research (2025); Anthropic Economic Index (2026); Eloundou and colleagues (Science, 2024); Felten, Raj and Seamans (2023). How we score. Updated 12 October 2026.