Parts Salespersons
Sell spare and replacement parts and equipment in repair shop or parts store.
- Median pay
- $38,630
- Doing it now
- 273,300
- By 2035
- Up 3%
- Usually needs
- No formal educational credential
a year
across the country
30,000 openings a year
to get in
What the work involves
- 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.
- Receive and fill telephone orders for parts.
- Prepare sales slips or sales contracts.
- Receive payment or obtain credit authorization.
- Advise customers on substitution or modification of parts when identical replacements are not available.
- Examine returned parts for defects, and exchange defective parts or refund money.
What to study
The fields of study the Department of Education links to this occupation, most widely taught first.
- Specialized Sales, Merchandising and Marketing OperationsSee 93 colleges that teach it
- General Sales, Merchandising and Related Marketing OperationsSee 88 colleges that teach it
Who it suits
O*NET scores every occupation on six interest dimensions. This one leans hardest on these three.
Hands-on and practical
Organised and precise
Leading and persuading
Careers like this one
Where this comes from: the description and the task list are O*NET, which the Department of Labor maintains. Pay, workforce size, outlook and the education normally needed are the Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections programme, 2025 wages and 2025 to 2035 projections. Half of them earn more than $38,630 a year, which means half earn less, and what you would earn depends on where you work and how long you have been doing it. The fields of study come from the National Center for Education Statistics crosswalk.