Estimating software can now read drawings, count materials and price a job from a building model. AI tools are adding automatic takeoffs from plan sets. Cost estimators still decide what the numbers mean: what the drawings miss, what the risks are and what a fair price looks like.
The short answer: software is reducing the number of estimators, but not removing the role. In the ILO's 2025 index, the closest groups, engineering professionals not elsewhere classified and civil engineering technicians, are rated not exposed to generative AI, with scores of 0.28 to 0.30. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics projects a 3 percent decline for cost estimators from 2025 to 2035, but still about 17,600 openings a year. Projections are estimates, not guarantees.
How exposed cost estimators are
The International Labour Organization scores occupations' tasks from 0 (cannot be automated with generative AI) to 1 (could be done without a human operator), and groups them into gradients from 1 to 4, with 4 the most exposed; below them sit minimal exposure and not exposed (ILO Working Paper 140, 2025).
| Occupation (ISCO-08) | ILO category | Mean task score (0 to 1) |
|---|---|---|
| Engineering Professionals Not Elsewhere Classified | Not exposed | 0.30 |
| Civil Engineering Technicians | Not exposed | 0.28 |
The ILO scores groups of occupations, so these are the closest groups rather than a score for cost estimators alone. The ILO index also covers generative AI only, not estimating software in general.
What the BLS projects
| Occupation | Projected change 2025 to 2035 | Openings a year |
|---|---|---|
| Cost estimators | Decline 3% | About 17,600 |
The BLS says cost estimation software is improving productivity, so fewer estimators can do the same work, while companies still need accurate cost projections. Openings come from replacing workers who leave.
What AI and software are taking on
- Material takeoffs from drawings and building models.
- Pricing from cost databases and past jobs.
- Comparing supplier and subcontractor quotes.
- Drafting estimate summaries.
What stays with the estimator
- Reading the job: finding what the blueprints leave out and what will cost more than it looks.
- Working with people: engineers, architects, clients and contractors, as the BLS describes.
- Risk: deciding on contingencies and recommending ways to cut cost.
- Checking AI help: automated takeoffs and prices can be confidently wrong, which NIST calls confabulation (NIST AI 600-1). See checking AI output.
How the job is changing
Estimators who know BIM and estimating software handle more projects, which is why fewer are needed. Judgment about risk and price stays with people.
See also will AI replace construction workers?, will AI replace surveyors? and will AI replace engineers?
Pay and how to get in
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics puts the median annual pay for cost estimators at $78,740 in May 2025, against $50,980 for all workers. The typical education needed to enter is: bachelor's degree. See how this job compares in AI exposure by pay and AI exposure by education level.
Questions and answers
Will AI replace cost estimators?
Not fully, but software is reducing jobs. The BLS projects a 3 percent decline from 2025 to 2035.
Why are cost estimator jobs declining?
The BLS says cost estimation software is making estimators more productive, so fewer are needed for the same work.
How many cost estimator openings are expected?
The BLS projects about 17,600 openings a year, all from replacing workers who leave.
What estimating work stays human?
Reading the job, working with the project team, judging risk and checking automated takeoffs.