Tellers
Also called: Account Representative, Bank Representative, Bank Teller, Banker, Bilingual Spanish Teller, Bilingual Teller, Branch Operations Specialist, Branch Teller
Receive and pay out money.
What tellers do
Typical tasks
- Balance currency, coin, and checks in cash drawers at ends of shifts and calculate daily transactions, using computers, calculators, or adding machines.
- Receive checks and cash for deposit, verify amounts, and check accuracy of deposit slips.
- Monitor bank vaults to ensure cash balances are correct.
- Cash checks and pay out money after verifying that signatures are correct, that written and numerical amounts agree, and that accounts have sufficient funds.
- Count currency, coins, and checks received, by hand or using currency-counting machine, to prepare them for deposit or shipment to branch banks or the Federal Reserve Bank.
- Enter customers' transactions into computers to record transactions and issue computer-generated receipts.
- Examine checks for endorsements and to verify other information, such as dates, bank names, identification of the persons receiving payments, and the legality of the documents.
- Resolve problems or discrepancies concerning customers' accounts.
- Prepare and verify cashier's checks.
- Process transactions, such as term deposits, retirement savings plan contributions, automated teller transactions, night deposits, and mail deposits.
- Answer telephones and assist customers with their questions.
- Identify transaction mistakes when debits and credits do not balance.
Typical path into the job (BLS)
Tellers salary
The median annual wage for tellers is $43,030 (BLS OEWS May 2025; BLS Employment Projections 2025–35, national). The lowest 10 percent earn less than $34,360 and the highest 10 percent earn more than $49,680. The mean annual wage is $42,350.
The mean hourly wage of $20.00 is 2.8× the federal minimum wage of $7.25. State minimums are higher in most large states. Minimum wage by state →
How does your pay compare with people your age?
Your numbers are not sent or stored. The comparison uses this occupation's BLS wage percentiles, adjusted for age with BLS median weekly earnings by age group (Q3 2026).
Pay by percentile
Annual wage percentiles from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS). Percentiles are a good proxy for pay by experience.
Projected pay for Tellers (3, 5 and 10 years)est.
Today $43,030 → in 3 years $45,300 → in 5 years $46,900 → in 10 years $51,000 (10-year range $43,900–$59,200). The model assumes pay growth of +1.7% per year.
What drives the annual growth rate
Projected pay = current pay × (1 + annual growth)^years. The annual growth rate starts from a base wage-growth rate and adds or subtracts labor demand (BLS projected employment growth), wage momentum and AI replacement risk for each occupation. Projections are not guarantees. How it is calculated →
Outlook score for Tellers
Each component is a percentile rank among all occupations in the same country (0–100). Weights: labor demand 25, wage momentum / openings 15, pay level 15, AI resistance 25, aging workforce 10 (Japan only), entry barrier 10.
Will AI replace Tellers? AI replacement risk
How AI is changing this job
A written analysis for this occupation is being prepared.
AI replacement risk compares the parts of a job that are easy to hand to AI or software (processing information, documentation, repetitive computer work) with the parts that are hard to automate (physical work, working closely with people, judgment in unpredictable settings), using O*NET work activities, work context, skills and knowledge. The result is a relative position among all occupations in the country, scaled to 0–100%. Methodology →
Labor demand for Tellers
Employment projections are from the BLS Employment Projections program (2025–35). Annual openings include both new jobs and replacement of workers who leave the occupation.
The same job in Japan
| Tellers United States | 銀行等窓口事務 Japan | |
|---|---|---|
| Median / average pay | $43,030 | ¥5.12M ≈ $32,575 |
| Pay in 10 years (est.) | $51,000 | ¥5.61M |
| Outlook score | 20 | 34 |
| AI replacement risk | 66% High | 82% Very high |
| Workers | 329K | — |
Matched by occupation (SOC code). Yen converted at 157.25 JPY/USD for reference; Japanese figures are averages, U.S. figures are medians, and the surveys define occupations differently.
Skills, education and requirements for Tellers
Key skills
O*NET skill level ratings (0–7).
Key knowledge areas
What the work involves
Important abilities
Education of workers
Training before entry
Related work experience
Job Zone 2 — some preparation needed (O*NET)
Difficulty of entry: ★☆☆☆☆ Easy to enter (from education, training, experience and Job Zone)
How to become tellers
A step-by-step guide for this occupation is being prepared. The education, training and experience data above show the typical path.
Career path and how to earn more as tellers
Career-path guidance is being prepared. Pay by percentile is shown in the Pay section.