Barbers build social perceptiveness, service orientation and judgment and decision making skills that carry over to other work. Below are 25 careers ranked by how closely their skills match, with pay from BLS May 2025. The closest match is Locker Room, Coatroom, and Dressing Room Attendants (71%).
Updated October 2026 · Data: O*NET 31.0 and BLS OEWS May 2025 · How we match careers
Sorted by skill match.
| # | Career | Skill match | Median pay | Pay change | Extra education |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Locker Room, Coatroom, and Dressing Room Attendants | 71% | $36,300 | −5% | None |
| 2 | Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners | 70% | $35,510 | −7% | None |
| 3 | Bartenders | 69% | $34,340 | −10% | None |
| 4 | Opticians, Dispensing | 68% | $47,260 | +24% | None |
| 5 | Spa Managers | 68% | $69,770Pay for the broader BLS group “Personal Service Managers, All Other” | Not compared | None |
| 6 | Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers | 67% | $41,640 | +9% | None |
| 7 | Morticians, Undertakers, and Funeral Arrangers | 67% | $55,010 | +44% | None |
| 8 | Embalmers | 66% | $58,780 | +54% | None |
| 9 | Exercise Trainers and Group Fitness Instructors | 66% | $47,160 | +23% | None |
| 10 | Food Servers, Nonrestaurant | 66% | $35,360 | −7% | None |
Compared with Barbers, median $38,210. Skill match is our estimate (0–99) from O*NET 31.0 skills, knowledge, work activities and interests, adjusted for preparation and big pay drops. Pay: BLS OEWS May 2025, national median.
How important each skill is in work as barbers (O*NET importance, scale 1–5).
The gaps that show up most often across your top 10 matches.
Free and low-cost training: use the CareerOneStop training finder below.
A concrete first step, the skills to add, and the hard parts of each job, from O*NET 31.0 education, training and work context data.
71% skill match · $36,300 · −5% pay
Service Orientation
70% skill match · $35,510 · −7% pay
Coordination · Time Management
69% skill match · $34,340 · −10% pay
Instructing · Negotiation · Complex Problem Solving
If you want to stay close to what you do now, these roles are the nearest.
The closest matches are Locker Room, Coatroom, and Dressing Room Attendants (71% skill match, median $36,300), Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners (70% skill match, median $35,510) and Bartenders (69% skill match, median $34,340), based on O*NET 31.0 data and BLS May 2025 pay.
Among the 25 matches, 11 pay more than barbers at the median. The biggest increases: Funeral Home Managers (+106%, $78,790), Transportation Security Screeners (+75%, $66,770) and Embalmers (+54%, $58,780).
25 of the 25 matches usually need no more education than you have now, based on O*NET Job Zones.
We compare the importance of skills, knowledge, work activities and interests in O*NET 31.0 for your job and every other career, then adjust for extra preparation and big pay drops. The full method is on our Methodology page.