File Clerks build service orientation, social perceptiveness and time management 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 Word Processors and Typists (94%).
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 | Word Processors and Typists | 94% | $49,280 | +13% | None |
| 2 | Office Clerks, General | 93% | $45,010 | +3% | None |
| 3 | Data Entry Keyers | 93% | $41,340 | −5% | None |
| 4 | Billing and Posting Clerks | 87% | $48,500 | +11% | None |
| 5 | Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive | 87% | $47,540 | +9% | None |
| 6 | Medical Records Specialists | 86% | $51,140 | +17% | Certificate or associate |
| 7 | Title Examiners, Abstractors, and Searchers | 85% | $58,650 | +35% | None |
| 8 | Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks | 84% | $50,670 | +16% | Certificate or associate |
| 9 | Insurance Claims and Policy Processing Clerks | 82% | $49,230 | +13% | None |
| 10 | Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks | 81% | $58,260 | +34% | Certificate or associate |
Compared with File Clerks, median $43,600. 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 file clerks (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.
94% skill match · $49,280 · +13% pay
Equipment Maintenance · Quality Control Analysis
93% skill match · $45,010 · +3% pay
Instructing · Troubleshooting · Persuasion
93% skill match · $41,340 · −5% pay
Equipment Selection · Instructing · Management of Personnel Resources
If you want to stay close to what you do now, these roles are the nearest.
The closest matches are Word Processors and Typists (94% skill match, median $49,280), Office Clerks, General (93% skill match, median $45,010) and Data Entry Keyers (93% skill match, median $41,340), based on O*NET 31.0 data and BLS May 2025 pay.
Among the 25 matches, 19 pay more than file clerks at the median. The biggest increases: Administrative Services Managers (+162%, $114,130), Tax Examiners and Collectors, and Revenue Agents (+43%, $62,370) and Postal Service Clerks (+42%, $62,130).
18 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.