SOC 51-6011.00

    Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers

    Operate or tend washing or dry-cleaning machines to wash or dry-clean industrial or household articles, such as cloth garments, suede, leather, furs, blankets, draperies, linens, rugs, and carpets.

    Median pay
    $34,890
    Growth
    +4.3%
    As fast as average
    Openings a year
    28,200
    Typical education
    No formal credential

    Data verified Nov 2026 · CollegesRef 2026–27 edition

    Source: BLS 2025 wages · 2025–35 projections

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    Annual pay range

    Lowest 10% earn less than
    $27,440
    Median
    $34,890
    Highest 10% earn more than
    $43,190
    National wages for all workers in this occupation. BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025.

    198,040 people work in this occupation.

    What laundry and dry-cleaning workers do

    Job Zone 2: Some preparation

    Operate or tend washing or dry-cleaning machines to wash or dry-clean industrial or household articles, such as cloth garments, suede, leather, furs, blankets, draperies, linens, rugs, and carpets. Includes spotters and dyers of these articles.

    Usually a high school diploma; some on-the-job training or experience.

    Interest profile

    Realistic (R) · strongest
    90 / 100
    Investigative (I)
    0 / 100
    Artistic (A)
    3 / 100
    Social (S)
    6 / 100
    Enterprising (E)
    9 / 100
    Conventional (C)
    54 / 100
    How strongly each interest area describes the work, from O*NET (scores rescaled to 0–100). The interest code lists the strongest areas in order.

    Interest code RCE. Compare it with yours

    What you'd do

    Performing General Physical Activities
    68
    Getting Information
    66
    Handling and Moving Objects
    63
    Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials
    62
    Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates
    61
    Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings
    61
    Controlling Machines and Processes
    61
    Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events
    61
    Training and Teaching Others
    56
    Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards
    52
    Work activities rated by importance for this occupation, O*NET (0–100).

    Skills and strengths

    Skills

    • Active Listening
    • Monitoring
    • Operation and Control
    • Critical Thinking
    • Social Perceptiveness
    • Time Management
    • Coordination
    • Operations Monitoring
    • Speaking
    • Reading Comprehension

    Knowledge

    • Production and Processing
    • English Language
    • Customer and Personal Service
    • Chemistry
    • Education and Training
    • Computers and Electronics
    • Mathematics
    • Public Safety and Security
    • Mechanical
    • Administration and Management

    Abilities

    • Arm-Hand Steadiness
    • Trunk Strength
    • Category Flexibility
    • Control Precision
    • Information Ordering
    • Near Vision
    • Oral Comprehension
    • Problem Sensitivity
    • Manual Dexterity
    • Multilimb Coordination

    Work styles

    • Dependability
    • Attention to Detail
    • Cautiousness
    • Integrity
    • Cooperation
    • Stress Tolerance
    • Perseverance
    • Achievement Orientation
    • Initiative

    Also called

    Bag Washer · Benzene Washer · Benzene Worker · Blanket Washer · Carpet Cleaner · Cleaner · Cleaning Machine Operator · Cleaning Technician (Cleaning Tech) · Clothes Separator · Clothes Shaker

    CareerOneStop

    Certifications, licenses and pay by state

    What laundry and dry-cleaning workers may need beyond a degree, where a license is required, and what the work pays in each state.

    Certifications

    Core certifications employers recognise for this work.

    Search all certifications on CareerOneStop

    Data from CareerOneStop, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor (Employment and Training Administration, with the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development). Retrieved November 9, 2026.

    Your plan

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    Related careers

    Careers with similar work, interests or skills.

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    Sources and attribution

    Every figure on this page comes from these public datasets. Missing values are shown as not reported, never estimated.

    O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. CollegesRef has modified all or some of this information.

    Data from CareerOneStop, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor (Employment and Training Administration, with the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development). Retrieved November 9, 2026.

    Page data updated November 5, 2026.