Citation summary
Will AI Take My Job?'s 2026 index scores 30 UK career paths on a 0-100 AI change-risk scale. The most exposed roles are customer service agent, administrative assistant, copywriter; the most resilient in this dataset are electrician, plumber, mechanic.
Suggested citation: Will AI Take My Job?, UK AI Job Risk Index 2026, https://willaitakemyjob.co.uk/uk-ai-job-risk-index-2026/.
Top 10 jobs most exposed to AI
High scores do not mean a job disappears. They mean a larger share of the role is made of tasks that can be drafted, summarised, routed, searched, generated, checked, or accelerated by software.
| Rank | Role | Score | Change label | Likely first tasks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Customer service agent | 76/100 | High change | FAQ answers, Ticket routing, Chat responses |
| 2 | Administrative assistant | 74/100 | High change | Meeting notes, Scheduling, Document formatting |
| 3 | Copywriter | 72/100 | High change | First drafts, Email variants, SEO outlines |
| 4 | Bookkeeper | 70/100 | High change | Bank feeds, Invoice coding, Receipt capture |
| 5 | Translator | 68/100 | Medium change | First-pass translation, Glossary suggestions, Subtitles |
| 6 | Graphic designer | 67/100 | Medium change | Concept drafts, Social variants, Background removal |
| 7 | Paralegal | 63/100 | Medium change | Document review, Legal research, Bundle preparation |
| 8 | Recruiter | 62/100 | Medium change | Candidate search, CV screening, Outreach drafts |
| 9 | Retail assistant | 61/100 | Medium change | Stock answers, Checkout automation, Product FAQs |
| 10 | Accountant | 58/100 | Medium change | Invoice matching, Data entry, Variance notes |
Top 10 lower-change jobs
Lower scores usually reflect physical delivery, regulated accountability, patient or client trust, skilled manual work, or messy real-world judgement.
| Rank | Role | Score | Change label | Likely first tasks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Electrician | 12/100 | Lower change | Quote drafts, Fault checklists, Stock planning |
| 2 | Plumber | 13/100 | Lower change | Quote drafts, Booking messages, Fault checklists |
| 3 | Mechanic | 17/100 | Lower change | Fault suggestions, Service write-ups, Parts lookup |
| 4 | Nurse | 18/100 | Lower change | Shift notes, Triage prompts, Care plan drafts |
| 5 | Chef | 22/100 | Lower change | Menu ideas, Costing, Stock plans |
| 6 | Doctor | 24/100 | Lower change | Clinical notes, Differential prompts, Referral letters |
| 7 | Teacher | 28/100 | Lower change | Lesson drafts, Quiz generation, Feedback templates |
| 8 | Cybersecurity analyst | 32/100 | Lower change | Alert triage, Report drafts, Log summaries |
| 9 | Architect | 34/100 | Lower change | Concept options, Visualisations, Code checks |
| 10 | Financial adviser | 36/100 | Lower change | Portfolio summaries, Scenario drafts, Client notes |
Average AI risk by job category
| Category | Average score | Roles scored |
|---|---|---|
| Administration | 74/100 | 1 |
| Creative | 70/100 | 2 |
| Language | 68/100 | 1 |
| Operations | 61/100 | 2 |
| Retail | 61/100 | 1 |
| Media | 57/100 | 1 |
| Finance | 55/100 | 3 |
| Data | 55/100 | 1 |
| People | 54/100 | 2 |
| Marketing | 52/100 | 1 |
| Legal | 51/100 | 2 |
| Logistics | 49/100 | 1 |
| Technology | 42/100 | 3 |
| Sales | 41/100 | 1 |
| Built Environment | 34/100 | 1 |
| Education | 28/100 | 1 |
| Hospitality | 22/100 | 1 |
| Healthcare | 21/100 | 2 |
| Trades | 14/100 | 3 |
Full ranked dataset
This table is deliberately simple so journalists, bloggers, career advisers, and AI agents can reuse it without scraping a chart image.
| Rank | Role | Score | Change label | Likely first tasks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Customer service agent | 76/100 | High change | FAQ answers, Ticket routing, Chat responses |
| 2 | Administrative assistant | 74/100 | High change | Meeting notes, Scheduling, Document formatting |
| 3 | Copywriter | 72/100 | High change | First drafts, Email variants, SEO outlines |
| 4 | Bookkeeper | 70/100 | High change | Bank feeds, Invoice coding, Receipt capture |
| 5 | Translator | 68/100 | Medium change | First-pass translation, Glossary suggestions, Subtitles |
| 6 | Graphic designer | 67/100 | Medium change | Concept drafts, Social variants, Background removal |
| 7 | Paralegal | 63/100 | Medium change | Document review, Legal research, Bundle preparation |
| 8 | Recruiter | 62/100 | Medium change | Candidate search, CV screening, Outreach drafts |
| 9 | Retail assistant | 61/100 | Medium change | Stock answers, Checkout automation, Product FAQs |
| 10 | Accountant | 58/100 | Medium change | Invoice matching, Data entry, Variance notes |
| 11 | Journalist | 57/100 | Medium change | News briefs, Transcript summaries, Headline variants |
| 12 | Data analyst | 55/100 | Medium change | SQL drafts, Chart suggestions, Dashboard notes |
| 13 | Marketing manager | 52/100 | Medium change | Campaign drafts, Content calendars, Audience research |
| 14 | UX designer | 51/100 | Medium change | Wireframe drafts, Persona drafts, Research summaries |
| 15 | Warehouse operative | 49/100 | Medium change | Picking routes, Stock counts, Shift planning |
| 16 | HR manager | 46/100 | Medium change | Job descriptions, Screening notes, Policy drafts |
| 17 | Project manager | 45/100 | Medium change | Status reports, Meeting notes, Risk logs |
| 18 | Software developer | 44/100 | Lower change | Boilerplate code, Unit test drafts, Documentation |
| 19 | Sales representative | 41/100 | Lower change | Lead research, Email sequences, Call notes |
| 20 | Solicitor | 39/100 | Lower change | Contract summaries, Case research, Clause comparison |
| 21 | Financial adviser | 36/100 | Lower change | Portfolio summaries, Scenario drafts, Client notes |
| 22 | Architect | 34/100 | Lower change | Concept options, Visualisations, Code checks |
| 23 | Cybersecurity analyst | 32/100 | Lower change | Alert triage, Report drafts, Log summaries |
| 24 | Teacher | 28/100 | Lower change | Lesson drafts, Quiz generation, Feedback templates |
| 25 | Doctor | 24/100 | Lower change | Clinical notes, Differential prompts, Referral letters |
| 26 | Chef | 22/100 | Lower change | Menu ideas, Costing, Stock plans |
| 27 | Nurse | 18/100 | Lower change | Shift notes, Triage prompts, Care plan drafts |
| 28 | Mechanic | 17/100 | Lower change | Fault suggestions, Service write-ups, Parts lookup |
| 29 | Plumber | 13/100 | Lower change | Quote drafts, Booking messages, Fault checklists |
| 30 | Electrician | 12/100 | Lower change | Quote drafts, Fault checklists, Stock planning |
What the index measures
- Exposure of common tasks to drafting, summarising, search, routing, generation, analysis, and quality checking
- Need for physical presence, skilled manual delivery, or real-world context
- Regulated accountability, client trust, care, negotiation, judgement, and leadership
- How quickly AI tools are already entering the role's everyday workflow
How to use this report
Use the rankings to start a more specific conversation about tasks. A high-risk role can become safer when a worker moves toward review, judgement, client context, operations, or ownership. A low-risk role can still benefit from AI if the worker uses it to remove admin drag.
For job-specific guidance, link to the relevant role guide. For scoring assumptions, link to the methodology.
Sources and context
The index is based on the site's task-level scoring model and reviewed against wider labour market research. Scores are directional career guidance, not a guarantee about redundancy, hiring, salary, or investment outcomes.
- World Economic Forum Future of Jobs 2025
- UK Government: impact of AI on UK jobs and training
- UK Government: assessment of AI capabilities and the labour market
- UK Government: AI skills labour market projections
- Anthropic Economic Index
- Anthropic Economic Index: economic primitives
- Office for National Statistics automation analysis
- OECD human-centred AI adoption in the world of work