Parts Salespersons
Marketing, Sales and ServiceO*NET 41-2022.00United States
Sell spare and replacement parts and equipment in repair shop or parts store.
- Median annual earnings
- $38,578
- Projected change
- +5.8%
- Typical education
- High school diploma or less
- Employment
- 273.33K jobs
50th percentile, United States
2025 to 2035
46.8% of the workforce
Growing to 289.32K by 2035
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ASU learning related to this career
These courses and certificates are connected through catalog career relationships and Lightcast skill tags.
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The work
What parts salespersons do
Tasks reported for this occupation, ordered by how often they come up in the role.
- Receive payment or obtain credit authorization.
- Assist customers, such as responding to customer complaints and updating them about back-ordered parts.
- Fill customer orders from stock, and place orders when requested items are out of stock.
- Locate and label parts, and maintain inventory of stock.
- Receive and fill telephone orders for parts.
- Prepare sales slips or sales contracts.
- Read catalogs, microfiche viewers, or computer displays to determine replacement part stock numbers and prices.
- Determine replacement parts required, according to inspections of old parts, customer requests, or customers' descriptions of malfunctions.
- Examine returned parts for defects, and exchange defective parts or refund money.
- Manage shipments by researching shipping methods or costs and tracking packages.
- Mark and store parts in stockrooms, according to prearranged systems.
- Maintain and clean work and inventory areas.
- Place new merchandise on display.
- Advise customers on substitution or modification of parts when identical replacements are not available.
- Discuss use and features of various parts, based on knowledge of machines or equipment.
- Demonstrate equipment to customers, and explain functioning of equipment.
- Measure parts, using precision measuring instruments, to determine whether similar parts may be machined to required sizes.
- Pick up and deliver parts.
- Repair parts or equipment.
Pay and outlook
What the job pays and where it is heading
Annual earnings range
Reported earnings by percentile, United States
- 10th percentile
- $28,037
- 25th percentile
- $32,988
- 50th percentile
- $38,578
- 75th percentile
- $49,979
- 90th percentile
- $63,314
The gold marker shows the median. Half earn more than $38,578 and half earn less.
Employment outlook
2025 to 2035 projection
+5.8%average or slower
2025273,332 jobs
2035 projected289,319 jobs
15,987 more positions over the decade, before replacement hiring.
Preparation
Education levels
What people currently working in the career hold. These are not entry requirements.
- High school diploma or less
- 46.8%
- Some college
- 25.2%
- Bachelor's degree
- 13.6%
- Associate degree
- 9.3%
- Certificate
- 5%
Skills
Skills employers ask for
Technical skills appearing most often in job postings for this occupation.
How the work gets done
Core competencies
Broad capabilities associated with strong performance in this occupation.
- Active Listening
- Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
- Speaking
- Talking to others to convey information effectively.
- Persuasion
- Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
- Service Orientation
- Actively looking for ways to help people.
- Reading Comprehension
- Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
- Social Perceptiveness
- Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
- Critical Thinking
- Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
- Monitoring
- Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
- Time Management
- Managing one's own time and the time of others.
- Writing
- Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
- Active Learning
- Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
- Negotiation
- Bringing others together and trying to reconcile differences.
- Coordination
- Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
- Complex Problem Solving
- Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
- Instructing
- Teaching others how to do something.
- Mathematics
- Using mathematics to solve problems.
- Learning Strategies
- Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
- Operations Monitoring
- Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
- Systems Analysis
- Determining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes.
In the market
Job titles and employers
Recent job postings in United StatesCommon job titles
- 01Parts Specialists9,416 postings
- 02Commercial Parts Pros5,527 postings
- 03Retail Parts Professionals4,051 postings
- 04Parts Coordinators2,716 postings
- 05Parts Counterpeople2,136 postings
- 06Parts Counter Representatives1,309 postings
- 07Parts Professionals1,217 postings
- 08Parts Advisors1,204 postings
- 09Parts Associates883 postings
- 10Parts Counter Associates857 postings
- 11Parts Clerks791 postings
- 12Parts Sales Representatives762 postings
- 13Automotive Parts Counterpeople437 postings
- 14Parts Pullers430 postings
- 15Auto Parts Managers375 postings
- 16Automotive Parts Counter Associates359 postings
- 17Outside Parts Sales Representatives318 postings
- 18Parts Runners318 postings
- 19Commercial Specialists300 postings
- 20Parts Salespeople298 postings
Top employers
- 01Advance Auto Parts7,750 postings
- 02O'Reilly Auto Parts7,282 postings
- 03Advance Stores1,574 postings
- 04NAPA Auto Parts698 postings
- 05Caliber Holdings499 postings
- 06Caliber396 postings
- 07WorldPac382 postings
- 08Chevrolet347 postings
- 09Boyd Group International332 postings
- 10Toyota Motor325 postings
- 11Genuine Parts Company318 postings
- 12Gerber Collision & Glass280 postings
- 13Replacement Parts244 postings
- 14FleetPride186 postings
- 15General Parts Distribution181 postings
- 16Honda181 postings
- 17Discount Auto Parts168 postings
- 18Stellantis160 postings
- 19Camping World155 postings
- 20Avis Budget Group154 postings
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