Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendants vs Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand: $36K vs $40K Median Pay

Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendants vs Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand: what changes?

Consider Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendants if you want to service automobiles, buses, trucks, boats, and other automotive or marine vehicles with fuel, lubricants, and accessories. Consider Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand if you would rather manually move freight, stock, luggage, or other materials, or perform other general labor. Both list no formal educational credential; compare training and prior experience separately.

Try this next: Compare three local entry-level postings for Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendants and Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand. List the duties, credentials, prior experience, and paid training each employer actually asks for. Try a supervised class or sample project from each field before choosing a program.

BLS 2025 wages and 2025–2035 projections. National medians are not starting offers. Occupation size is not a count of vacancies. View the BLS data.

Compare the practical differences

Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendants

National median pay (2025): $35,670
Route into the job: No formal educational credential; One month or less of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing
Prior related experience: No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
Training and licensing: One month or less of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing.
Work to investigate: Collect cash payments from customers, and make change or charge purchases to customers' credit cards, providing customers with receipts.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 12,900

Know before you choose

The work can involve real occupational hazards. Training, protective equipment, and routine safety discipline matter every day.

See the full Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendants brief

Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand

National median pay (2025): $40,240
Route into the job: No formal educational credential; One month or less of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing
Prior related experience: No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
Training and licensing: One month or less of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing.
Work to investigate: Maintain equipment storage areas to ensure that inventory is protected.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 340,500

Know before you choose

The work can involve real occupational hazards. Training, protective equipment, and routine safety discipline matter every day.

See the full Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand brief

How the national numbers differ

Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand has the edge on annual openings

Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand is at 340,500 annual openings, compared with 12,900 annual openings for Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendants.

Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendants has the edge on projected growth

Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendants is at 3.8% projected growth, compared with 1.8% projected growth for Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand.

Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand has the edge on median pay

Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand is at $40,240, compared with $35,670 for Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendants.

49.4/ 100

Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendants

54.9/ 100

Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand

Each available metric is ranked from 0 to 100 against the careers on ChooseField. The weighted average uses this profile: pay 30%, growth 25%, openings 30%, preparation level 15%. Missing values are not scored as zero; their weights are redistributed across available metrics. Occupation size has zero weight: employment is not accessible vacancies. Preparation categories do not measure admission difficulty or years without earnings. The score summarizes national measures; local opportunities and personal fit still need separate consideration.

Detailed evidence

Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendants vs Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand

Dimension	Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendants	Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand
Median pay (2025)	$35,670	$40,240
Pay percentile	3.9 percentile	11.6 percentile
Projected growth (2025–2035)	3.8%	1.8%
Annual openings (2025–2035)	12,900	340,500
2025 employment	102,400	2,940,300
How you qualify	No formal educational credential; One month or less of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing	No formal educational credential; One month or less of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing
O*NET preparation group	Job Zone 2	Job Zone 2
Related work experience	No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.	No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
On-the-job training	One month or less of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing.	One month or less of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing.

The table reports national benchmarks and reviewed work descriptions. It does not rate personal suitability, job security, or physical safety.

Read Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendants brief Read Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand brief

Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendants vs Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand: what changes?

The facts most likely to affect your decision

Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendants

Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand

How the national numbers differ

Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand has the edge on annual openings

Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendants has the edge on projected growth

Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand has the edge on median pay

Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendants vs Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand

Try another comparison

Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendants vs Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators

Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand vs Parking Attendants

Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand vs Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators