First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers vs Real Estate Agent: $49K vs $53K Median Pay

First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers vs Real Estate Agent: what changes?

Consider First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers if you want to directly supervise and coordinate activities of retail sales workers in an establishment or department. Consider Real Estate Agent if you would rather rent, buy, or sell property for clients. Both list high school diploma or equivalent; compare training and prior experience separately. Prior experience in a related occupation is typically needed for First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers (less than 5 years).

Try this next: Compare three local entry-level postings for First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers and Real Estate Agent. 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

First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers

National median pay (2025): $48,520
Route into the job: High school diploma or equivalent; Prior related experience: less than 5 years
Prior related experience: Prior related experience: less than 5 years.
Training and licensing: BLS does not list a separate on-the-job training requirement. Employers may still provide orientation and role-specific training.
Work to investigate: Provide customer service by greeting and assisting customers and responding to customer inquiries and complaints.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 113,500

Know before you choose

BLS lists less than 5 years of related experience. This is normally reached through feeder roles, not directly from school.

See the full First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers brief

Real Estate Agent

National median pay (2025): $52,830
Route into the job: High school diploma or equivalent; More than one month and up to 12 months 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: More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing.
Work to investigate: Prepare documents such as representation contracts, purchase agreements, closing statements, deeds, and leases.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 32,600

Know before you choose

Deadline pressure is a recurring condition rather than an occasional emergency.

See the full Real Estate Agent brief

How the national numbers differ

Real Estate Agent has the edge on projected growth

Real Estate Agent is at 1.7% projected growth, compared with -3.7% projected growth for First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers.

Typical preparation differs.

First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers: High school diploma or equivalent; Prior related experience: less than 5 years Real Estate Agent: High school diploma or equivalent; More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing Preparation categories do not establish admission difficulty, calendar time, tuition, time without earnings, or licensing difficulty.

First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers has the edge on annual openings

First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers is at 113,500 annual openings, compared with 32,600 annual openings for Real Estate Agent.

Real Estate Agent has the edge on median pay

Real Estate Agent is at $52,830, compared with $48,520 for First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers.

52.8/ 100

First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers

53.5/ 100

Real Estate Agent

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

First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers vs Real Estate Agent

Dimension	First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers	Real Estate Agent
Median pay (2025)	$48,520	$52,830
Pay percentile	28.2 percentile	38.3 percentile
Projected growth (2025–2035)	-3.7%	1.7%
Annual openings (2025–2035)	113,500	32,600
2025 employment	1,419,800	427,000
How you qualify	High school diploma or equivalent; Prior related experience: less than 5 years	High school diploma or equivalent; More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing
O*NET preparation group	Job Zone 2	Job Zone 3
Related work experience	Prior related experience: less than 5 years.	No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
On-the-job training	BLS does not list a separate on-the-job training requirement. Employers may still provide orientation and role-specific training.	More than one month and up to 12 months 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 First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers brief Read Real Estate Agent brief

First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers vs Real Estate Agent: what changes?

The facts most likely to affect your decision

First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers

Real Estate Agent

How the national numbers differ

Real Estate Agent has the edge on projected growth

Typical preparation differs.

First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers has the edge on annual openings

Real Estate Agent has the edge on median pay

First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers vs Real Estate Agent

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