Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers vs Pressers, Textile, Garment, and Related Materials: Similar Pay, 4.3% vs -15.7% Growth

Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers vs Pressers, Textile, Garment, and Related Materials: what changes?

Consider Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers if you want to 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. Consider Pressers, Textile, Garment, and Related Materials if you would rather press or shape articles by hand or machine. Both list no formal educational credential; compare training and prior experience separately.

Try this next: Compare three local entry-level postings for Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers and Pressers, Textile, Garment, and Related Materials. 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

Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers

National median pay (2025): $34,890
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: Load articles into washers or dry-cleaning machines, or direct other workers to perform loading.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 28,200

Know before you choose

Long periods of standing are part of the normal workday.

See the full Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers brief

Pressers, Textile, Garment, and Related Materials

National median pay (2025): $35,060
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: Hang, fold, package, and tag finished articles for delivery to customers.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 2,200

Know before you choose

BLS projects employment to shrink 15.7% from 2025 to 2035. Openings can still occur when existing workers leave.

See the full Pressers, Textile, Garment, and Related Materials brief

How the national numbers differ

Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers has the edge on projected growth

Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers is at 4.3% projected growth, compared with -15.7% projected growth for Pressers, Textile, Garment, and Related Materials.

Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers has the edge on annual openings

Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers is at 28,200 annual openings, compared with 2,200 annual openings for Pressers, Textile, Garment, and Related Materials.

National pay benchmarks are very similar.

Compare actual offers, expected paid hours, schedule, and benefits before treating either career as the higher-paying option.

53.7/ 100

Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers

23.6/ 100

Pressers, Textile, Garment, and Related Materials

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

Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers vs Pressers, Textile, Garment, and Related Materials

Dimension	Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers	Pressers, Textile, Garment, and Related Materials
Median pay (2025)	$34,890	$35,060
Pay percentile	1.7 percentile	2.2 percentile
Projected growth (2025–2035)	4.3%	-15.7%
Annual openings (2025–2035)	28,200	2,200
2025 employment	204,900	26,300
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 Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers brief Read Pressers, Textile, Garment, and Related Materials brief

Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers vs Pressers, Textile, Garment, and Related Materials: what changes?

The facts most likely to affect your decision

Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers

Pressers, Textile, Garment, and Related Materials

How the national numbers differ

Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers has the edge on projected growth

Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers has the edge on annual openings

National pay benchmarks are very similar.

Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers vs Pressers, Textile, Garment, and Related Materials

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