Librarian: what the job is, what it pays, and how to get hired.
The work, the skills that matter, the tools in demand and the pay range, from U.S. government data, plus every TryHired page for the role.
10% of librarians earn less than this amount.
- Annual
- $43,660
- Hourly
- n/a
- Source
- BLS May 2025
25% of librarians earn less than this amount.
- Annual
- $56,310
- Hourly
- n/a
- Source
- BLS May 2025
Half of librarians earn more than this and half earn less.
- Annual
- $68,270
- Hourly
- $32.82
- Source
- BLS May 2025
75% of librarians earn less than this amount.
- Annual
- $84,480
- Hourly
- n/a
- Source
- BLS May 2025
90% of librarians earn less than this amount.
- Annual
- $103,990
- Hourly
- n/a
- Source
- BLS May 2025
Librarians administer and maintain libraries or collections of information, for public or private access through reference or borrowing. The median pay is $68,270 a year ($32.82 an hour) (BLS, May 2025).
- Median pay
- $68,270
- BLS May 2025
- Employed in the U.S.
- 133,790
- BLS May 2025
- Preparation
- Job Zone 5 of 5
- extensive preparation
Data Government data groups this job as Librarians and Media Collections Specialists (O*NET-SOC 25-4022.00). Figures on this page are for that occupation.
Every page for Librarians
Pay by percentile, state and metro, with a negotiation script.
Open →ResumeLibrarian resumeKeywords, bullet formulas and the skills to prove.
Open →Interview questionsLibrarian interview questionsQuestions with what they test, plus practice mode.
Open →Career changeLibrarian career changeWhere these skills transfer, with skill match and pay change.
Open →Free toolCheck your resumeParsed text, evidence per bullet, fixes first.
Open →What librarians do day to day
Data Core tasks rated most important by workers in the role (O*NET).
- Search standard reference materials, including online sources and the Internet, to answer patrons' reference questions.
- Analyze patrons' requests to determine needed information and assist in furnishing or locating that information.
- Supervise daily library operations, budgeting, planning, and personnel activities, such as hiring, training, scheduling, and performance evaluations.
- Plan and teach classes on topics such as information literacy, library instruction, and technology use.
- Code, classify, and catalog books, publications, films, audio-visual aids, and other library materials, based on subject matter or standard library classification systems.
- Confer with colleagues, faculty, and community members and organizations to conduct informational programs, make collection decisions, and determine library services to offer.
- Review and evaluate materials, using book reviews, catalogs, faculty recommendations, and current holdings to select and order print, audio-visual, and electronic resources.
- Evaluate vendor products and performance, negotiate contracts, and place orders.
Ranked by importance to the job
Data O*NET importance ratings. The first three are core.
Knowledge areas: English Language, Customer and Personal Service, Education and Training, Computers and Electronics, Administration and Management, Administrative.
Software librarians use
Data Examples reported for the role; employer demand flags from O*NET.
- Adobe After EffectsVideo creation and editing softwareHot technology
- Adobe Creative Cloud softwareGraphics or photo imaging softwareHot technology
- Adobe IllustratorGraphics or photo imaging softwareHot technology
- Adobe InDesignDesktop publishing softwareHot technology
- Adobe PhotoshopGraphics or photo imaging softwareHot technology
- Autodesk AutoCADComputer aided design CAD softwareHot technology
- Extensible markup language XMLEnterprise application integration softwareHot technology
- FacebookWeb page creation and editing softwareHot technology
- Microsoft VisioProcess mapping and design softwareHot technology
- Adobe DreamweaverWeb page creation and editing software
- Adobe Premiere ProVideo creation and editing software
- Apple Final Cut ProVideo creation and editing software
Also called: Catalog Librarian, Cataloger, Library Media Specialist, Reference and Instruction Librarian, Reference Librarian.
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How this page is built
Tasks, skills, tools, education and related roles come from O*NET 31.0. Pay and employment come from the BLS OEWS May 2025 national estimates. The skill-match score is our calculation: Skill match is the correlation between the two occupations' skill profiles: for each of 35 O*NET skills (10 essential, 25 transferable) we multiply importance by level, subtract the average across all occupations, and correlate the two profiles. 100 means identical shape; 0 or below means unrelated. Only occupations that O*NET itself lists as related are compared.
- How a specific employer defines the job.
- Pay for self-employed workers (OEWS covers employees).
- Your own chances: data describes the occupation, not you.
- O*NET 31.0 Database, U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. TryHired selected, ranked and combined the data; O*NET is not responsible for these pages.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 estimates (public domain).