Career
Upholsterers
Cover furniture with fabric and padding.
$46,340
Median pay
-2.3%
Job growth, 2025–35
1,700
Openings a year
High school diploma or equivalent
Typical education
None required
Typical time after high school
Here's what you actually need to know.
The work
What people in this job do
- Fit, install, and secure material on frames, using hand tools, power tools, glue, cement, or staples.
- Measure and cut new covering materials, using patterns and measuring and cutting instruments, following sketches and design specifications.
- Build furniture up with loose fiber stuffing, cotton, felt, or foam padding to form smooth, rounded surfaces.
- Make, restore, or create custom upholstered furniture, using hand tools and knowledge of fabrics and upholstery methods.
- Read work orders, and apply knowledge and experience with materials to determine types and amounts of materials required to cover workpieces.
The outlook
How the forecast changed this year
The deeper question
What kind of person does this path ask you to become?
What this work centers on
O*NET interest profile, scored 1–7.
The work
Do you want most of your days spent on objects & tools, then creation & expression?
Responsibility
Are you willing to be the one responsible for this?
“Fit, install, and secure material on frames, using hand tools, power tools, glue, cement, or staples.”
Development
What would you need to build over the next 5–10 years?
Critical Thinking, Reading Comprehension, Active Listening, Complex Problem Solving.
Trade-offs
What does it ask of you in exchange?
No degree beyond high school, though moderate-term on-the-job training is typical, for a median of $46,340 a year and 1,700 openings nationally each year.
Paths in
Degrees that lead here
- Upholstery/UpholstererCIP 48.0303
Paths across
Careers that use similar skills
- Furniture Finishers$44,540 · -3.5%
- Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters$46,680 · -2.9%
- Sewers, Hand$36,480 · -12.0%
- Shoe and Leather Workers and Repairers$37,800 · -6.5%
- Sewing Machine Operators$36,670 · -15.1%
Ask anything about this career.
“Would this make sense if I don't want to sit at a desk all day?” Answers will come from the sources on this page, with citations. Coming soon.
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Sources
- BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- BLS Employment Projections, 2024–34 (archived), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- O*NET 31.0 Database (August 2026), National Center for O*NET Development / U.S. Department of Labor. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 Crosswalk, NCES and BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-01.