Not Very Resilient

Last Update: 8/30/2026

AI Resilience Score for Bill & Account Collectors:

24.1%

Median Score

Meaningful human contribution

Low

Long-term employer demand

Med

Sustained economic opportunity

Low

Our confidence in this score:
High

Contributing sources

Methodology and Scoring Rationale

To score how resilient bill and account collection work is to AI, we ask one question in three parts:

First, how much of the job still needs a human, read from five AI-exposure sources: our own AI Resilience Model, Anthropic's Observed Exposure, Microsoft's AI Applicability, Will Robots Take My Job, and OpenAI Signals. We call this dimension Meaningful Human Contribution (MHC) and weight it at 40%.

Next, whether employers will keep hiring for this job over the long term. This dimension, which we call Long-term Employer Demand (LTE), is calculated from BLS data and weighted at 30%.

Last, whether pay and mobility will hold up. We use wage bill and adaptive capacity data from independent researchers (Althoff & Reichardt, 2026; Manning & Aguirre, 2026). We call this dimension Sustained Economic Opportunity (SEO) and weight it at 30%.

For bill and account collectors, all eight sources had data and reached rare consensus: every AI exposure source, including AI Resilience Model, Anthropic, Microsoft, Will Robots Take My Job, and OpenAI Signals, rated this work Low on resilience, meaning AI handles much of it already. That agreement drives high confidence. Modest employer demand could not offset weak pay and mobility signals, leaving this role "Not Very Resilient."

AI Resilience Report forBill and Account Collectors

$47,030 median salary11,200 annual openingsSOC Code: 43-3011.00

Bill and Account Collectors are less resilient to AI impacts than most occupations, according to our analysis of 8 sources.

Bill and Account Collectors earn a "Not Very Resilient" label primarily because so much of the day-to-day work, including outbound calls, record-keeping, and file updates, falls into the 87 to 90 percent automatable range, and companies are already acting on that math by deploying AI voice and text agents at massive scale. One vendor alone helped a healthcare collections agency cut its human staff from 45 to 19, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics projects a 10 percent employment decline in this field from 2025 to 2035.

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This role is not very resilient

Bill and Account Collectors earn a "Not Very Resilient" label primarily because so much of the day-to-day work, including outbound calls, record-keeping, and file updates, falls into the 87 to 90 percent automatable range, and companies are already acting on that math by deploying AI voice and text agents at massive scale. One vendor alone helped a healthcare collections agency cut its human staff from 45 to 19, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics projects a 10 percent employment decline in this field from 2025 to 2035.

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Analysis of Current AI Resilience

Bill & Account Collectors

Updated Quarterly

Analysis
Suggested Actions
State of Automation

How is AI changing Bill & Account Collectors jobs?

If you're eyeing this career, here's the honest picture: the debt-collection industry is one of the most active testbeds for AI right now. Collection firms are starting to integrate generative AI voice and text agents to automate outbound consumer outreach. While these tools offer efficiency and operational advantages, media reports have documented instances where automated systems contacted consumers to collect on bills that had already been paid or disputed.

Startups like Domu report that their AI agents hit 70 million monthly connected calls in March [1], and one vendor says its tools helped a healthcare collections agency shrink human headcount from 45 to 19. Bots handle the repetitive outreach, record-keeping, and file-updating tasks (the ones rated 87–90% automatable), while humans increasingly step in for hardship conversations, disputes, and vulnerability signals. On the credit-management side, NACM notes that most teams are still using AI in inconsistent, one-off ways [2] and emphasizes that "human judgment remains central to effective credit management" — meaning augmentation, not full replacement, is today's reality for many collectors.

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AI Adoption

How fast is AI adoption growing for Bill & Account Collectors?

Adoption is moving fast because the math is compelling. AI is saving Microsoft about $750 million per year in customer service costs [3], and Forrester estimates almost half of customer service roles will be impacted by 2030 — collections is a natural early target because calls are scripted and outcomes are measurable. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects employment of bill and account collectors will decline 10 percent from 2025 to 2035 [4], though about 11,200 openings are still expected each year as workers retire or switch jobs.

What's slowing adoption is real: legal risk. ACA International warns that automation does not replace the necessity of a robust compliance management system [5] and points to new state guardrails like Colorado's overhauled AI law. The good news for young workers: empathy, judgment, and negotiation with distressed customers — the higher-value 45–55% tasks — are exactly where humans still win.

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Will AI replace Bill & Account Collectors?

Will AI replace Bill & Account Collectors?

In part. We think AI will eventually automate a real share of this work, but human judgment will still matter in the hardest conversations.

Our 24.1% AI Resilience Score reflects a real and honest risk. Debt collection is already one of the most active testbeds for AI, with automated voice and text agents handling outbound calls at massive scale [1]. The BLS projects employment in this field will decline 10 percent through 2035 [4]. That is not a small number, and we think students deserve to hear it plainly.

What stays human is the harder, higher-value work: negotiating with someone in genuine financial distress, spotting vulnerability signals, and navigating disputes where a wrong move creates legal exposure. ACA International notes that automation does not replace the need for a strong compliance management system [5], and that legal risk is real enough to slow full replacement.

The more useful question is where this career can take you. The skills that make a good collector, empathy, negotiation, de-escalation, and regulatory awareness, transfer well into credit management, financial counseling, customer success, and compliance roles. We think the smartest path is to treat this job as a training ground for those adjacent fields, rather than a long-term destination.

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Latest AI news for Bill & Account Collectors

These articles highlight how AI is reshaping the debt collection field, offering exciting opportunities for future Bill and Account Collectors. For instance, AI adoption jumped to 93% in the industry, showing its integral role in enhancing efficiency. Tools that optimize contact strategies and automate communications can help collectors engage clients effectively. Understanding these advancements can empower students to adapt and thrive in a technology-driven environment, ensuring they remain relevant and resilient in their careers as AI continues to transform the landscape.

More Career Info

Career: Bill and Account Collectors

They help businesses get paid by contacting customers who owe money and arranging payment plans to settle overdue bills.

Employment & Wage Data

Median Wage

$47,030

Jobs (2025)

160,200

Growth (2025-35)

-10.4%

Annual Openings

11,200

Education

High school diploma or equivalent

Experience

None

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025-2035

Task-Level AI Resilience Scores

AI-generated estimates of task resilience over the next 3 years

1

58% ResilienceSupplemental

Negotiate credit extensions when necessary.

2

55% ResilienceCore Task

Persuade customers to pay amounts due on credit accounts, damage claims, or nonpayable checks, or to return merchandise.

3

48% ResilienceCore Task

Confer with customers by telephone or in person to determine reasons for overdue payments and to review the terms of sales, service, or credit contracts.

4

45% ResilienceCore Task

Arrange for debt repayment or establish repayment schedules, based on customers' financial situations.

5

42% ResilienceCore Task

Advise customers of necessary actions and strategies for debt repayment.

6

35% ResilienceCore Task

Answer customer questions regarding problems with their accounts.

7

32% ResilienceSupplemental

Contact insurance companies to check on status of claims payments and write appeal letters for denial on claims.

Tasks are ranked by their AI resilience, with the most resilient tasks shown first. Core tasks are essential functions of this occupation, while supplemental tasks provide additional context.

The AI Resilience Report is a project from CareerVillage.org®, a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit.

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