Will AI replace chiropractors?

Not on current evidence. Less than 30 minutes of a typical shift goes to tasks that AI or robots are doing today. The other 7h 38m (96%) stays with people. Separately, BLS expects about 8.7% more of these jobs by 2035 (all jobs: +3.5%).

AI shows up regularly in 1 of 11 tasks, about 22m of a typical shift. The biggest ones:

• Obtain and record patients' medical histories. (22m a shift, AI mostly does it alone)

Not in workplaces like this one, based on a 2026 review of robot deployments. For 4 physical tasks, no robot has shown it can do the work yet.

7h 38m of a typical shift, or 96%, goes to tasks with no AI or robot evidence yet. No AI usage or robot deployment has shown up for these so far. The biggest:

• Perform a series of manual adjustments to the spine or other articulations of the body to correct the musculoskeletal system. (2h 55m a shift)
• Evaluate the functioning of the neuromuscularskeletal system and the spine using systems of chiropractic diagnosis. (58m a shift)
• Maintain accurate case histories of patients. (58m a shift)
• Diagnose health problems by reviewing patients' health and medical histories, questioning, observing, and examining patients and interpreting x-rays. (51m a shift)
• Advise patients about recommended courses of treatment. (44m a shift)

Much of it comes down to where and how the work happens. In-person, hands-on and high-stakes work is where AI and robots have made the least headway so far. In the official O*NET survey of people in this job:

• 100% are in constant contact with other people
• 98% talk face to face with others every day
• 92% work at arm's length or closer to other people

On Indeed, job postings in the Medical Technician sector are at 125% of their February 2020 level (all U.S. postings: 104%), down 2.6% from a year earlier, as of Oct 9, 2026. BLS separately expects about 2,600 openings a year in this job through 2035. Across all U.S. postings, 7.3% now mention AI skills. Sector postings cover more than this one job and move for many reasons besides AI.

The median pay is about $79,200 a year ($38.08 an hour), 55% above the median for all U.S. jobs ($50,980). Most people in this job earn between $43,460 and $146,080 a year; that range covers the middle 80%. Pay figures are from BLS, May 2025, and vary a lot by state and employer. Pick a state to compare:

BLS projects growth of 8.7% from 2025 to 2035, compared with 3.5% growth for all jobs. That's about 67,000 jobs in 2035. It expects about 2,600 openings a year, mostly from people retiring or changing careers. These projections don't single out AI as a cause.

About 40,000 people in the U.S., roughly 0.03% of all workers (BLS, May 2025). That makes it the 424th largest of the 796 jobs on this site. BLS expects about 67,000 in 2035.

The most common requirement is a doctoral degree: about 82% of people in the job said so in the official O*NET survey. O*NET rates the job at level 5 of 5 for preparation, which usually means: graduate degree. Requirements vary by state and employer, especially for licensed work.

These come from the job's official skill ratings and from the tasks that AI and robots touch least today. Building them keeps you strong in the parts of the work that still need a person:

• Skills that matter more here than in most jobs: Science, Social Perceptiveness, Service Orientation, Active Listening
• Get strong at the parts of the job that stay with people (listed above), which take 7h 38m of a typical shift
• Tools employers list: Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office software, Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft Word
• Learn to use AI well on the tasks where it already shows up in this job (listed above)

Yes. Occupational experts recently added these to the official task list, a sign of how the work itself is shifting. New tasks aren't rated for AI or robots yet:

• Provide guidance to patients on exercises they can perform to improve mobility.
• Take x-rays.

These use similar skills. Matches come from 109 official ratings of skills, knowledge and work activities, and each needs the same or less preparation unless the official list relates the jobs directly:

• Naturopathic Physicians (41m touched, $115k median pay)
• Optometrists (0m touched, $137k median pay)
• Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Physicians (0m touched, $266k median pay)
• Podiatrists (0m touched, $160k median pay)
• Physical Therapists (7m touched, $103k median pay)

Each task carries its own evidence label. For this job: 1 observed in real AI use, 10 with no AI or robot evidence found. The minutes per task are estimates, not measured hours, and "no evidence" doesn't prove a task is safe.