Postmasters and Mail Superintendents

Median salary

$96,660

Average salary

$97,360

Employment

13,810

Projected growth

3.5% decline

Annual openings

900

Typical entry education

High school diploma or equivalent

What Postmasters and Mail Superintendents Do

Plan, direct, or coordinate operational, administrative, management, and support services of a U.S. post office; or coordinate activities of workers engaged in postal and related work in assigned post office.

See full salary breakdown & percentiles →

Career Outlook

National employment outlook, 2024–2034.

Related work experience: Less than 5 years
On-the-job training: Moderate-term on-the-job training
Self-employed: Not available

Source: BLS Employment Projections — 2024-2034.

How Much Preparation Does This Take?

Job Zone 2 of 5

Job Zone 1-2: Very Little to Some Preparation Needed

Experience: Some occupations may need little or no previous experience; others require several months to a year of experience.
Education: Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not.
Job training: Ranges from a few days to one year of on-the-job training.

Source: O*NET Job Zones.

Key Knowledge Areas

Subject-matter areas this occupation draws on most, per O*NET.

Administration and Managementimportance 4.4/5
Public Safety and Securityimportance 4.2/5
English Languageimportance 4.1/5
Production and Processingimportance 4.0/5
Customer and Personal Serviceimportance 4.0/5
Education and Trainingimportance 3.7/5
Personnel and Human Resourcesimportance 3.6/5
Mathematicsimportance 3.6/5

Work Environment

What the day-to-day work setting is like, per O*NET.

Contact With Others5.0/5
Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams4.9/5
Time Pressure4.9/5
E-Mail4.9/5
Telephone Conversations4.8/5
Work Outcomes and Results of Other Workers4.7/5

Careers With Similar Skills

Occupations whose Transferable Skills profile most closely matches this one — a mathematical comparison, not observed data about people actually moving between these careers.

Administrative Services Managers99% skill match
Transportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers99% skill match
Entertainment and Recreation Managers, Except Gambling98% skill match
Residential Advisors98% skill match
General and Operations Managers98% skill match
Gambling Managers98% skill match
Architectural and Engineering Managers97% skill match
First-Line Supervisors of Office and Administrative Support Workers97% skill match

Transferable Skills

Cross-functional skills this occupation draws on most, per O*NET — the kind that carry over to other careers.

Social Perceptivenessimportance 4.0/5
Coordinationimportance 4.0/5
Time Managementimportance 4.0/5
Management of Personnel Resourcesimportance 3.9/5
Negotiationimportance 3.6/5
Service Orientationimportance 3.4/5
Persuasionimportance 3.3/5
Instructingimportance 3.3/5

Software & Technologies

Tools and software used in this occupation, per O*NET.

Hot Technologies

Other Software Used

Collection Point Management System CPMS
Email software
Facility database software
Payroll software
Personnel management software
Personnel scheduling software
Postal boundary mapping software
Postal tracking software

Work Style

Personal work characteristics that matter most for this occupation, per O*NET.

Leadership Orientation
Dependability
Integrity
Attention to Detail
Self-Control
Cooperation
Cautiousness

Career Interests

This occupation’s RIASEC interest profile, per O*NET — how strongly it fits each of the six Holland interest types.

EnterprisingHigh
ConventionalHigh
SocialMedium
RealisticLow
InvestigativeLow
ArtisticLow

This page includes information from the O*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.

Where This Career Is Most Concentrated

Metro areas where postmasters and mail superintendents make up the largest share of local employment, relative to the national average (BLS location quotient).