BLS API: Get occupation outlook
Finds the best-matching Occupational Outlook Handbook profile for a job title and returns its pay, entry requirements, jobs and 10-year outlook.
Unofficial. Not affiliated with or endorsed by BLS.
Inputs
Values from the run on Oct 23, 2026, shown under Output.
- Job Title, required
job_title Everyday job title to look up, for example registered nurse or HR specialist.
HR specialist
Input as JSON
{ "job_title": "HR specialist"}Output
{ "link": "https://www.bls.gov/ooh/business-and-financial/human-resources-specialists.htm" , "pay_year": 2025, "soc_code": "13-1071", "pay_currency": "USD", "what_they_do": "Human resources specialists recruit, screen, and interview job applicants and place newly hired workers in jobs. They also may handle compensation and benefits, training, and employee relations.", "profile_title": "Human resources specialists", "number_of_jobs": 939700, "work_experience": "None", "openings_per_year": 73700, "typical_education": "Bachelor's degree", "median_pay_per_hour": 36.51, "median_pay_per_year": 75940, "on_the_job_training": "None", "projection_end_year": 2035, "projection_start_year": 2025, "projected_growth_meaning": "Faster than average", "projected_growth_percent": 6}Code
curl https://api.fous.com/v1/runs \ -H "Authorization: Bearer $FOUS_API_KEY" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d '{"method":"bls.gov/get_occupation_outlook","input":{"job_title":"HR specialist"}}' # Save as fous.py, then run: python3 fous.pyimport json, os, timefrom urllib.error import HTTPErrorfrom urllib.request import Request, urlopenAPI = "https://api.fous.com/v1/runs" KEY = os.environ["FOUS_API_KEY"]HEADERS = { "Authorization": f"Bearer {KEY}", "Content-Type": "application/json" ,}def call(url, body=None): data = json.dumps(body).encode() if body else None request = Request(url, data, HEADERS) try: with urlopen(request, timeout=120) as r: return r.status, json.load(r) except HTTPError as error: message = json.load(error)["error"]["message"] raise RuntimeError(message) from errorstatus, run = call(API, { "method": "bls.gov/get_occupation_outlook" , "input": { "job_title": "HR specialist" }})# 202: still going after 30 s. Ask again until it ends.while status == 202: time.sleep(2) status, run = call(f"{API}/{run['id']}")print(json.dumps(run["data"], indent=2))// Save as fous.mjs, then run: node fous.mjsconst api = "https://api.fous.com/v1/runs" ;const headers = { Authorization: `Bearer ${process.env.FOUS_API_KEY}`, "Content-Type": "application/json" ,};let response = await fetch(api, { method: "POST", headers, body: JSON.stringify({ "method": "bls.gov/get_occupation_outlook" , "input": { "job_title": "HR specialist" } }), signal: AbortSignal.timeout(120_000),});let run = await response.json();// 202: still going after 30 s. Ask again until it ends.while (response.status === 202) { await new Promise((done) => setTimeout(done, 2_000)); response = await fetch(`${api}/${run.id}`, { headers }); run = await response.json();}if (!response.ok) throw new Error(run.error.message);console.log(run.data);# Connect your agent to Fous once, over MCP (Streamable HTTP):# https://api.fous.com/mcp# Set FOUS_API_KEY first: create a key at https://app.fous.com/keys.# Claude Codeclaude mcp add \ --scope user \ --transport http fous https://api.fous.com/mcp \ --header "Authorization: Bearer ${FOUS_API_KEY:?Set FOUS_API_KEY to your Fous API key}"# Codexcodex mcp add fous \ --url https://api.fous.com/mcp \ --bearer-token-env-var FOUS_API_KEY# Cursor, VS Code, Windsurf, Cline and morenpx -y add-mcp https://api.fous.com/mcp -g -n fous \ --header "Authorization: Bearer ${FOUS_API_KEY:?Set FOUS_API_KEY to your Fous API key}"# Then ask your agent:# "Use Fous to run bls.gov/get_occupation_outlook# with {"job_title":"HR specialist"}"Over HTTP, the answer’s data holds the output. A run still going after 30 seconds answers 202 with its id: ask GET /v1/runs/{id} until it ends.
Schema
Input schema
{ "type": "object", "required": [ "job_title" ], "properties": { "job_title": { "type": "string", "description": "Everyday job title to look up, for example registered nurse or HR specialist." } }}Output schema
{ "type": "object", "required": [ "profile_title", "what_they_do", "median_pay_per_year", "median_pay_per_hour", "pay_currency", "pay_year", "typical_education", "work_experience", "on_the_job_training", "number_of_jobs", "projected_growth_percent", "projected_growth_meaning", "projection_start_year", "projection_end_year", "openings_per_year", "link", "soc_code" ], "properties": { "link": { "type": "string", "description": "Official handbook profile link." }, "pay_year": { "type": [ "integer", "null" ], "description": "Year the median pay refers to." }, "soc_code": { "type": [ "string", "null" ], "description": "SOC code, when the profile has a single code.", "x-fous-developer": true }, "pay_currency": { "type": "string", "description": "Currency code for pay, USD." }, "what_they_do": { "type": [ "string", "null" ], "description": "Plain-language description of the work." }, "profile_title": { "type": "string", "description": "Title of the matched handbook profile." }, "number_of_jobs": { "type": [ "integer", "null" ], "description": "Number of jobs in the base projection year." }, "work_experience": { "type": [ "string", "null" ], "description": "Related work experience needed." }, "openings_per_year": { "type": [ "integer", "null" ], "description": "Projected average openings each year." }, "typical_education": { "type": [ "string", "null" ], "description": "Typical education needed to enter." }, "median_pay_per_hour": { "type": [ "number", "null" ], "description": "Median hourly pay in US dollars." }, "median_pay_per_year": { "type": [ "number", "null" ], "description": "Median yearly pay in US dollars." }, "on_the_job_training": { "type": [ "string", "null" ], "description": "On-the-job training needed." }, "projection_end_year": { "type": [ "integer", "null" ], "description": "Ending year of the projection." }, "projection_start_year": { "type": [ "integer", "null" ], "description": "Starting year of the projection." }, "projected_growth_meaning": { "type": [ "string", "null" ], "description": "Handbook description of the growth rate." }, "projected_growth_percent": { "type": [ "number", "null" ], "description": "Projected 10-year employment growth percent." } }}- Price
- 1 credit per completed run (1¢ with pay as you go); failed runs are free.
- Method
bls.gov/get_occupation_outlook- Returns
- profile title, description, median pay, education, jobs, projected growth, openings, SOC code
Use it from your agent
Give your agent this line. It reads SKILL.md, gets a Fous API key and connects the Fous MCP server. Its run then takes the method bls.gov/get_occupation_outlook with the inputs above.
Ask your agent
- What is the median pay and projected job growth for a software developer according to bls.gov?
- I'm thinking about becoming a registered nurse. What education do I need and how many openings are expected over the next decade?
- Look up the occupational outlook for an electrician, including typical entry requirements and the SOC code.
- How fast is employment expected to grow for HR specialists over the next ten years, and what does the job pay?
- Give me the Occupational Outlook Handbook profile for a civil engineering technician: pay, jobs, and growth projections.
See more
All BLS methodsFinds the latest published BLS pay and employment for an occupation in the US, a state, or a metro area, and compares it with the national median.
bls.gov/get_occupation_wagesGets the latest seasonally adjusted unemployment rate and labor-force counts for the United States or a state, with up to 24 months of history.
bls.gov/get_unemployment_rateGets the latest U.S. Consumer Price Index inflation for a spending category, with up to 24 recent months of history. Monthly changes are seasonally adjusted; 12-month changes are not.
bls.gov/get_inflation_rateConverts a US dollar amount from one month or annual average to another using the US city average CPI-U for all items, not seasonally adjusted. Defaults to the latest published month.
bls.gov/calculate_inflationGets typical pay for a job title from PayScale research pages. You can narrow it to a country and a city.
payscale.com/get_salaryFinds the typical pay for a job title in the United States or a U.S. city or state on Indeed's public salary pages, with the number of reported salaries, the last update date, and the top-paying cities and companies when shown.
indeed.com/get_salaryLooks up ZipRecruiter's salary page for a job title in the United States or one US state and returns typical pay, the percentile range and the top-paying cities. Only salary pages that exist publicly are returned.
ziprecruiter.com/get_salarySearches H-1B labor condition filings by employer, job title, city and year. Returns salary statistics across all matched filings and the highest-paid filings with case status.
h1bdata.info/search_salaries