---
title: "Compare Two Careers Side by Side: Free Tool"
description: "Pick any two jobs that do not need a bachelor's degree and see median pay, training, growth and openings side by side, from BLS data."
url: https://careerdirecting.com/career-quiz/compare-two-careers/
updated: 2026-10-09
site: CareerDirecting
---

Tools · Compare

# Compare two careers side by side Any two jobs, the same federal numbers.

Free tool

Choose two jobs from the drop-downs and the table fills in with BLS median pay, the usual way in, on-the-job training, number of jobs, growth to 2035 and yearly openings.

In short

This tool lets you put any two jobs that do not usually need a bachelor's degree side by side using the BLS Employment Projections for 2025 to 2035. It shows median pay, hourly equivalent, typical way in, training, number of jobs, growth and openings, so you can see trade-offs at a glance before reading the full profiles.

**Job numbers from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics** Updated October 9, 2026. Pay figures are national medians and are not a promise of what you will earn.

## Reading the comparison

Pay is the easy number to look at, but openings often matter more for getting your first job. A job with fewer openings may be harder to break into, especially outside big cities. Growth shows the direction of travel over ten years.

## Next steps

If one job looks better on paper, read its profile and run the cost through the [payback calculator](https://careerdirecting.com/career-quiz/training-payback-calculator/). Our written [career comparisons](https://careerdirecting.com/compare/) add what the numbers do not show, like the daily work.

## Questions people ask

### Which jobs are included?

Every job in the BLS projections with a median wage whose typical way in is less than a bachelor's degree.

### Is the pay local?

No, it is the national median. Local pay can be quite different.

### Can I compare a job that needs a degree?

Not in this tool. It focuses on jobs you can enter without a four-year degree.

## Sources

- [BLS Employment Projections 2025 to 2035, Table 1.2 (occupational projections and worker characteristics)](https://www.bls.gov/emp/tables/occupational-projections-and-characteristics.htm)

## Where to go next

- [Compare](https://careerdirecting.com/compare/)
- [Payback calculator](https://careerdirecting.com/career-quiz/training-payback-calculator/)
- [Jobs without a degree](https://careerdirecting.com/jobs-without-a-degree/)
- [Career quiz](https://careerdirecting.com/career-quiz/)
- [Hourly to salary](https://careerdirecting.com/career-quiz/hourly-to-salary/)
- [What career is right for me](https://careerdirecting.com/career-quiz/what-career-is-right-for-me/)

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Canonical page: https://careerdirecting.com/career-quiz/compare-two-careers/