assayer
Assayers test and analyse precious metals such as silver and gold to determine the value and properties of components using chemical and physical techniques. They also seperate precious metals or other components from other materials.
assayer assayers test and analyse precious metals such as silver and gold to determine the value and properties of components using chemical and physical techniques. They also seperate precious metals or other components from other materials. The role shows moderate AI exposure (0.50 on a 0-1 scale) — some tasks are being automated but the role adapts. The most in-demand skills for the role include precious metals, metal and metal ore products, good laboratory practice, analytical chemistry, characteristics of precious metals.
Pay in the UK
UK: median £51,366 a year for Civil engineers (ONS ASHE 2025, full-time)
Middle half of full-time jobs: £39,802 to £65,000 a year
UK jobs are grouped differently; this is the closest UK occupation group (ONS SOC 2020 2121). ONS rates this estimate reasonably precise. 2025 provisional figures; ONS revises them a year later. Source: ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (Open Government Licence)
Pay in India (occupation group)
Average monthly earnings of salaried employees in the occupation group “Professionals” in India, from the Government of India's Periodic Labour Force Survey (January–December 2025). It covers everyone in this group, not only assayer, and it is not US pay converted to rupees.
Source: MoSPI (Government of India), Periodic Labour Force Survey Annual Report 2025, Table 51 — average wage/salary earnings of regular wage/salaried employees, NCO-2015 division 2. Official India data gives one average per occupation group: there are no official India figures for single careers, experience levels or cities. Read the report
Top skills
Knowledge you'll build
- Chemistry
- English Language
- Mathematics
- Computers and Electronics
- Production and Processing
- Administrative
- Education and Training
- Customer and Personal Service
What you'd actually do
- Conduct chemical or physical laboratory tests to assist scientists in making qualitative or quantitative analyses of solids, liquids, or gaseous materials.
- Maintain, clean, or sterilize laboratory instruments or equipment.
- Monitor product quality to ensure compliance with standards and specifications.
- Set up and conduct chemical experiments, tests, and analyses, using techniques such as chromatography, spectroscopy, physical or chemical separation techniques, or microscopy.
- Prepare chemical solutions for products or processes, following standardized formulas, or create experimental formulas.
- Compile and interpret results of tests and analyses.
Tools & technology you'd use
Frequently asked questions
What does assayer do?
Assayers test and analyse precious metals such as silver and gold to determine the value and properties of components using chemical and physical techniques. They also seperate precious metals or other components from other materials.
What skills does assayer need?
The most in-demand skills for this role include precious metals, metal and metal ore products, good laboratory practice, analytical chemistry, characteristics of precious metals, chemical processes. These are the skills O*NET identifies as most important for competent performance.
Will AI replace assayer?
Our AI-durability model gives assayer a score of 0.50 on a 0-1 scale (higher = more exposure). That places it at moderate AI exposure — some tasks are being automated but the role adapts. Learning to work with AI tools rather than against them is the path forward.