Business & Finance
Purchasing Agents, Except Wholesale, Retail, and Farm Products
Purchase machinery, equipment, tools, parts, supplies, or services necessary for the operation of an establishment. Purchase raw or semifinished materials for manufacturing. May negotiate contracts.
Median salary
$75,650
Typical range
$46k – $128k
Job outlook
+6% (faster than average)
AI exposure
Plan a path to Purchasing Agents, Except Wholesale, Retail, and Farm Products
Education
Typical entry: Bachelor's degree
Plan my path to this →Typical progression
Purchasing Agents, Except Wholesale, Retail, and Farm Products Intern
Internship
$36,000
~4 mos to advance
Junior Purchasing Agents, Except Wholesale, Retail, and Farm Products
Entry / Junior
$46,460
~2 yrs to advance
Purchasing Agents, Except Wholesale, Retail, and Farm Products
Established
$75,650
~3 yrs to advance
Senior Purchasing Agents, Except Wholesale, Retail, and Farm Products
Senior
$101,585
Internships are a common on-ramp here — they speed up landing that first role and improve your odds, which is why the Safe and High-ceiling plans build one in.
Key skills
A typical day
- •Monitor and follow applicable laws and regulations.
- •Purchase the highest quality merchandise at the lowest possible price and in correct amounts.
- •Formulate policies and procedures for bid proposals and procurement of goods and services.
- •Prepare purchase orders, solicit bid proposals, and review requisitions for goods and services.
- •Write and review product specifications, maintaining a working technical knowledge of the goods or services to be purchased.
Fields of study
Any field
Top colleges for Business & Finance
Explore all- University of Pennsylvania6% admit · $112,000 grad pay
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology4% admit · $124,000 grad pay
- Harvard University4% admit · $119,000 grad pay
- University of California, Berkeley11% admit · $97,000 grad pay
- New York University12% admit · $84,000 grad pay
Reputation-based selection; stats shown are outcome data per school.