As an inventory specialist, you're going to see it all. You'll have your hand in pretty much everything that has to do with inventory. From ordering to receiving a delivery, you'll be part of that process.
Typically, you'll find yourself working in a warehouse as an inventory specialist. That's where you'll be able to store the materials, equipment, supplies and other products. If you haven't already guessed, inventory specialists are able to keep up with the work, due to being so organized.
Many specialist jobs require at least a bachelor's degree, but that's not the case here. As an inventory specialist, you'll really only need a high school degree and an associate's degree. So you'll be on the job in no time at all.
Inventory Specialist Overview
Inventory Specialist Careers
There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being an inventory specialist. For example, did you know that they make an average of $16.05 an hour? That's $33,386 a year!
Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 1% and produce 46,900 job opportunities across the U.S.
What Does an Inventory Specialist Do
There are certain skills that many inventory specialists have in order to accomplish their responsibilities. By taking a look through resumes, we were able to narrow down the most common skills for a person in this position. We discovered that a lot of resumes listed customer-service skills, communication skills and detail oriented.
When it comes to the most important skills required to be an inventory specialist, we found that a lot of resumes listed 24.0% of inventory specialists included customer service, while 10.7% of resumes included inventory levels, and 8.6% of resumes included company policies. Hard skills like these are helpful to have when it comes to performing essential job responsibilities.
When it comes to searching for a job, many search for a key term or phrase. Instead, it might be more helpful to search by industry, as you might be missing jobs that you never thought about in industries that you didn't even think offered positions related to the inventory specialist job title. But what industry to start with? Most inventory specialists actually find jobs in the retail and manufacturing industries.
How To Become an Inventory Specialist
If you're interested in becoming an inventory specialist, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 24.7% of inventory specialists have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 2.8% of inventory specialists have master's degrees. Even though some inventory specialists have a college degree, it's possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.
Choosing the right major is always an important step when researching how to become an inventory specialist. When we researched the most common majors for an inventory specialist, we found that they most commonly earn high school diploma degrees or bachelor's degree degrees. Other degrees that we often see on inventory specialist resumes include associate degree degrees or diploma degrees.
You may find that experience in other jobs will help you become an inventory specialist. In fact, many inventory specialist jobs require experience in a role such as cashier. Meanwhile, many inventory specialists also have previous career experience in roles such as sales associate or customer service representative.
What is the right job for my career path?
Tell us your goals and we'll match you with the right jobs to get there.
Inventory Specialist Career Paths
In addition to switching up your job search, it might prove helpful to look at a career path for your specific job. Now, what's a career path you ask? Well, it's practically a map that shows how you might advance from one job title to another. Our career paths are especially detailed with salary changes. So, for example, if you started out with the role of warehouse worker you might progress to a role such as technician eventually. Later on in your career, you could end up with the title general manager.
Inventory Specialist
General Manager
6 Years
Operations Manager
7 Years
Assistant General Manager
5 Years
District Manager
7 Years
Area Manager
7 Years
Warehouse Manager
5 Years
Show More
What is the right job for my career path?
Tell us your goals and we'll match you with the rights job to get there.
Average Salary for an Inventory Specialist
Inventory Specialists in America make an average salary of $33,386 per year or $16 per hour. The top 10 percent makes over $47,000 per year, while the bottom 10 percent under $23,000 per year.
Average Salary
$33,386
Best Paying Cities
Recently Added Salaries
Job TitleCompany  | Company | Start Date | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|
Randstad Inventory Specialist Inventory Specialist | Randstad Randstad | 01/29/2021 01/29/2021 | $27,13101/29/2021 $27,131 |
XPO Logistics Inventory Specialist II-Weekend Night Shift Inventory Specialist II-Weekend Night Shift | XPO Logistics XPO Logistics | 01/29/2021 01/29/2021 | $37,56601/29/2021 $37,566 |
Tegna Inventory Specialist Inventory Specialist | Tegna Tegna | 01/29/2021 01/29/2021 | $40,13301/29/2021 $40,133 |
CNY Outsourcing Shipping/Inventory Specialist-Chittenango, NY Area Shipping/Inventory Specialist-Chittenango, NY Area | CNY Outsourcing CNY Outsourcing | 01/29/2021 01/29/2021 | $37,56601/29/2021 $37,566 |
Kelly Services Inventory Specialist Needed Inventory Specialist Needed | Kelly Services Kelly Services | 01/28/2021 01/28/2021 | $52,17501/28/2021 $52,175 |
Calculate your salary
Use Zippia's Salary Calculator to see how your pay matches up.
Inventory Specialist Resumes
Designing and figuring out what to include on your resume can be tough, not to mention time-consuming. That's why we put together a guide that is designed to help you craft the perfect resume for becoming an Inventory Specialist. If you're needing extra inspiration, take a look through our selection of templates that are specific to your job.
Learn How To Write an Inventory Specialist Resume
At Zippia, we went through countless Inventory Specialist resumes and compiled some information about how best to optimize them. Here are some suggestions based on what we found, divided by the individual sections of the resume itself.
View Detailed InformationJob type you want
Full Time
Part Time
Internship
Temporary
Top Skills For an Inventory Specialist
The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 24.0% of inventory specialists listed customer service on their resume, but soft skills such as customer-service skills and communication skills are important as well.
- Customer Service, 24.0%
- Inventory Levels, 10.7%
- Company Policies, 8.6%
- Sales Floor, 7.9%
- Ensure Accuracy, 6.3%
- Other Skills, 42.5% See All Inventory Specialist Skills
Best States For an Inventory Specialist
Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as an inventory specialist. The best states for people in this position are Washington, California, Massachusetts, and Oregon. Inventory specialists make the most in Washington with an average salary of $45,739. Whereas in California and Massachusetts, they would average $42,602 and $39,975, respectively. While inventory specialists would only make an average of $39,487 in Oregon, you would still make more there than in the rest of the country. We determined these as the best states based on job availability and pay. By finding the median salary, cost of living, and using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Location Quotient, we narrowed down our list of states to these four.
1. Nevada
Total Inventory Specialist Jobs:
211
Highest 10% Earn:
$55,000
Location Quotient:
1.07
Location Quotient is a measure used by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) to determine how concentrated a certain industry is in a single state compared to the nation as a whole. You can read more about how BLS calculates location quotients here
$38,287
Avg. Salary
2. Wyoming
Total Inventory Specialist Jobs:
66
Highest 10% Earn:
$43,000
Location Quotient:
1.17
Location Quotient is a measure used by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) to determine how concentrated a certain industry is in a single state compared to the nation as a whole. You can read more about how BLS calculates location quotients here
$34,491
Avg. Salary
3. California
Total Inventory Specialist Jobs:
2,582
Highest 10% Earn:
$63,000
Location Quotient:
0.94
Location Quotient is a measure used by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) to determine how concentrated a certain industry is in a single state compared to the nation as a whole. You can read more about how BLS calculates location quotients here
$42,602
Avg. Salary
How Do Inventory Specialist Rate Their Jobs?
Top Inventory Specialist Employers
Inventory Specialist Videos
A Day in the Life -- Supply Chain
What Does a Warehouse Inventory Control Clerk Do? : Career Advice & More