Mathematical Reasoning
Ability · O*NET work requirement
The ability to choose the right mathematical methods or formulas to solve a problem.
In the O*NET occupational database, Mathematical Reasoning is an ability that work requires. O*NET rates how important it is (1–5) and what level of it a job needs (0–7) for every U.S. occupation. It is rated as important (3 or higher) in 261 of 894 occupations.
Breadth here means how widely O*NET rates this ability as important across occupations — not that it is rare, high-paying, or currently in employer demand.
Occupations that rely most on Mathematical Reasoning
Ranked by O*NET importance to the occupation (1–5). Bars are sized against the 1–5 scale; the level column is what depth of the ability the job needs (0–7).
Showing the top 40 of 261 occupations where this is important.
How AI is used by roles that need Mathematical Reasoning
This ability is not itself "being automated" — but we can look at the roles for which O*NET rates it important and ask how those people actually use AI. This rolls the Anthropic Economic Index per-role signal up across those roles (importance-weighted). 70.9% of the 261 roles where this is important carry observed AI-usage data (185 roles).
Across those roles, 49.5% of AI conversations are people working with AI and 31.3% hand a task to AI , with an average autonomy of 3.64 / 5.
| Collaboration pattern | Share | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| directive | 29.0% | AI does it; you give the instruction |
| task iteration | 24.9% | you and AI go back and forth |
| learning | 21.4% | you ask AI to explain or teach |
| validation | 3.1% | you do it; AI checks your work |
| feedback loop | 2.3% | AI does it, then adjusts from your feedback |
Roles behind this signal
The roles where this ability is most important and that also have the most AEI data. "Works with AI" is the role's share of conversations that augment rather than automate.
| Occupation | Importance | Works with AI | Autonomy |
|---|---|---|---|
| Biological Science Teachers, Postsecondary | 3.1 | 63.2% | 4.0/5 |
| Mathematical Science Teachers, Postsecondary | 4.3 | 65.0% | 3.0/5 |
| Economics Teachers, Postsecondary | 3.4 | 65.7% | 3.3/5 |
| Atmospheric, Earth, Marine, and Space Sciences Teachers, Postsecondary | 3.4 | 66.3% | 4.0/5 |
| Physics Teachers, Postsecondary | 3.9 | 65.9% | 4.0/5 |
| Engineering Teachers, Postsecondary | 3.8 | 67.0% | 4.0/5 |
| Instructional Coordinators | 3.0 | 53.1% | 4.0/5 |
| Forestry and Conservation Science Teachers, Postsecondary | 3.3 | 65.3% | 4.0/5 |
| Environmental Science Teachers, Postsecondary | 3.1 | 66.3% | 4.0/5 |
| Business Teachers, Postsecondary | 3.1 | 61.5% | 3.0/5 |
| Chemistry Teachers, Postsecondary | 3.0 | 66.0% | 4.0/5 |
| Nursing Instructors and Teachers, Postsecondary | 3.0 | 65.8% | 3.8/5 |
Source: Anthropic Economic Index (2026-01-15-v4-plus-2025-03-27-v2) over a sample of Claude.ai Free and Pro conversations — not all AI tools and not the whole workforce. Shares are of observed conversations, weighted by how important this ability is to each role; some conversations are left unclassified by Anthropic's taxonomy, so shares need not sum to 100.
Industries that concentrate this
Where Mathematical Reasoning matters most across the economy. Employment reach is the share of an industry's workers in occupations that significantly rely on Mathematical Reasoning (O*NET importance ≥ 3 of 5). Concentration compares that reach to the national average industry, so a value above 1× means the requirement is more pervasive here than across the economy as a whole.
Nationally, about 16.0% of workers are in occupations that significantly rely on Mathematical Reasoning (measured across 67 industries).
Sectors with the most such workers
| Sector | Workers | Employment reach |
|---|---|---|
| Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 4,264,580 | 39.6% |
| Educational Services | 4,120,580 | 30.2% |
| Finance and Insurance | 3,448,490 | 55.4% |
| Manufacturing | 2,436,050 | 19.1% |
| Construction | 1,517,370 | 18.7% |
| Health Care and Social Assistance | 1,336,770 | 5.8% |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises | 1,069,360 | 38.1% |
| Wholesale Trade | 774,550 | 12.8% |
| Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services | 705,610 | 7.8% |
| Real Estate and Rental and Leasing | 624,490 | 26.4% |
| Information | 613,600 | 21.1% |
| Retail Trade | 568,330 | 3.6% |
Industries where it is most concentrated
| Industry | Level | Concentration | Employment reach |
|---|---|---|---|
| Engineering Services | National industry | 3.98× | 63.7% |
| Electrical Contractors and Other Wiring Installation Contractors | National industry | 3.6× | 57.6% |
| Finance and Insurance | Sector | 3.46× | 55.4% |
| Insurance Agencies and Brokerages | National industry | 3.33× | 53.3% |
| Nuclear Electric Power Generation | National industry | 3.23× | 51.6% |
| Testing Laboratories and Services | National industry | 2.96× | 47.3% |
| Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities | National industry | 2.54× | 40.7% |
| Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | Sector | 2.48× | 39.6% |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises | Sector | 2.38× | 38.1% |
| Direct Health and Medical Insurance Carriers | National industry | 2.02× | 32.3% |
| Educational Services | Sector | 1.89× | 30.2% |
| Real Estate and Rental and Leasing | Sector | 1.65× | 26.4% |
Reach is a measure of how widespread a requirement is across an industry's workforce, not how intensively any individual uses it. Sector worker counts come from BLS OEWS employment; the significance threshold and tool use come from O*NET. Industries shown by concentration are filtered to a real worker base so a tiny specialty cannot top the list on rounding.
Related abilities, skills & knowledge
Capabilities required by many of the same occupations — a measure of which skills, knowledge and abilities tend to travel together, not a judgment of similarity.
| Capability | Type | Shared occupations |
|---|---|---|
| Number Facility | Ability | 213 |
| Mathematics | Basic skill | 214 |
| Systems Evaluation | Cross-functional skill | 197 |
| Mathematics | Knowledge | 247 |
| Systems Analysis | Cross-functional skill | 205 |
| Fluency of Ideas | Ability | 226 |
| Writing | Basic skill | 252 |
| Originality | Ability | 193 |
| Active Learning | Basic skill | 244 |
| Computers and Electronics | Knowledge | 216 |
| Written Expression | Ability | 255 |
| Science | Basic skill | 116 |
Sources for this page
Every figure above traces to a named public dataset and the exact release below — not hand-written opinion. See the full methodology for what each measure does and does not mean.
- O*NET 30.3 U.S. Department of Labor / National Center for O*NET Development
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
- Census NAICS 2022 U.S. Census Bureau
- Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27) Anthropic
Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.
Cite this page
Singulariki. "Mathematical Reasoning." Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Built from O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; Census NAICS 2022; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27). Accessed June 7, 2026. https://singulariki.com/abilities/mathematical-reasoning
Singulariki. (2026). Mathematical Reasoning. Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Retrieved June 7, 2026, from https://singulariki.com/abilities/mathematical-reasoning
@misc{singulariki-mathematical-reasoning,
title = {Mathematical Reasoning},
author = {{Singulariki}},
year = {2026},
note = {O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; Census NAICS 2022; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27). Accessed June 7, 2026},
url = {https://singulariki.com/abilities/mathematical-reasoning}
} Citations name the underlying public dataset releases — they reflect what this page is built from, not just the URL.