Potters are one of the happiest careers in the United States.

At CareerExplorer, we conduct an ongoing survey with millions of people and ask them how satisfied they are with their careers. As it turns out, potters rate their career happiness 4.0 out of 5 stars which puts them in the top 9% of careers.

To put this into perspective, we compared how happy potters are to similar careers in the industry. Take a look at the results below:

Salaries and satisfaction ratings in similar careers

Career Satisfaction Avg Salary
Glass blower
4.2
$34k
Sculptor
4.1
$55k
Craft artist
4.0
$5k
Potter
4.0
$28k
Cartoonist
4.0
$30k
Sewer
3.9
$29k
Calligrapher
3.8
$75k
Tattoo artist
3.8
$39k

So what does it mean to be happy in your career? Let’s break it down into different dimensions:

Are potters happy with their salary?

Potters rated their satisfaction with their salaries 2.7/5. Most potters do not feel that their salaries adequately reflect their work, and are actively unhappy with their income.

We asked potters how fairly compensated they are for their work.
Their response was:

2.7 out of 5 stars

109 potters

5 Star
17%

17% of potters rated their compensation 5 stars

4 Star
9%

9% of potters rated their compensation 4 stars

3 Star
23%

23% of potters rated their compensation 3 stars

2 Star
28%

28% of potters rated their compensation 2 stars

1 Star
22%

22% of potters rated their compensation 1 stars

Do potters find their jobs meaningful?

On average, potters rate the meaningfulness of their work a 3.8/5. Unlike many careers, potters have little difficulty finding meaning in their work, and it likely constitutes one of the main reasons people become potters.

We asked potters how meaningful they found their work.
Their response was:

3.8 out of 5 stars

113 potters

5 Star
39%

39% of potters rated how meaningful they found their career 5 stars

4 Star
24%

24% of potters rated how meaningful they found their career 4 stars

3 Star
17%

17% of potters rated how meaningful they found their career 3 stars

2 Star
15%

15% of potters rated how meaningful they found their career 2 stars

1 Star
5%

5% of potters rated how meaningful they found their career 1 stars

How well are people’s personalities suited to everyday tasks as potters?

Potters rated their personality fit with their work an average of 4.3/5. The majority of potters find their personalities quite well suited to their work, with relatively few having complaints about their fit.

We asked potters how well their personalities fit into their careers.
Their response was:

4.3 out of 5 stars

121 potters

5 Star
56%

56% of potters rated their career fit 5 stars

4 Star
25%

25% of potters rated their career fit 4 stars

3 Star
14%

14% of potters rated their career fit 3 stars

2 Star
3%

3% of potters rated their career fit 2 stars

1 Star
2%

2% of potters rated their career fit 1 stars

How enjoyable is a potter’s work environment?

As a whole, potters rated their enjoyment of their work environment 4.3/5. A solid majority of potters enjoy their work environment, probably contributing to overall higher satisfaction with working as a potter.

We asked potters how much they enjoyed their work environment.
Their response was:

4.3 out of 5 stars

121 potters

5 Star
60%

60% of potters rated their work environment 5 stars

4 Star
21%

21% of potters rated their work environment 4 stars

3 Star
12%

12% of potters rated their work environment 3 stars

2 Star
6%

6% of potters rated their work environment 2 stars

1 Star
2%

2% of potters rated their work environment 1 stars

Are potters making the best use of their abilities?

Former potters on CareerExplorer have rated their skills utilization 3.8/5. Most potters surveyed find that they manage to use their abilities to their fullest as a potter, which helps contribute to higher career satisfaction in the long term.

We asked potters how well their abilities were used in their careers.
Their response was:

3.8 out of 5 stars

121 potters

5 Star
35%

35% of potters rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 5 stars

4 Star
31%

31% of potters rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 4 stars

3 Star
18%

18% of potters rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 3 stars

2 Star
10%

10% of potters rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 2 stars

1 Star
6%

6% of potters rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 1 stars