Landscape Architect
Landscape Architect scores 25/100 on this site's structural exposure measure, reflecting how much of the design-production side of the job, concept renderings, planting plans, grading calculations, already overlaps with fast-adopting AI design software (Autodesk Forma's microclimate and environmental-impact analysis, PRO Landscape+'s AI-assisted visualization tools, Vectorworks' AI-enhanced landscape modes).
We have not ingested real-world usage data for this occupation yet. We show a band only where genuine data exists, rather than estimate one.
What a landscape architect actually does
Landscape architects plan and design outdoor spaces, parks, recreational facilities, airports, hospitals, schools, land subdivisions, and commercial, industrial, and residential sites, balancing a client's functional and aesthetic goals against the realities of the actual site. The work starts with site analysis: studying topography, drainage patterns, soil conditions, existing vegetation, and how sunlight and water move across the land before a single design decision gets made.
Landscape architects then confer with clients, civil engineers, and architects to develop a design concept, prepare detailed site plans, grading and drainage plans, planting plans, and cost estimates, and integrate existing natural features into the finished design rather than erasing them.
Once a project moves into construction, landscape architects inspect the work on-site to confirm it matches the approved plans and specifications, resolving the inevitable conflicts that come up once actual soil, drainage, and existing utilities are exposed. The role sits at the same legal chokepoint as building architecture: site plans and grading/drainage documents submitted for permit approval generally require a licensed landscape architect's stamp, a personal, individually-held credential distinct from a firm's.
Why it reads this way
Landscape Architect scores 25/100 on this site's structural exposure measure, reflecting how much of the design-production side of the job, concept renderings, planting plans, grading calculations, already overlaps with fast-adopting AI design software (Autodesk Forma's microclimate and environmental-impact analysis, PRO Landscape+'s AI-assisted visualization tools, Vectorworks' AI-enhanced landscape modes). Over 44% of architecture-adjacent professionals already use AI tools for concept-image generation, a real, current shift.
What the number misses is a licensing wall nearly identical to a building architect's: every U. S. state and DC requires a licensed landscape architect to practice or hold themselves out under that title, a credential earned through a professional degree, supervised experience, and the Landscape Architect Registration Examination (LARE). Practicing without that license, or using the title, is a criminal offense in every state, a felony in some (New York), a fine-and-jail-time misdemeanor in others (Pennsylvania).
That license carries the same kind of personal liability a building architect's seal does, not something a firm or a piece of software can hold on someone's behalf.
Real-world deployment evidence backs up the licensing-wall reading: industry coverage of AI adoption in this field consistently frames the tools as removing friction from site analysis and visualization, compressing an ideation phase from weeks to an afternoon, explicitly not replacing the work of grading, drainage, irrigation, or structural design that requires a licensed professional's sign-off and on-site judgment. A design still has to be reviewed, adjusted, and ultimately sealed by a licensed human before it can be built.
Skills this role draws on
We don't yet have task-by-task time-share data for this occupation, so we can't show which specific tasks carry the exposure score above. This is the real skill set instead.
Typical salary range (USD)
$54,770–$130,190
Average: $79,870/yr
Range source: BLS OEWS wage data via O*NET OnLine (2025 release), SOC 17-1012.00 'Landscape Architects'
Average source: BLS OEWS wage data for Landscape Architects (17-1012.00) via O*NET OnLine, 2025 wage data (Annual Median Wage)
Related careers
Head-to-head comparisons
Landscape Architect scores 25/100 (Medium confidence) — a low structural reading driven by how much of the design-production work (renderings, planting plans, grading calculations) already overlaps with AI design tools (Autodesk Forma, PRO Landscape+, Vectorworks). What the number misses: every U.S. state and DC requires a licensed landscape architect to practice or use the title, a credential built on a 4-5 year professional degree, supervised experience, and the Landscape Architect Registration Examination, with unlicensed practice a criminal offense in every state (a felony in New York). Industry coverage of AI adoption in this field consistently frames the tools as compressing the ideation phase, not replacing the grading, drainage, irrigation, or structural design work that requires a licensed professional's on-site judgment and sign-off, as of 2026-08-17.
This is a researched judgment (checklist v1.2), not a statistical measurement — it sits alongside, not instead of, the structural exposure signal above. Next scheduled review: 2027-02-17.
Sources (7)
- https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/17-1012.00
- https://www.onetonline.org/link/localwages/17-1012.00
- https://www.latc.ca.gov/act/
- https://www.op.nysed.gov/professions/landscape-architecture/professional-practice/practice
- https://www.harborcompliance.com/landscape-architecture-license
- https://rendair.ai/blog/tools-top-ai-tools-for-landscape-designers-in-2026
- https://landscapearchitecture.store/blogs/news/best-ai-tools-for-landscape-architects
Data sources & methodology
Salary data: BLS OEWS wage data via O*NET OnLine (2025 release), SOC 17-1012.00 'Landscape Architects'. Min/max figures represent the 10th–90th percentile annual wage range across the United States. Average figure sourced separately: BLS OEWS wage data for Landscape Architects (17-1012.00) via O*NET OnLine, 2025 wage data (Annual Median Wage).
Automation Risk Score: Based on O*NET occupational analysis (17-1012.00) evaluating task complexity, physical requirements, social intelligence, and environmental variability. Methodology based on research from Frey & Osborne (Oxford, 2017).
Growth projections: 3-4% (2024-2034), about as fast as the all-occupation average, with roughly 1,700 openings projected annually (BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook), based on BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook.