Meter Reader

A Meter Reader records consumption data from utility meters (electricity, gas, water) at residential and commercial properties across assigned routes. They use handheld devices or mobile applications to capture readings, verify meter conditions, and report faults or irregularities to utility providers. The role supports accurate billing cycles and helps identify usage anomalies or infrastructure issues in the distribution network.

Read and record meter displays (analogue and digital) using handheld meter reading devices or mobile applications. Navigate assigned routes efficiently to visit multiple properties within scheduled timeframes. Verify meter serial numbers and property addresses to ensure readings are matched to correct accounts. Photograph meter faces and serial plates where required for dispute resolution or audit purposes. Report meter faults, disconnections, tampering, or access issues to the utility provider's work management system. Identify and flag unusual consumption patterns or spikes that may indicate leaks or equipment failure. Collect final readings when customers vacate properties to facilitate bill settlement. Manage access to meters on private property, interpreting lock-out protocols and safety signage.

The standard entry pathway requires a Certificate I or compulsory secondary education (ABS skill level 5). Specific qualification requirements vary by employer and state. Some employers may accept equivalent experience. Check yourcareer.gov.au for available courses and dewr.gov.au/skills-reform/free-tafe for subsidised training options.

This role faces serious automation risk. Smart meters and automated remote reading systems are steadily replacing manual meter reading across Australia. You could retrain into the job only to find your position phased out within five to ten years. The work is also repetitive and physically demanding, involving walking routes in all weather and managing difficult customer interactions.

In practice, jobs concentrate in metro areas where utility companies have larger networks. Regional areas have fewer positions because coverage is more spread out. Work is site-based, not remote. Employment depends directly on which utility company operates in your state.

Published for ANZSCO unit group 5619, the wider group this job sits in, not for this job on its own.

This is the median for full-time employees who are not managers and are paid at the adult rate, before tax and salary sacrifice. It is a guide to what the work pays, not a wage rate.

Source: ABS Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours, May 2025, customised report.

• Adaptability and Flexibilitycore
• Attention to Detailcore
• Basic Arithmetic and Numerical Accuracycore
• Change shelf labelscore
• Data Entry and Accuracycore
• Incident Reportingcore
• Policy and Procedure Adherencecore
• Quality Assurance and Checkingcore
• Record Managementcore
• Risk Identificationcore
• Time Management and Prioritisationcore
• Verbal Communicationcore
• Workload Self-Managementcore
• Adjust temperature gauges
• Advise on heating systems energy efficiency
• Calculate utility payments
• Carry out stock rotation
• Clean vending machines
• Customer Needs Assessment
• Data Entry and Verification
• Delivery Scheduling
• Digital Literacy
• Problem Solving
• Regulatory and Legislative Awareness
• Written Communication

• ABS OSCA 2024, occupation definition and task statements
• ABS Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours, May 2025, customised report.
• ABS, 2021 Census of Population and Housing based on usual place of residence (Custom Report). OSCA Experimental Estimates.

Role data is drawn from official Australian Government sources, and each figure names where it comes from. Where a role is not in the ABS classification, the page shows no government figures for it. Data may not reflect every local variation.

Where our numbers come from.

Last updated: 30 October 2026