Find why a seat sags
Pull the worn cover off with a tack puller, examine the webbing and springs, and replace worn supports.
Career profile
Upholsterer
Upholsterers build and repair the padding and fabric covers on furniture and vehicle seats.
Flat fabric turns into a snug cover in your hands, and that fit decides a seat's look as well as its comfort.
A day in the life
Cut fabric so patterns match
Measure, then cut the cover fabric so its design lines up across the pieces once they're joined.
Stitch the cushion cover
Feed the cut pieces through a heavy-duty industrial sewing machine to make a cushion cover.
Staple the cover to the frame
Add padding layers first, then lay the sewn cover on top and fasten it with an air stapler.
Quick facts
High school + workplace training
United States · 2025
$46,340 a year
United States · 2025
2.3% projected decline
United States · 2025–2035
Quick orientation
Preparation, pay & outlook
Preparation
High school + workplace trainingA high school diploma or equivalent is typical; you learn the craft through training on the job.
Pay
$46,340 a yearNational median employee pay in 2025, equivalent to $22.28 an hour.
Outlook
2.3% projected declineEmployment is projected to shrink during 2025–2035, with about 1,700 openings a year on average.
Fit, tradeoffs & changing tools
You might like this if…
- You enjoy adjusting small details until a seam looks right.
- You like figuring out how a flat piece of fabric will fit a curved shape.
- You are curious about how different foams and fabrics change a finished seat.
Things to weigh
- Expect substantial time standing and repeating hand movements.
- Some shops combine a fast pace with lifting furniture and spending full shifts on your feet.
Where AI may help
In furniture manufacturing, software can arrange pattern pieces to use fabric efficiently and send them to automated cutters.
What people still lead
You still inspect damaged supports and adjust the padding and cover to the actual piece.
What we can’t predict yet
How much cutting becomes automated will vary by shop; fitting and repairing irregular pieces may change differently from repeat production.
Pay in context
Earnings
The national median is a useful reference, but it is not a starting offer.
The national pay spread
In 2025, median pay was $46,340 a year, or $22.28 an hour. The lowest-paid 10% earned $31,690 or less; the highest-paid 10% earned $63,770 or more. These are wage percentiles, not beginner and expert rates.
Custom-shop offers can depend on experience
A custom upholstery shop in Rancho Cordova and Rocklin, California, advertises $18–$30 an hour depending on experience. That is a local advertised range, not an average for repair shops nationwide.
Openings despite a smaller workforce
The 2025–2035 projection combines a 2.3% employment decline with about 1,700 openings annually. Openings are not the same as newly created jobs.
Getting started
Learn in a furniture factory
Paid
- What the route involves
- Look for trainee roles that accept beginners. Work alongside experienced upholsterers and foremen to learn frame preparation, tools and cover fitting.
- What it can lead to
- Build the skills to complete production upholstery and check finished pieces for defects.
Build a foundation at technical college
Clover Park's fundamentals program takes approximately two quarters and requires tools and textbooks.
- What the route involves
- At Clover Park Technical College in Washington, the Upholstery Fundamentals Certificate teaches measuring, cutting, machine sewing and equipment care. It lists no course prerequisites.
- What it can lead to
- Develop basic project skills and meet the normal prerequisite for the Furniture Upholstery Certificate, where you learn to re-cover complete chairs and sofas.
Workplace training is the typical route. A technical-college program is another way to build the basic skills.
After entry
Career paths
This starts where the entry routes leave off: early work, growing capability, and advancement or specialization.
Get consistent
After entry, work toward neat, repeatable results and catch defects before a piece leaves your station.
Handle a whole piece
Develop from individual operations toward complete chairs or sofas, choosing materials and calculating how much you need.
Specialize in detailed custom work
Build expertise in spring tying, shaped chair backs or diamond tufting—the recessed button pattern used on some upholstered furniture.
Where you can work
Furniture factories
You may receive precut, sewn covers and prepared components. Foremen coordinate production, and your work must fit the next step in the process.
- Indoors
- Physical demands
Custom upholstery shops
Projects can change from one customer's furniture to another's. The job may include pickup, delivery and installation as well as bench work.
- Indoors
- Physical demands
- Travel
In-home furniture repair
You travel to customers and repair furniture in their homes. Some employers expect you to supply your own tools and transportation.
- Field work
- Travel
Try it
See whether the job clicks before you commit to the path.
Wrap a scrap of cloth around a small cushion without cutting or fastening it. Try to smooth the front while keeping the corner folds even. Notice whether you enjoy the repeated adjustments needed to make the surface look right.
Sources
- O*NET OnLine. 51-6093.00 — Upholsterers. Accessed 2026-10-04.
- O*NET OnLine / U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. National Wages — Upholsterers. Accessed 2026-10-04.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Occupational projections and worker characteristics, 2025–35. Accessed 2026-10-04.
- Skyline Furniture. Upholstery Trainee / Factory Associate. Accessed 2026-10-04.
- Clover Park Technical College. Upholstery Fundamentals Certificate — 2026–2027 Catalog. Accessed 2026-10-04.
- Clover Park Technical College. Furniture Upholstery Certificate — 2026–2027 Catalog. Accessed 2026-10-04.
- FineLine Upholstery. Upholstery Technician — Careers. Accessed 2026-10-04.
- Touch Up Home. Careers. Accessed 2026-10-04.
- Lectra. Vector Furniture. Accessed 2026-10-04.