Top AI-resistant jobs for 2026 - many offer six-figure salaries
As artificial intelligence eats into demand for some roles, a new report suggests a bright spot: Some of the most in-demand jobs of the year are still very much people-dependent.
Seven of the top 10 spots on Indeed’s 50 Best Jobs in the U.S. for 2026 ranking are in health care-related fields. Most of them rely on human-to-human interaction. All 10 jobs also command a median yearly pay of more than $100,000, according to the jobs platform.
Boom in health care and skilled trades hiring
The No. 1 job on the list is cardiac medical technician. Indeed’s report said the health care specialty, with an estimated median annual salary of $133,907, has seen robust job openings and wage growth over the past three years.
Other top health care-related fields for job seekers are nurse practitioner (No. 3), speech language pathologist (No. 4), licensed professional counselor (No. 5), licensed clinical social worker (No. 6), physical therapist (No. 7), occupational therapist (No. 8) and radiation therapist (No. 9).
For its annual best jobs ranking, Indeed researchers analyzed thousands of occupations listed on its platform and ranked them based on where workers can get hired and thrive. Among the criteria they used were above-average pay, immediate demand, salary growth, hiring momentum, and remote work flexibility.
“The labor market overall has been in this low-hire, stagnant space for the last year,” Laura Ullrich, North America research director for Indeed Hiring Lab, said in the report. “One major exception is health care.” Only 11% of all jobs are in health care, according to Indeed, but the field represents nearly three-quarters of broader job-market growth.
Outside of health care, the skilled trades are hotbeds of hiring activity. In addition to owner-operator truck driver in the top 10, HVAC technician and electrical foreman positions are also on the list.
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Really solid analysis on where human touch still matters in a tech dominated labor market. The cardiac tech role at 133k shows specialized healthcare skills cant be automated easily since theyre built on years of pattern recognition that AI still struggles with. I consulted on workforce planning once and we saw similar trends where trades hiring outpaced tech roles.