Wiingy Research Report 2026
Top Dying Skills
in 2026
Published
April 2026
Data Period
FY2022-23 to FY2025-26
Data Sources
BLS OOH + Google Keyword Planner
Skills Tracked
100 Skills | 956 Keywords
40.1%
Biggest search demand drop across all tracked skills
40
BLS-confirmed occupations with projected decline in new jobs
24
Skills with sustained multi-year decline in demand
FY26
Year of sharpest single-year drops across most skill categories
Introduction
The Skills Economy Is Being Rewritten Right Now
Every few decades, the world of work goes through a fundamental shift. The industrial revolution replaced artisan crafts with factory floors. The digital revolution automated clerical labor. What we are witnessing in 2026 is something different in nature and breathtaking in speed: an AI-driven restructuring that is targeting white-collar, knowledge-based skills for the first time in history.
For years, conventional wisdom held that a Bachelor's degree and a knowledge-based role offered protection from automation. That assumption is being dismantled in real time. The Bureau of Labor Statistics now projects a declining number of new jobs for roles that once seemed recession-proof, from computer programmers and database administrators to news analysts and proofreaders.
This report cross-references four years of Google search trend data (FY2022-23 through FY2025-26), tracking actual learner and job-seeker demand for 100 skill categories across 956 keywords, against BLS occupational outlook projections. Together, these two data sources tell a consistent and urgent story: several foundational professional skills are declining faster than the industry has acknowledged.
The data does not suggest careers are disappearing overnight. It reveals, more precisely, that the routine execution layer of many professions is being automated away, leaving only the strategic, creative, and interpersonal elements behind.
Search Demand as a Leading Indicator
When professionals search for skill training, they are signaling future workforce intent. A sustained multi-year drop in search volume is one of the earliest and most reliable indicators of occupational demand decline.
BLS as the Ground Truth
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook provides projected employment change data across hundreds of occupations. Any occupation marked "Decline" represents a projected net loss in total jobs between 2023 and 2033.
The AI Acceleration Factor
AI tools released between 2022 and 2025, including large language models, code generation platforms, and image synthesis engines, directly overlap with the skill categories showing the steepest demand declines in this dataset.
Top 10 Dying Skills
Skills Falling Out of Demand Fastest
Ranked by overall search demand decline from FY2022-23 to FY2025-26 (Google Keyword Planner data). Only skills with non-zero search volume across all four years are included.
Routine Business Report Writing
Business Communication
-40.1%
Overall Drop
FY22-23
41,760
FY23-24
38,570
FY24-25
39,410
FY25-26
25,030
The single sharpest fall in the entire dataset. After holding reasonably stable for three years, search demand for routine business report writing collapsed by 36.5% in FY2025-26 alone. This is a direct fingerprint of generative AI adoption: tools like ChatGPT, Copilot, and Gemini can now produce a standard business report in seconds, eliminating the training demand for it entirely.
BLS: Statistical Assistants -- Bachelor's -- Decline
Email Marketing Campaign Execution
Digital Marketing
-35.9%
Overall Drop
FY22-23
77,510
FY25-26
49,690
Last YoY
-31.2%
Email marketing soared in FY2023-24 (+32.1%) as platforms multiplied, then collapsed sharply. AI-powered tools that auto-generate, segment, and A/B-test campaigns have turned a specialist skill into an automated workflow. Human execution is increasingly limited to strategy and creative oversight only.
FY22-23 → FY25-26
Junior / Entry-Level Software Development
Technology
-35.1%
Overall Drop
FY22-23
1,64,870
FY25-26
1,06,960
Last YoY
-40.9%
Perhaps the most disruptive data point in this entire report. Entry-level coding, the traditional gateway to the tech industry, saw a 40.9% single-year collapse in search demand. AI code generation tools have made junior-level coding tasks largely automatable.
BLS: Computer Programmers -- Bachelor's -- Decline -- $75K-$99K
FY22-23 → FY25-26
Proofreading and Copy Editing
Language and Editorial
-32.1%
Overall Drop
FY22-23
3,92,940
FY25-26
2,66,710
Last YoY
-27.4%
One of the highest-volume skills in the dataset with nearly 393K annual searches in FY22-23. The consistent three-year decline reflects the mass adoption of AI grammar and editing tools that have commoditized what was once a valued specialist service.
BLS: Proofreaders and Copy Markers -- Bachelor's -- Decline -- $37.5K-$49K
FY22-23 → FY25-26
Routine Copywriting and Content Writing
Content Creation
-25.9%
Overall Drop
FY22-23
4,08,870
FY25-26
3,03,070
Last YoY
-22.5%
With over 400K searches in its peak year, this was the largest-volume skill category in the entire declining cohort. The 25.9% overall drop signals that content creation at scale is now increasingly AI-assisted, compressing the human skill layer to editing, strategy, and brand voice.
BLS: News Analysts, Reporters and Journalists -- Bachelor's -- Decline -- $50K-$74K
FY22-23 → FY25-26
Basic IT Training and Onboarding
Information Technology
-21.1%
Overall Drop
FY22-23
9,120
FY25-26
7,200
Last YoY
-18.3%
Uniquely consistent in its decline, this skill has fallen every single year for four consecutive years without any interim recovery. Basic IT onboarding has been supplanted by automated learning platforms, AI-driven helpdesk tools, and self-healing system infrastructure.
BLS: Network and Computer Systems Administrators -- Bachelor's -- Decline -- $75K-$99K
FY22-23 → FY25-26
Classified Ad and Listing Management
Advertising and Marketing
-17.0%
Overall Drop
FY22-23
34,250
FY25-26
28,440
Last YoY
-46.9%
The most dramatic last-year drop of any skill in the top 10: a 46.9% single-year plunge in FY2025-26. Despite a mid-period surge in FY2024-25, the collapse was complete and swift. Automated listing syndication platforms and AI-generated ad copy have made manual classified management largely obsolete.
FY22-23 → FY25-26
Newspaper and Magazine Layout
Print Media and Design
-14.5%
Overall Drop
FY22-23
4,130
FY25-26
3,530
Last YoY
-15.6%
Print media layout is a field in structural, long-term decline. The combination of reduced print publication volumes, digital-first workflows, and AI-assisted layout automation has steadily eroded the training market for this once-specialised craft.
BLS: Broadcast Announcers and Radio Disc Jockeys -- Bachelor's -- Decline -- $37.5K-$49K
FY22-23 → FY25-26
Word Processing and Typing
Administrative and Clerical
-14.2%
Overall Drop
FY22-23
1,02,260
FY25-26
87,740
Last YoY
-23.3%
With over 100K annual searches, word processing was a high-volume evergreen skill for decades. Its decline reflects both voice-to-text adoption and the reduced emphasis on document creation in AI-native workflows. The 23.3% single-year drop in FY2025-26 was its steepest ever.
BLS: Executive Secretaries and Admin Assistants -- High School -- Decline -- $50K-$74K
FY22-23 → FY25-26
PPC and Paid Ads Management (Basic)
Digital Advertising
-14.0%
Overall Drop
FY22-23
23,610
FY25-26
20,300
Last YoY
-18.9%
Basic PPC management was one of the most sought-after digital marketing skills through 2023. Google's Performance Max and Meta's Advantage+ have automated the manual bidding, targeting, and optimization tasks that defined this role. Demand is shifting rapidly toward strategic media planning rather than execution.
FY22-23 → FY25-26
Data Visualization
Search Demand in Numbers
Four years of Google Keyword Planner data reveal the trajectory of each dying skill. Every chart is downloadable with source attribution.
Overall Search Demand Decline (FY22-23 to FY25-26)
Percentage change in annual search volume across four fiscal years. Source: Google Keyword Planner, Wiingy Research.
What this shows: Ranked from worst to least impacted, this chart reveals that Business Report Writing and Email Marketing suffered the deepest cumulative losses — each declining over 35% from FY22-23 to FY25-26. Skills in the 14–21% decline range (IT Training, Layout, Word Processing, PPC) are on a slower but equally structural downtrend. No skill in this cohort showed recovery.
Source: Wiingy Research | Google Keyword Planner Data FY2022-2026
Year-Over-Year Search Volume Trend (Top 5 Skills)
Annual search volume across four fiscal years for the five fastest-declining skills.
What this shows: The trend lines tell very different stories. Email Marketing spiked dramatically in FY23-24 before collapsing — a classic "hype then displacement" cycle. Junior Software Dev held steady then fell off a cliff in FY25-26 as AI coding tools matured. Proofreading and Content Writing show slow but relentless erosion across all four years. Business Report Writing appeared stable — until it didn't.
Source: Wiingy Research | Google Keyword Planner Data FY2022-2026
Single-Year FY2024-25 to FY2025-26 Drop
The most recent year-on-year change showing where demand collapsed most severely.
What this shows: This is the "last-year shock" chart — it isolates FY25-26's single-year collapse. Classified Ad Management stands out with a staggering 46.9% one-year drop, followed by Junior Software Dev at 40.9%. Even skills with modest overall declines (like Word Processing at -14.2% overall) showed sharp last-year acceleration (-23.3%), suggesting the pace of AI displacement is speeding up, not plateauing.
Source: Wiingy Research | Google Keyword Planner Data FY2022-2026
BLS Occupational Data
Bureau of Labor Statistics: Confirmed Declining Occupations
The following occupations are officially projected to decline in the number of new jobs between 2023 and 2033 by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook.
BLS Declining Occupations Snapshot
Filtered for: No on-the-job training required | Declining new jobs | Declining growth rate
| # | Occupation | Education Required | OJT | New Jobs | Growth Rate | 2024 Median Pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Adult Basic Education and ESL Instructors | Bachelor's degree | None | Declining | Decline | $50,000 - $74,999 |
2 | Advertising and Promotions Managers | Bachelor's degree | None | Declining | Decline | $100,000 or more |
3 | Broadcast Announcers and Radio Disc Jockeys | Bachelor's degree | None | Declining | Decline | $37,500 - $49,999 |
4 | Computer Programmers | Bachelor's degree | None | Declining | Decline | $75,000 - $99,999 |
5 | Credit Analysts | Bachelor's degree | None | Declining | Decline | $75,000 - $99,999 |
6 | Database Administrators | Bachelor's degree | None | Declining | Decline | $100,000 or more |
7 | Elementary School Teachers (exc. Special Ed.) | Bachelor's degree | None | Declining | Decline | $50,000 - $74,999 |
8 | Executive Secretaries and Admin Assistants | High school diploma | None | Declining | Decline | $50,000 - $74,999 |
9 | Kindergarten Teachers (exc. Special Ed.) | Bachelor's degree | None | Declining | Decline | $50,000 - $74,999 |
10 | Medical Transcriptionists | Postsecondary nondegree award | None | Declining | Decline | $37,500 - $49,999 |
11 | Middle School Teachers (exc. Special Ed.) | Bachelor's degree | None | Declining | Decline | $50,000 - $74,999 |
12 | Network and Computer Systems Administrators | Bachelor's degree | None | Declining | Decline | $75,000 - $99,999 |
13 | News Analysts, Reporters, and Journalists | Bachelor's degree | None | Declining | Decline | $50,000 - $74,999 |
14 | Nuclear Engineers | Bachelor's degree | None | Declining | Decline | $100,000 or more |
15 | Political Scientists | Master's degree | None | Declining | Decline | $100,000 or more |
16 | Proofreaders and Copy Markers | Bachelor's degree | None | Declining | Decline | $37,500 - $49,999 |
17 | Secondary School Teachers (exc. Special Ed.) | Bachelor's degree | None | Declining | Decline | $50,000 - $74,999 |
18 | Social Scientists and Related Workers, All Other | Bachelor's degree | None | Declining | Decline | $100,000 or more |
19 | Special Education Teachers (K-Elementary) | Bachelor's degree | None | Declining | Decline | $50,000 - $74,999 |
20 | Statistical Assistants | Bachelor's degree | None | Declining | Decline | $50,000 - $74,999 |
Source: Wiingy Research | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook, Last Modified August 28, 2025
All Declining Skills: Full Search Volume Data (FY2022-2026)
All 24 skills with sustained negative overall search demand. Source: Google Keyword Planner, Wiingy Research.
| Rank | Skill | FY22-23 | FY23-24 | FY24-25 | FY25-26 | YoY FY25 vs FY24 | Overall Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Routine Business Report Writing | 41,760 | 38,570 | 39,410 | 25,030 | -36.5% | -40.1% |
| 2 | Email Marketing (Campaign Execution) | 77,510 | 1,02,400 | 72,220 | 49,690 | -31.2% | -35.9% |
| 3 | Junior / Entry-Level Software Development | 1,64,870 | 1,76,180 | 1,80,890 | 1,06,960 | -40.9% | -35.1% |
| 4 | Proofreading / Copy Editing | 3,92,940 | 3,68,910 | 3,67,530 | 2,66,710 | -27.4% | -32.1% |
| 5 | Copywriting / Content Writing (Routine) | 4,08,870 | 3,53,860 | 3,91,150 | 3,03,070 | -22.5% | -25.9% |
| 6 | Basic IT Training / Onboarding | 9,120 | 8,960 | 8,810 | 7,200 | -18.3% | -21.1% |
| 7 | Classified Ad / Listing Management | 34,250 | 35,220 | 53,550 | 28,440 | -46.9% | -17.0% |
| 8 | Newspaper / Magazine Layout | 4,130 | 4,050 | 4,180 | 3,530 | -15.6% | -14.5% |
| 9 | Word Processing / Typing | 1,02,260 | 1,14,760 | 1,14,440 | 87,740 | -23.3% | -14.2% |
| 10 | PPC / Paid Ads Management (Basic) | 23,610 | 24,500 | 25,040 | 20,300 | -18.9% | -14.0% |
| 11 | Routine Market Analysis Reporting | 15,230 | 15,850 | 21,000 | 13,620 | -35.1% | -10.6% |
| 12 | Basic Chatbot Management | 6,950 | 12,380 | 8,640 | 6,220 | -28.0% | -10.5% |
| 13 | Classroom Administrative Support | 42,080 | 36,460 | 38,940 | 37,810 | -2.9% | -10.1% |
| 14 | Call Center Quality Analyst | 8,900 | 8,330 | 13,920 | 8,040 | -42.2% | -9.7% |
| 15 | Cold Email / Outreach Specialist | 1,26,020 | 1,16,890 | 1,31,940 | 1,14,050 | -13.6% | -9.5% |
| 16 | Data Entry Clerk | 12,52,390 | 13,31,240 | 14,24,150 | 11,52,070 | -19.1% | -8.0% |
| 17 | Market Research / Survey Analysis | 2,77,580 | 2,66,770 | 3,09,230 | 2,55,820 | -17.3% | -7.8% |
| 18 | Voice-Over / Narration (Standard) | 4,65,390 | 3,99,800 | 5,65,480 | 4,34,310 | -23.2% | -6.7% |
| 19 | Toll Booth Operator | 20,430 | 17,850 | 25,390 | 19,250 | -24.2% | -5.8% |
| 20 | Print / DTP Design | 93,870 | 1,07,960 | 1,08,610 | 89,120 | -17.9% | -5.1% |
| 21 | Translation / Localisation (Text) | 1,08,910 | 1,18,560 | 1,53,850 | 1,03,640 | -32.6% | -4.8% |
| 22 | Subtitle / Closed Captioning | 1,29,770 | 1,35,650 | 1,70,510 | 1,24,130 | -27.2% | -4.3% |
| 23 | Excel / Spreadsheet Reporting | 1,51,920 | 1,61,610 | 1,78,190 | 1,47,870 | -17.0% | -2.7% |
| 24 | Photo Editing (Basic / Retouching) | 61,240 | 63,720 | 77,360 | 59,640 | -22.9% | -2.6% |
Source: Wiingy Research | Google Keyword Planner Data, FY2022-23 to FY2025-26
Conclusion
What This Data Is Really Telling Us
The convergence of BLS occupational projections and four years of real-world search demand data paints a picture that is hard to ignore.
📊
The Execution Layer Is Being Automated
The skills declining fastest are not obscure or niche. Proofreading, business writing, entry-level coding, email marketing, and content creation represent some of the most broadly held professional competencies of the 2010s. What they share is that they are execution-layer tasks: well-defined, repeatable, and precisely the kind of work that large language models and AI tools are best at replicating.
💼
Bachelor's Degrees Are No Longer a Shield
Strikingly, most of the BLS-listed declining occupations require a Bachelor's degree. Computer programmers, database administrators, news analysts, network administrators, and credit analysts all require a four-year degree and are all projected to decline. Education has always been positioned as job security. That assumption now requires a significant caveat.
📉
FY2025-26 Is the Inflection Year
In skill after skill, the most dramatic drops in search demand occurred in FY2025-26. Not FY2023-24, when AI hype was loudest. Not FY2024-25, when adoption was accelerating. FY2025-26. This suggests that the workforce is now past the awareness and experimentation phase of AI adoption and into actual displacement.
🔭
The Opportunity Is in What Remains
The skills that are not declining, and in many cases are growing rapidly, are those that require judgment, creativity, interpersonal trust, and domain expertise. Strategic thinking, mentorship, cross-disciplinary problem-solving, and human oversight of AI systems are all trending upward in the same dataset that shows these skills declining.
The professionals and students who adapt earliest by identifying which parts of their current skill set are most at risk and actively redirecting their learning investment will be the ones who navigate this shift successfully. Awareness is not alarm. It is advantage.
Methodology
How This Report Was Built
This report is built on two independent data sources that were cross-referenced to arrive at a composite view of skill demand decline.
Step 01
Skill Taxonomy Construction
The Wiingy Research team identified 100 discrete skill categories spanning technology, communication, administration, media, finance, and education. Each skill was mapped to a cluster of 956 related search keywords using Google Keyword Planner's semantic grouping logic.
Step 02
Google Keyword Planner Data Collection
Annual search volume data was collected across four fiscal years from April 2022 through March 2026 (FY2022-23 through FY2025-26). Monthly data was aggregated to annual totals. Skills with zero search volume in any year were excluded from the declining skills analysis to ensure statistical integrity.
Step 03
BLS Occupational Outlook Cross-Reference
Occupational projections were sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook (last updated August 28, 2025). The dataset was filtered for occupations showing both a declining projected number of new jobs and a declining growth rate.
Step 04
Decline Ranking Methodology
Skills were ranked primarily by their overall percentage change from FY2022-23 to FY2025-26. The top 10 positions were assigned to skills showing the steepest sustained negative trend. Skills with large mid-period volatility but overall net decline were included with contextual annotation.
Step 05
BLS-GKP Correlation Mapping
Where a clear conceptual overlap existed between a GKP skill category and a BLS occupation (e.g., "Proofreading and Copy Editing" mapped to "Proofreaders and Copy Markers"), this was noted within the skill card as corroborating evidence from an independent federal data source.
Step 06
Exclusions and Limitations
Search demand is a proxy for learner and job-seeker intent rather than a direct measure of employment levels. BLS projections are U.S.-specific, while GKP data reflects a global search audience. These limitations are acknowledged and do not invalidate the directional conclusions supported by both datasets independently.
Wiingy Research Team
The people behind this report
This research was led by Wiingy's in-house research team, combining expertise in data analysis, trend research, and educational insight.
Lead Researcher
Shifa
Shifa leads Wiingy's research initiatives, focusing on data-driven studies that uncover emerging trends in education and skill acquisition. Her work plays a key role in guiding Wiingy's innovation and strategy. For this report, she designed the research framework, defined the era boundaries, and led the interpretation of Google Trends data.
Research Analyst
Rishi
Rishi brings unique analytical expertise and curiosity to the research team, contributing to data collection, analysis, and insights that shape Wiingy's future direction. For this report, he was responsible for sourcing and validating the search volume data via Google Keyword Planner and producing the longitudinal growth analysis.
About Wiingy
About Wiingy
Wiingy is a top-rated tutoring marketplace that connects school students, college students, and young adults with over 4,500 expert-vetted tutors for 350+ subjects including coding, math, science, computer science, AP, test-prep, language learning, and music. Wiingy's CoTutor application turns live lessons into engaging podcasts and review tools.
We are committed to providing our students with the highest quality education possible. We vet each tutor meticulously. Our tutors are highly qualified and experienced, and most importantly they are passionate about helping students learn.
In addition to paid lessons, we also offer free resources including web tutorials, practice problems, and study guides. We believe that everyone should have access to high-quality education, regardless of their financial situation. Since our inception, we have helped over 20,000 students across 50+ countries reach their learning goals.
Find a Tutor4,500+
Expert-Vetted Tutors
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Subjects Covered
20K+
Students Helped
50+
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