Bicycle courier
Also known as: bike messenger, bike courier, cycle messenger, bicycle messenger, cycle courier, bicycle dispatch rider
About this occupation
Bicycle couriers collect and deliver packages and mail by bicycle.
Essential skills and knowledge
- obey traffic rules
- road traffic laws
- ensure the integrity of mail
- differentiate types of packages
- act reliably
- interpret traffic signals
- analyse ways to reduce travel time
- drive two-wheeled vehicles
- communicate with customers
- geographic areas
Typical tasks and preparation
From the related US occupation profile Couriers and Messengers (O*NET 43-5021.00). Linked by an official crosswalk: related, not identical; details vary by country.
- Deliver and pick up medical records, lab specimens, and medications to and from hospitals and other medical facilities.
- Walk, ride bicycles, drive vehicles, or use public conveyances to reach destinations to deliver messages or materials.
- Load vehicles with listed goods, ensuring goods are loaded correctly and taking precautions with hazardous goods.
- Receive messages or materials to be delivered, and information on recipients, such as names, addresses, telephone numbers, and delivery instructions, communicated via telephone, two-way radio, or in person.
- Deliver messages and items, such as newspapers, documents, and packages, between establishment departments and to other establishments and private homes.
- Record information, such as items received and delivered and recipients' responses to messages.
- Preparation
- Job Zone 2 of 5
- Interests
- Conventional, Realistic, Social
Top skills: Active Listening, Speaking, Time Management, Reading Comprehension, Writing, Critical Thinking
US median pay: US$39,200 a year (2025), 68,640 employed. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics.
Preparation needed
Job Zone 1-2: Very Little to Some Preparation Needed
- Education
- Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not.
- Experience
- Some occupations may need little or no previous experience; others require several months to a year of experience. For example, landscaping and groundskeeping workers might require very little training or previous experience, while agricultural equipment operators can benefit from on-the job training.
- Training
- Ranges from a few days to one year of on-the-job training.
O*NET data describe work in the United States; requirements differ by country. This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. CareerProof Global has modified all or some of this information; USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.
Related occupations
Occupations O*NET links to this one by similar work, skills and knowledge.
- Postal Service Mail Carriers
- Light Truck Drivers
- Mail Clerks and Mail Machine Operators, Except Postal Service
- Postal Service Clerks
- Shipping, Receiving, and Inventory Clerks
- Driver/Sales Workers
- Postal Service Mail Sorters, Processors, and Processing Machine Operators
- Dispatchers, Except Police, Fire, and Ambulance
- Cargo and Freight Agents
- Baggage Porters and Bellhops
O*NET data describe work in the United States; requirements differ by country. This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. CareerProof Global has modified all or some of this information; USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.