TruePath vs O*NET MyNextMove / MyFuture

Both pull from the same federal data. They differ in personalization, planning, and presentation.

The federal data those tools — and TruePath — share

O*NET Online, MyNextMove, MyFuture, and CareerOneStop are all sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor and Employment and Training Administration. They share an underlying database: BLS Standard Occupational Classification codes, BLS OEWS salary data, BLS Employment Projections, and O*NET task / skill / interest profiles. TruePath ingests the same datasets.

The difference is what each tool does with the data.

O*NET MyNextMove / MyFuture

O*NET MyNextMove (mynextmove.org) is a U.S. DOL-sponsored career exploration site. Three entry points:

1. "I want to be a..." — type a career, see its full O*NET profile.
2. "I'll know it when I see it" — browse occupations by industry.
3. "I'm not really sure" — take the Interest Profiler (60-question RIASEC-based assessment) and get matches.

Each occupation page includes: tasks, skills, knowledge, abilities, work activities, education, salary (national median), and job outlook. MyFuture (myfuture.com) is a similar tool but specifically for current and former U.S. military service members exploring civilian careers.

Strengths: comprehensive, free, government-backed, mature (O*NET dataset is 25+ years old), no signup required.

Limitations: browse-and-read presentation; minimal personalization; no roadmap or planning component; salary data is mostly national (state-level requires switching to CareerOneStop); no ROI / break-even calculator; no AI-powered features.

TruePath

TruePath wraps the same federal datasets in a planning experience:

• 15-question assessment covering interests, financial goals, education level, work environment, risk tolerance, lifestyle, and personality — broader than the RIASEC-only Interest Profiler.
• 968-career database with state-level salary (not just national), education paths, and automation-risk estimates per career.
• AI roadmap generator that builds a personalized 100+ step plan including specific course codes, institutions, costs, and deadlines tailored to the user's state, current education, and pace preference.
• Reality Check — combines College Scorecard tuition data with BLS salary to compute break-even years for the education investment.
• Side-by-side comparison with personalization (e.g. salary in the user's specific state for two careers).
• Save and track — saved careers and journey progress persist across sessions.

Feature comparison

Which to use when

Use O*NET MyNextMove if:

• You want to read the official task/skill/knowledge profile for a specific occupation.
• You're a guidance counselor or career advisor citing federal data.
• You don't want to create an account.
• You want the RIASEC Interest Profiler specifically (it's the standard).

Use TruePath if:

• You want state-specific salary, education ROI, and an actionable plan.
• You're not just exploring — you're planning the next 4–8 years.
• You want comparison across multiple careers personalized to your situation.
• You want a step-by-step roadmap with specific institutions, courses, costs, and deadlines.

Honest take

O*NET is the canonical federal occupation reference, and TruePath cites it directly. For users who just want to look up "what does a paralegal do," O*NET is the right tool. For users who've decided "I want to become a paralegal — now help me plan it," TruePath is the right tool. The two are complementary; the federal data is the floor of any responsible career tool.

How TruePath helps with this

Both products surface the same underlying federal occupational data — BLS Standard Occupational Classification codes, BLS OEWS salary, BLS Employment Projections, and O*NET tasks and skills. The difference is what you can do with that data once you find a career that interests you. O*NET MyNextMove lets you read the profile and link out to CareerOneStop for state-specific salary; TruePath lets you compare careers side-by-side with your state's data, run a Reality Check ROI calculation against your specific debt and income situation, and generate a step-by-step plan with course codes and cost estimates.

If you're a high-school student or career advisor citing federal data, O*NET is the authoritative source. If you're planning a specific career move and want personalization plus actionable next steps, TruePath wraps the same data in a planning interface for $75 one-time.

Frequently asked questions

Is O*NET MyNextMove free?

Yes — it's funded by the U.S. Department of Labor and Employment and Training Administration. No account, login, or payment required. The full O*NET database, the Interest Profiler assessment, and all occupation profiles are public and free at mynextmove.org and onetonline.org.

Does O*NET have a career plan generator?

No. O*NET MyNextMove provides occupation profiles, the Interest Profiler assessment, and links to education programs (via the linked CareerOneStop). It does not generate personalized step-by-step plans, calculate education ROI, or compare salaries across two careers in your state. For those tasks, TruePath or a human career counselor are better fits.

Is the Interest Profiler accurate?

The Interest Profiler uses the Holland Codes / RIASEC framework — Realistic, Investigative, Artistic, Social, Enterprising, Conventional. It's a well-validated framework for matching interests to occupational characteristics, but it captures only one dimension of career fit (interest alignment). Pay, growth, and education ROI are not part of the assessment. Use it as one of several inputs.

Does TruePath use O*NET data?

Yes. TruePath ingests O*NET's task profiles, skill ratings, knowledge ratings, work activities, and work styles directly for all 968 occupations. Every TruePath career detail page is built on O*NET's occupation taxonomy. The Automation Risk % shown on each profile is derived from O*NET task analysis combined with academic research (Frey & Osborne 2013; Felten et al. 2023).

Why would I pay for TruePath if O*NET is free?

You wouldn't, if your need is occupation reference data and the RIASEC Interest Profiler. You would, if your need is personalized planning: state-specific salary comparison, education ROI calculation against your debt and income, AI-generated step-by-step plans with specific course codes and cost estimates, and side-by-side career comparison with your state's data. The $75 Full Access pack covers a year+ of active planning use.

Does TruePath's assessment replace the Interest Profiler?

TruePath's 15-question assessment is broader: it covers interests (similar to RIASEC) plus financial goals, education level, work environment preferences, risk tolerance, lifestyle, and personality. The Interest Profiler's 60 questions focus on the single dimension of work interests. Both are useful; TruePath's broader assessment gives multi-dimensional matches.

Is MyFuture (myfuture.com) the same as MyNextMove?

They're sibling products. MyFuture targets U.S. military service members and veterans planning civilian careers; MyNextMove targets the general public. Both are U.S. Department of Labor-sponsored and use the same O*NET database. MyFuture adds military occupation crosswalks (e.g., "I was an Army E-5 / Intelligence Analyst — what civilian careers match?") that MyNextMove lacks.

Can I trust TruePath's salary data?

Yes — it's sourced directly from the same BLS OEWS report that O*NET, MyNextMove, MyFuture, and CareerOneStop use. TruePath cites the BLS source on each career profile so you can verify. We update within 60 days of each annual BLS release.