Truck Drivers salary in the US
Here is where pay for truck and delivery drivers stands nationally, built from Census microdata rather than job-board postings.
How much do truck and delivery drivers earn?
The typical (median) annual earnings for truck and delivery drivers come to $49,400, which is 6% less than the $52,508 median for all US earners aged 25 and older. That ranks 101st of 171 occupation groups, just below the middle of the range. That estimate rests on 167,333 individual Census survey responses from workers 25 and up.
| Position | Annual earnings |
|---|---|
| Top 10% start at | $97,761 |
| Top 25% start at | $72,618 |
| Median (top 50%) | $49,400 |
| Bottom 25% earn below | $29,047 |
How wide is the pay range?
Moving up the ladder, the top-quarter threshold is $72,618 and the top-10% threshold is $97,761, a 2.0× step up from the middle. At the other end, a quarter of truck and delivery drivers earned $29,047 or less, which partly reflects part-time and part-year work — the survey counts everyone with earnings, not only full-time staff. The median is 1.7 times that lower-quarter line.
Earnings by age
Mid-career workers out-earn new entrants, but not dramatically — the median goes from $41,979 (25–34) to $55,860 (45–54). Later on, earnings ease to $30,375 for workers 65+, a 46% step down that tracks the shift to part-time work.
Men and women
By sex, the medians are $50,763 (men) and $26,813 (women) — a 47% difference. In the raw sample, roughly 8 in 100 workers in this job are women. Because these are annual totals, more part-time work in one group widens the gap; the survey doesn't adjust for that.
| Group | Median earnings | Survey records |
|---|---|---|
| Men | $50,763 | 154,735 |
| Women | $26,813 | 12,598 |
Does education change the pay?
Degrees matter less than in many fields: $50,763 with some college or an associate degree versus $33,510 with a doctorate. 104,389 of the records belong to people with a high school education or less, the biggest single group; we suppress levels with fewer than 100.
| Education | Median earnings | Survey records |
|---|---|---|
| High school or less | $50,103 | 104,389 |
| Some college / associate | $50,763 | 49,430 |
| Bachelor's | $42,771 | 10,792 |
| Master's | $41,625 | 2,118 |
| Professional degree | $37,197 | 392 |
| Doctorate | $33,510 | 212 |
Where the most work, and what they earn there
The five states with the most truck and delivery drivers in the survey are California, Texas, Florida, Pennsylvania, and Illinois. Among them, Illinois has the highest median at $52,285 and Florida the lowest at $41,979, a 25% spread. These are nominal dollars — living costs differ just as much between states and aren't adjusted for. 50 states have enough records (100+) for their own figure.
| State | Median earnings | Survey records |
|---|---|---|
| California | $49,369 | 16,973 |
| Texas | $50,763 | 15,257 |
| Florida | $41,979 | 9,292 |
| Pennsylvania | $50,763 | 7,829 |
| Illinois | $52,285 | 7,738 |
Occupations with similar pay
Similar typical earnings show up for licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses ($49,156), food service managers ($48,881), clergy ($48,881), and inspectors, testers and sorters ($48,881). The jobs differ in training and working conditions; matching medians just means the typical paycheck is comparable.
| Occupation | Median earnings | vs. this job |
|---|---|---|
| Licensed Practical And Licensed Vocational Nurses | $49,156 | 0% |
| Food Service Managers | $48,881 | −1% |
| Clergy | $48,881 | −1% |
| Inspectors and Testers | $48,881 | −1% |
| Retail Sales Supervisors | $50,763 | +3% |
About these figures
How to read these numbers: they are annual personal earnings (wages plus self-employment income) for people aged 25+ who reported working as truck and delivery drivers, pooled over 2020–2024 and adjusted to 2024 dollars. Part-time and part-year workers are included. Every group shown has at least 100 survey records; 167,333 records sit behind the headline median.
See where your pay ranks among truck and delivery drivers
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Open the calculatorSource: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-Year Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS) — personal earnings (PERNP) in 2024 dollars, person-weighted
Reference statistics only — not financial advice.