Median pay for truck drivers runs from $23,310 in Puerto Rico nonmetropolitan area to $81,790 in Lincoln — a 3.51× range across 528 metropolitan areas. The national median of $58,640 sits inside that range but describes no particular market.
Ten per cent of truck drivers earn below $40,140 and ten per cent above $79,380 — a 1.98× band. The upside from median to 90th percentile is 35%, which is a normal amount of room for experience and specialisation to matter. An offer below the 25th percentile is worth questioning; one above the 75th is worth taking seriously.
Lincoln (NE) leads and Puerto Rico nonmetropolitan area () trails, but the gap is modest. For a role like this the more useful comparison is not between cities but between the 10th and 90th percentile within one — see the band above.
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lincoln NE | $81,790 | $39.32 | 1.87 | 4,530 |
| Balance of Nevada nonmetropolitan area | $79,070 | $38.01 | 1.55 | 1,850 |
| Fairbanks-College AK | $76,560 | $36.81 | 1.21 | 590 |
| Alaska nonmetropolitan area | $72,090 | $34.66 | 0.83 | 1,200 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue WA | $71,240 | $34.25 | 0.77 | 21,230 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara CA | $70,730 | $34.00 | 0.36 | 5,360 |
| Morristown TN | $67,330 | $32.37 | 2.34 | 1,470 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont CA | $66,450 | $31.95 | 0.52 | 16,450 |
| Anchorage AK | $66,190 | $31.82 | 0.69 | 1,620 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City NY-NJ | $65,040 | $31.27 | 0.52 | 65,100 |
| Massachusetts nonmetropolitan area | $64,410 | $30.96 | 0.85 | 470 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington MN-WI | $64,200 | $30.87 | 0.79 | 20,430 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton MA-NH | $64,010 | $30.78 | 0.56 | 20,090 |
| Denver-Aurora-Centennial CO | $63,900 | $30.72 | 0.67 | 14,320 |
| Boulder CO | $63,810 | $30.68 | 0.26 | 650 |
| Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro OR-WA | $63,800 | $30.67 | 0.9 | 14,370 |
| Reno NV | $63,790 | $30.67 | 1.14 | 4,170 |
| Cheyenne WY | $63,540 | $30.55 | 1.64 | 1,060 |
| Kahului-Wailuku HI | $63,420 | $30.49 | 0.55 | 530 |
| Memphis TN-MS-AR | $63,070 | $30.32 | 2.4 | 19,460 |
| Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater WA | $63,040 | $30.31 | 0.7 | 1,210 |
| Spokane-Spokane Valley WA | $62,980 | $30.28 | 1.15 | 3,890 |
| Longview-Kelso WA | $62,930 | $30.26 | 1.42 | 770 |
| Bozeman MT | $62,780 | $30.18 | 0.8 | 770 |
| Kiryas Joel-Poughkeepsie-Newburgh NY | $62,760 | $30.17 | 0.93 | 3,330 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Puerto Rico nonmetropolitan area | $23,310 | $11.21 | 0.82 | 320 |
| Aguadilla PR | $23,390 | $11.25 | 0.93 | 600 |
| Ponce PR | $23,490 | $11.29 | 0.75 | 640 |
| Arecibo PR | $23,840 | $11.46 | 0.93 | 430 |
| Guayama PR | $24,960 | $12.00 | 0.67 | 110 |
| Mayaguez PR | $25,270 | $12.15 | 0.86 | 600 |
| San Juan-Bayamon-Caguas PR | $26,170 | $12.58 | 0.85 | 7,770 |
| East Arkansas nonmetropolitan area | $43,540 | $20.93 | 1.34 | 1,210 |
| Hot Springs AR | $44,590 | $21.44 | 0.63 | 320 |
| Sebring FL | $44,930 | $21.60 | 0.62 | 230 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Laredo TX | $49,010 | $23.56 | 3.76 | 5,460 |
| West North Dakota nonmetropolitan area | $62,400 | $30.00 | 3.65 | 4,230 |
| Joplin MO-KS | $47,430 | $22.80 | 3 | 3,470 |
| Odessa TX | $58,370 | $28.06 | 2.97 | 3,190 |
| Sioux City IA-NE-SD | $51,540 | $24.78 | 2.84 | 2,820 |
| Midland TX | $58,200 | $27.98 | 2.8 | 4,540 |
| Northwestern Region of Texas nonmetropolitan area | $57,190 | $27.49 | 2.7 | 6,770 |
| Yuba City CA | $58,230 | $27.99 | 2.64 | 1,790 |
| Northwest Iowa nonmetropolitan area | $54,080 | $26.00 | 2.64 | 5,110 |
| Stockton-Lodi CA | $60,470 | $29.07 | 2.63 | 10,110 |
| Western Wisconsin nonmetropolitan area | $57,760 | $27.77 | 2.56 | 4,330 |
| Northeastern Wisconsin nonmetropolitan area | $56,000 | $26.92 | 2.41 | 6,270 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York-Newark-Jersey City NY-NJ | $65,040 | $31.27 | 0.52 | 65,100 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin IL-IN | $62,300 | $29.95 | 1.04 | 62,210 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim CA | $60,340 | $29.01 | 0.74 | 61,270 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington TX | $59,530 | $28.62 | 1.04 | 55,670 |
| Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands TX | $56,840 | $27.33 | 1.14 | 49,750 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell GA | $59,100 | $28.41 | 1.09 | 41,830 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario CA | $60,580 | $29.13 | 1.77 | 40,230 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington PA-NJ-DE-MD | $59,370 | $28.54 | 0.84 | 32,220 |
| Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler AZ | $59,770 | $28.74 | 0.97 | 30,480 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach FL | $51,580 | $24.80 | 0.78 | 29,060 |
| Detroit-Warren-Dearborn MI | $59,120 | $28.43 | 1.02 | 25,780 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue WA | $71,240 | $34.25 | 0.77 | 21,230 |
Figures come from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics programme, May 2025 release, SOC code 53-3032. OEWS surveys employers, so it reports what is actually paid rather than what job advertisements claim, and it excludes the self-employed. Estimates cover 528 of 528 metropolitan areas — near-complete coverage, which means the ranges above are reliable rather than drawn from a handful of markets. Read the methodology.