Truck Driver Pay by State for Owner Operators

See what truck drivers are paid in each state, from federal wage data, and find where your pay sits. A benchmark for company driver pay.

This is company driver pay, not owner-operator income. The survey counts drivers who are paid wages by an employer. Owner-operators and other self-employed drivers are not in it, and it leaves out benefits. Use it as a benchmark, for example to compare a lease-on with a company job.

What to look up

Type of driver

Tractor-trailer (CDL-A)Heavy and tractor-trailer truck driversBox truck and deliveryLight truck drivers

State

Your pay (optional)

Use what you are paid before taxes. We turn weekly pay into a year with 52 weeks and hourly pay into a year with 2,080 hours, as the survey does.

Typical pay in United States, the middle driver

$58,640

a year, about $28.19 an hour or $1,128 a week.

May 2025, all states.

The range of pay

Annual and hourly pay at five points in United States
Who	Per year	Per hour
Lowest paid tenth (10th percentile)	$40,140	$19.30
Lower quarter (25th)	$47,960	$23.06
Middle (median)	$58,640	$28.19
Upper quarter (75th)	$69,120	$33.23
Top tenth (90th)	$79,380	$38.17
Average (mean)	$59,710	$28.71

About 2,062,040 drivers in this group were employed in United States.

Thinking about running your own truck? A company driver in United States at the middle earns about $1,128 a week before taxes. The Weekly Profit Target Calculator shows what your truck must gross to keep that much after costs, and the Owner-Operator Earnings Calculator shows your take-home.

All states, tractor-trailer (cdl-a)

Pick a state name to look it up above.

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Truck driver pay in each state, with rank
Rank	Middle pay a year	Per hour	Drivers
1	$70,100	$33.70	3,420
2	$64,760	$31.13	40,530
3	$64,170	$30.85	830
4	$63,570	$30.56	47,980
5	$63,030	$30.30	30,890
6	$62,290	$29.95	15,010
7	$62,050	$29.83	63,700
8	$61,990	$29.80	38,770
9	$61,980	$29.80	23,970
10	$61,500	$29.57	25,350
11	$60,910	$29.29	11,870
12	$60,830	$29.25	3,560
13	$60,620	$29.15	25,060
14	$60,490	$29.08	15,740
15	$60,320	$29.00	84,200
16	$60,310	$28.99	6,050
17	$60,290	$28.99	59,090
18	$60,280	$28.98	6,960
19	$60,230	$28.96	205,090
20	$60,190	$28.94	3,620
21	$59,820	$28.76	4,070
22	$59,800	$28.75	83,060
23	$59,360	$28.54	29,150
24	$58,920	$28.33	24,220
25	$58,870	$28.30	7,830
26	$58,770	$28.26	15,920
27	$58,690	$28.21	6,470
28	$58,620	$28.18	64,890
29	$58,610	$28.18	53,330
30	$58,580	$28.16	87,550
31	$58,390	$28.07	23,160
32	$58,080	$27.92	40,150
33	$58,070	$27.92	35,040
34	$57,590	$27.69	9,040
35	$57,180	$27.49	60,800
36	$57,050	$27.43	74,840
36	$57,050	$27.43	9,980
38	$56,860	$27.34	48,750
39	$56,340	$27.09	31,760
40	$56,290	$27.06	209,680
41	$54,550	$26.23	47,760
42	$54,410	$26.16	27,840
43	$52,120	$25.06	36,650
44	$51,820	$24.92	24,160
45	$51,550	$24.79	32,220
46	$51,530	$24.77	62,400
47	$51,130	$24.58	34,170
48	$50,640	$24.34	112,920
49	$50,500	$24.28	11,820
50	$49,480	$23.79	12,190
51	$49,320	$23.71	28,540

Data: Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 (BLS), from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. It is a survey of employers, cross-industry, and covers wage and salary drivers only. It does not include owner-operators, benefits or bonuses paid outside wages. Pay by state also reflects the kind of trucking done there, such as local, regional or long haul, and the cost of living. Percentile estimates are made from five published points, so they are rough.

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How much do truck drivers make in each state?

In May 2025, the middle U.S. tractor-trailer driver was paid $58,640 a year, about $28.19 an hour, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Pay ranges from about $40,140 for the lowest paid tenth to about $79,380 for the top tenth, and it changes a lot by state. This survey counts company drivers paid wages, not owner-operators.

Pick the type of driver: tractor-trailer (CDL-A) or box truck and delivery.
Pick your state, or the whole United States, and read the middle, lower and top pay.
Enter your own pay by the hour, week or year to see about where you rank.
Sort the all-states table to compare states by pay or by number of drivers.
If you run your own truck, compare with what your truck keeps after costs, not with gross.

Tractor-trailer drivers, middle (median) pay, May 2025
Place	Per year	Per hour
United States	$58,640	$28.19
Alaska (highest)	$70,100	$33.70
Washington	$64,760	$31.13
New Jersey	$63,570	$30.56
California	$60,230	$28.96
Texas	$56,290	$27.06
Florida	$50,640	$24.34
Louisiana (lowest)	$49,320	$23.71

Data: Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, Bureau of Labor Statistics. It covers employees paid a wage or salary and does not include self-employed drivers such as owner-operators. Wages are straight-time gross pay. Overtime, shift differentials, non-production bonuses, benefits and allowances are not counted.

Last reviewed October 2026. Sources: BLS: Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics tables; BLS: OEWS frequently asked questions, what counts as wages.

Frequently Asked Questions - Truck Driver Pay by State

What state pays truck drivers the most?

In the Bureau of Labor Statistics survey for May 2025, tractor-trailer drivers had the highest middle pay in Alaska ($70,100 a year), then Washington ($64,760), Washington DC ($64,170), New Jersey ($63,570) and Massachusetts ($63,030). Pay in a state also reflects the kind of trucking done there and its cost of living. Pick any state in the tool to see its full range.

What state pays truck drivers the least?

In the same survey, the lowest middle pay for tractor-trailer drivers was in Louisiana ($49,320 a year), West Virginia ($49,480), New Mexico ($50,500), Florida ($50,640) and South Carolina ($51,130). Lower pay is not always lower living standards, since costs differ by state.

How much do truck drivers make a year?

For tractor-trailer drivers across the United States, the middle driver was paid $58,640 a year in May 2025, about $28.19 an hour. The average was $59,710, and about 2.06 million drivers were employed. The bottom tenth earned around $40,140 and the top tenth around $79,380. Those are company drivers, paid wages.

How much do truck drivers make a week?

Divide the yearly pay by 52. For the middle U.S. tractor-trailer driver, $58,640 a year is about $1,128 a week before taxes. The tool shows the weekly figure for any state. Real weekly pay changes with miles, hours and how the driver is paid.

How much do box truck and delivery drivers make?

The survey calls them light truck drivers. For the United States the middle pay in May 2025 was $44,860 a year, about $21.57 an hour, with about 983,300 employed. Alaska was highest at $57,190 and Arkansas lowest at $37,080. Switch the tool to Box truck and delivery to see any state.

Does this show owner-operator pay?

No. The Bureau of Labor Statistics survey does not cover self-employed workers, so owner-operators are not in it. It counts drivers paid a wage or salary by an employer. Use these numbers to compare a company job with running your own truck, then work out your own numbers with the Weekly Profit Target Calculator and the Owner-Operator Earnings Calculator.

Does this pay include overtime, bonuses or benefits?

Not all of it. The survey counts straight-time gross pay, including base rates, commissions, production bonuses, hazard pay and incentive pay. It leaves out overtime, shift differentials, non-production bonuses, benefits and allowances. Real total pay can differ from these numbers.

How do I know where my pay ranks in my state?

Type your pay in the tool, choose per hour, per week or per year, and pick your state. It estimates your place among the drivers there. The survey publishes only five points, the 10th, 25th, 50th, 75th and 90th percentiles, so the answer is a rough estimate. Below the 10th or above the 90th, it says so without a number.

Where does the pay data come from?

From the Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, for May 2025, for the cross-industry group. It is a survey of employers, updated once a year. We show the numbers as published and only add the yearly, hourly and weekly conversions.

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Go Further With Truck Driver Pay by State

Guides, services and reference pages that go with this tool.