Occupation · SOC 53-3033

Light Truck Drivers: pay and where the jobs are

What light truck drivers earn in the U.S., how pay varies across workers and states, and tools to plan around it.

BLS May 2025 data · methodology

National pay, May 2025

$44,860 median annual wage

Mean (average) annual wage
$48,770
Median hourly wage
$21.57
Mean hourly wage
$23.45
Employment
983,300

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 53-3033.

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How much do light truck drivers make?

The median annual wage for light truck drivers was $44,860 in May 2025, so half of workers earned more and half earned less. The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $30,800 and the highest-paid 10% more than $80,310. As an hourly rate, the median is $21.57. About 983,300 people work in this occupation nationwide. The highest state medians are in Alaska ($57,190), District of Columbia ($49,330) and Washington ($49,070). Alaska also comes out on top after taxes and local prices.

Pay ladder

What each step of the pay range for light truck drivers looks like per month. Take-home here includes federal tax, Social Security and Medicare for a single filer; add your state in the paycheck calculator.

Light Truck Drivers: pay at each percentile
StepAnnualHourlyMonthly grossMonthly after federal tax & FICA
10th percentile$30,800$14.81$2,567$2,244
25th percentile$37,270$17.92$3,106$2,677
Median$44,860$21.57$3,738$3,185
75th percentile$52,310$25.15$4,359$3,684
90th percentile$80,310$38.61$6,693$5,444

Light Truck Drivers: pay by state

54 states and territories have a published median, sorted from highest to lowest. The last two columns are our estimates: the median after 2026 federal and state taxes, and that take-home restated in national-average prices.

1

Alaska

$46,758 take-home in national prices

2

North Dakota

$45,760 take-home in national prices

3

Tennessee

$41,774 take-home in national prices

Where a median light truck driver paycheck goes furthest after 2026 taxes and BEA price levels.

Annual wages by state, May 2025, with after-tax and price-adjusted estimates
StateEmploymentMedian10th pct.90th pct.Median after tax*In national prices†
Alaska1,790$57,190$37,210$96,300$47,861$46,758
District of Columbia540$49,330$37,890$69,400$40,023$36,417
Washington23,290$49,070$37,890$74,080$40,927$38,245
Minnesota17,360$48,880$31,490$90,340$39,440$39,991
Colorado15,810$48,410$37,230$82,220$39,443$38,275
Maryland18,420$48,150$33,710$80,700$38,947$37,107
Massachusetts23,350$48,110$34,700$75,340$38,430$36,338
North Dakota1,950$47,950$33,750$92,440$40,708$45,760
Illinois47,190$47,380$33,130$91,360$38,049$38,065
Oregon11,120$47,150$36,680$73,070$36,797$35,601
New Jersey33,900$46,820$34,750$71,070$38,374$35,268
California111,950$46,790$36,750$93,280$38,313$34,604
Montana2,960$46,420$33,470$93,770$38,053$40,206
New York56,490$46,330$34,070$72,890$37,270$34,535
New Hampshire4,670$46,260$30,640$63,770$39,350$37,777
Hawaii3,690$45,930$34,740$85,100$37,123$33,764
Utah9,930$45,860$33,970$64,670$37,594$38,026
Wisconsin19,140$45,670$30,340$72,860$37,512$39,867
Rhode Island3,110$45,660$31,200$72,810$37,270$36,439
Missouri16,210$45,500$29,370$93,710$37,538$41,334
Arizona18,400$45,140$34,660$92,590$37,715$37,462
Vermont2,050$45,090$30,720$65,130$37,333$38,111
Tennessee33,710$45,050$29,190$83,480$38,378$41,774
Indiana19,880$44,560$29,330$92,080$36,699$39,322
Maine3,120$44,550$31,310$93,670$36,387$37,493
Connecticut10,720$44,500$34,010$74,420$35,961$34,708
Idaho7,120$44,370$31,950$95,830$36,588$38,314
Nebraska4,210$44,120$29,710$92,370$36,503$40,512
Pennsylvania42,380$44,120$27,560$82,170$36,245$37,147
Georgia26,050$44,050$28,020$82,790$36,125$37,515
Delaware4,200$43,990$31,200$65,150$35,585$35,654
Wyoming1,450$43,780$27,530$94,640$37,357$40,303
Nevada9,520$43,760$31,270$69,690$37,341$37,349
Kansas9,140$43,730$27,410$70,620$35,677$39,611
South Dakota4,820$43,240$27,520$59,400$36,923$41,681
Kentucky15,630$43,230$26,780$84,040$35,520$39,397
Michigan26,160$43,000$29,470$83,460$35,154$36,536
Iowa9,680$42,750$29,600$92,460$35,557$40,515
Ohio35,130$42,600$27,460$63,740$35,681$38,460
Texas78,540$42,500$28,120$91,280$36,329$37,430
Virginia25,170$42,450$28,740$63,770$34,662$34,283
New Mexico4,220$42,360$30,590$58,320$35,362$38,349
Florida67,390$41,810$29,880$62,330$35,774$34,593
North Carolina31,810$39,910$26,490$61,340$33,164$35,159
Oklahoma10,020$39,840$24,960$91,780$32,944$37,503
Louisiana14,300$39,440$25,330$76,360$33,073$37,495
West Virginia3,330$38,860$23,950$93,790$32,397$36,199
Alabama13,980$38,490$27,100$78,240$31,544$35,513
Mississippi7,030$38,140$25,880$90,840$32,032$36,838
South Carolina11,950$37,680$23,500$62,870$32,005$34,139
Arkansas9,340$37,080$27,100$72,880$31,089$35,761
Virgin Islands80$31,180$26,830$49,480——
Guam350$25,100$21,890$32,820——
Puerto Rico5,760$24,430$21,840$32,310——

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 53-3033. *Our estimate for a single filer paid biweekly with no pre-tax deductions or local tax, 2026 federal and state rules. †Take-home ÷ BEA Regional Price Parity × 100 (2024 price levels).

Sources

  1. OEWS May 2025 (oesm25nat.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.
  2. OEWS May 2025 (oesm25st.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.