Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
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Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2021
53-3033 Light Truck Drivers
Drive a light vehicle, such as a truck or van, with a capacity of less than 26,001 pounds Gross Vehicle Weight (GVW), primarily to pick up merchandise or packages from a distribution center and deliver. May load and unload vehicle. Excludes “Couriers and Messengers” (43-5021) and “Driver/Sales Workers” (53-3031).
National estimates for Light Truck Drivers
Industry profile for Light Truck Drivers
Geographic profile for Light Truck Drivers
National estimates for Light Truck Drivers:
Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Light Truck Drivers:
| Employment (1) |
Employment
RSE (3) |
Mean hourly
wage |
Mean annual
wage (2) |
Wage RSE (3) |
| 1,010,040 |
0.7 % |
$ 20.50 |
$ 42,630 |
0.3 % |
Percentile wage estimates for Light Truck Drivers:
| Percentile |
10% |
25% |
50%
(Median) |
75% |
90% |
| Hourly Wage |
$ 11.72 |
$ 14.59 |
$ 18.40 |
$ 23.46 |
$ 31.49 |
| Annual Wage (2) |
$ 24,380 |
$ 30,350 |
$ 38,280 |
$ 48,790 |
$ 65,500 |
Industry profile for Light Truck Drivers:
Industries with the highest published employment and wages for Light Truck Drivers are provided.
For a list of all industries with employment in Light Truck Drivers, see the Create Customized Tables function.
Industries with the highest levels of employment in Light Truck Drivers:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Couriers and Express Delivery Services |
309,410 |
33.37 |
$ 26.67 |
$ 55,480 |
| Local Messengers and Local Delivery |
91,430 |
56.27 |
$ 18.70 |
$ 38,900 |
| Automotive Parts, Accessories, and Tire Stores |
67,110 |
12.37 |
$ 12.44 |
$ 25,880 |
| Truck Transportation |
57,460 |
3.85 |
$ 21.73 |
$ 45,200 |
| Merchant Wholesalers, Durable Goods (4232, 4233, 4235, 4236, 4237, and 4239 only) |
39,800 |
2.90 |
$ 19.12 |
$ 39,770 |
Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Light Truck Drivers:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Local Messengers and Local Delivery |
91,430 |
56.27 |
$ 18.70 |
$ 38,900 |
| Couriers and Express Delivery Services |
309,410 |
33.37 |
$ 26.67 |
$ 55,480 |
| Florists |
7,590 |
13.88 |
$ 13.16 |
$ 27,380 |
| Automotive Parts, Accessories, and Tire Stores |
67,110 |
12.37 |
$ 12.44 |
$ 25,880 |
| Motor Vehicle and Motor Vehicle Parts and Supplies Merchant Wholesalers |
28,760 |
8.47 |
$ 14.96 |
$ 31,110 |
Top paying industries for Light Truck Drivers:
Geographic profile for Light Truck Drivers:
States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for Light Truck Drivers are provided.
For a list of all areas with employment in Light Truck Drivers, see the Create Customized Tables function.
States with the highest employment level in Light Truck Drivers:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| California |
121,060 |
7.32 |
1.02 |
$ 22.28 |
$ 46,350 |
| Texas |
76,310 |
6.24 |
0.87 |
$ 20.19 |
$ 41,990 |
| Florida |
59,380 |
6.90 |
0.96 |
$ 18.84 |
$ 39,190 |
| Illinois |
57,470 |
10.23 |
1.43 |
$ 22.27 |
$ 46,320 |
| New York |
53,340 |
6.15 |
0.86 |
$ 21.31 |
$ 44,320 |
States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Light Truck Drivers:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Tennessee |
35,220 |
11.79 |
1.64 |
$ 20.09 |
$ 41,780 |
| Illinois |
57,470 |
10.23 |
1.43 |
$ 22.27 |
$ 46,320 |
| Maryland |
25,190 |
9.89 |
1.38 |
$ 22.01 |
$ 45,780 |
| Louisiana |
16,850 |
9.40 |
1.31 |
$ 17.52 |
$ 36,430 |
| South Dakota |
3,940 |
9.36 |
1.31 |
$ 18.96 |
$ 39,440 |
Top paying states for Light Truck Drivers:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Alaska |
1,520 |
5.15 |
0.72 |
$ 23.24 |
$ 48,340 |
| New Jersey |
22,970 |
5.97 |
0.83 |
$ 22.88 |
$ 47,590 |
| District of Columbia |
870 |
1.31 |
0.18 |
$ 22.52 |
$ 46,840 |
| California |
121,060 |
7.32 |
1.02 |
$ 22.28 |
$ 46,350 |
| Illinois |
57,470 |
10.23 |
1.43 |
$ 22.27 |
$ 46,320 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Light Truck Drivers:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA |
51,360 |
5.92 |
0.83 |
$ 22.79 |
$ 47,410 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
44,570 |
7.79 |
1.09 |
$ 21.93 |
$ 45,620 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI |
40,680 |
9.61 |
1.34 |
$ 23.12 |
$ 48,090 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX |
25,150 |
7.01 |
0.98 |
$ 21.04 |
$ 43,750 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA |
19,740 |
7.63 |
1.06 |
$ 19.29 |
$ 40,120 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD |
19,720 |
7.43 |
1.04 |
$ 21.28 |
$ 44,250 |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX |
18,730 |
6.46 |
0.90 |
$ 20.85 |
$ 43,380 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL |
18,070 |
7.37 |
1.03 |
$ 19.63 |
$ 40,820 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH |
16,940 |
6.55 |
0.91 |
$ 22.68 |
$ 47,160 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA |
16,490 |
7.36 |
1.03 |
$ 24.79 |
$ 51,560 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Light Truck Drivers:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV |
2,370 |
24.15 |
3.37 |
$ 23.04 |
$ 47,920 |
| Memphis, TN-MS-AR |
11,710 |
19.36 |
2.70 |
$ 22.87 |
$ 47,560 |
| Muskegon, MI |
860 |
15.11 |
2.11 |
$ 15.44 |
$ 32,110 |
| Ocala, FL |
1,470 |
13.84 |
1.93 |
$ 17.96 |
$ 37,350 |
| Bangor, ME |
860 |
13.79 |
1.92 |
$ 18.65 |
$ 38,800 |
| Rockford, IL |
1,700 |
12.89 |
1.80 |
$ 21.35 |
$ 44,410 |
| Lewiston-Auburn, ME |
610 |
12.75 |
1.78 |
$ 20.66 |
$ 42,970 |
| Lebanon, PA |
610 |
12.46 |
1.74 |
(8) |
(8) |
| Decatur, IL |
540 |
11.88 |
1.66 |
$ 22.81 |
$ 47,440 |
| Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN |
11,520 |
11.80 |
1.65 |
$ 19.40 |
$ 40,350 |
Top paying metropolitan areas for Light Truck Drivers:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA |
5,740 |
5.37 |
0.75 |
$ 24.93 |
$ 51,860 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA |
16,490 |
7.36 |
1.03 |
$ 24.79 |
$ 51,560 |
| Waterbury, CT |
620 |
9.67 |
1.35 |
$ 24.09 |
$ 50,100 |
| Anchorage, AK |
1,140 |
7.03 |
0.98 |
$ 24.05 |
$ 50,020 |
| Santa Rosa, CA |
1,330 |
6.93 |
0.97 |
$ 23.77 |
$ 49,440 |
| Flagstaff, AZ |
270 |
4.67 |
0.65 |
$ 23.33 |
$ 48,530 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI |
40,680 |
9.61 |
1.34 |
$ 23.12 |
$ 48,090 |
| Gainesville, GA |
850 |
9.46 |
1.32 |
$ 23.10 |
$ 48,040 |
| Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV |
2,370 |
24.15 |
3.37 |
$ 23.04 |
$ 47,920 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV |
15,580 |
5.31 |
0.74 |
$ 23.01 |
$ 47,850 |
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in Light Truck Drivers:
| Nonmetropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| West Central Illinois nonmetropolitan area |
2,050 |
12.94 |
1.80 |
$ 19.52 |
$ 40,600 |
| Kansas nonmetropolitan area |
1,740 |
4.64 |
0.65 |
$ 17.43 |
$ 36,240 |
| Southeast Coastal North Carolina nonmetropolitan area |
1,580 |
6.58 |
0.92 |
$ 15.33 |
$ 31,890 |
| Piedmont North Carolina nonmetropolitan area |
1,520 |
6.22 |
0.87 |
$ 16.71 |
$ 34,750 |
| Northeastern Wisconsin nonmetropolitan area |
1,510 |
7.91 |
1.10 |
$ 19.90 |
$ 41,400 |
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Light Truck Drivers:
Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for Light Truck Drivers:
About May 2021 National, State, Metropolitan, and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors, all metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas, and all states and the District of Columbia.
The top employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable XLS files.
The percentile wage estimate is the value of a wage below which a certain percent of workers fall.
The median wage is the 50th percentile wage estimate—50 percent of workers earn less than the median and 50 percent of workers earn more than the median.
More about percentile wages.
(1) Estimates for detailed occupations do not sum to the totals because the totals include occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers.
(2) Annual wages have been calculated by multiplying the hourly mean wage by a "year-round, full-time" hours figure of 2,080 hours;
for those occupations where there is not an hourly wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data.
(3) The relative standard error (RSE) is a measure of the reliability of a survey statistic. The smaller the relative standard error, the more precise the estimate.
(8) Estimate not released.
(9) The location quotient is the ratio of the area concentration of occupational employment to the national average concentration.
A location quotient greater than one indicates the occupation has a higher share of employment than average, and a location quotient less than one indicates the occupation is less prevalent in the area than average.
Other OEWS estimates and related information:
May 2021 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2021 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2021 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2021 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2021 Occupation Profiles
Technical Notes
Last Modified Date: March 31, 2022
United States Department of Labor
