Research Summary. After extensive research by the Zippia data science team, we identified these details of driver salary by state for the United States:
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Vermont has the highest driver salary of $42,781
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Florida has the lowest driver salary of $27,301
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The national average salary for drivers is $34,771
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The national hourly pay for drivers is $16.72
You can read more on the specific methodology.
Background
Without fail, in surveys across basically every demographic, the number one most important aspect of a job for most people is the salary — how much do drivers get paid where I live?
And while there are many things to go into how much you, specifically, can expect to make, there’s really good data for average salaries for driver by state across America broken down by seniority level. So while your city may be slightly different than the state average, these averages give you a rough sense of what to expect for your salary.
The state with the best salary for drivers after this adjustment? That would be Vermont.
Here’s a quick snapshot of the top ten states for driver salaries:
Let’s take a look at how we got here and a full ranking of all the states.
Highest-Paid Drivers By State
| Rank | State | Average Driver Salary | 10th Percentile | 90th Percentile |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vermont | $42,781 | $24,000 | $74,000 |
| 2 | Massachusetts | $42,496 | $24,000 | $74,000 |
| 3 | New Jersey | $41,516 | $23,000 | $72,000 |
| 4 | New York | $41,316 | $23,000 | $72,000 |
| 5 | Washington | $40,614 | $27,000 | $59,000 |
| 6 | Connecticut | $40,527 | $23,000 | $70,000 |
| 7 | Rhode Island | $40,449 | $23,000 | $70,000 |
| 8 | Oregon | $40,433 | $27,000 | $59,000 |
| 9 | California | $40,250 | $26,000 | $62,000 |
| 10 | Iowa | $38,851 | $23,000 | $63,000 |
| 11 | Michigan | $37,482 | $22,000 | $63,000 |
| 12 | Montana | $37,359 | $25,000 | $55,000 |
| 13 | Maine | $36,985 | $21,000 | $63,000 |
| 14 | Alaska | $36,975 | $26,000 | $52,000 |
| 15 | Hawaii | $35,994 | $26,000 | $48,000 |
| 16 | Minnesota | $35,469 | $21,000 | $57,000 |
| 17 | Indiana | $35,390 | $21,000 | $59,000 |
| 18 | Illinois | $35,352 | $21,000 | $58,000 |
| 19 | Virginia | $35,190 | $20,000 | $60,000 |
| 20 | Delaware | $35,034 | $20,000 | $60,000 |
| 21 | Wisconsin | $34,946 | $21,000 | $58,000 |
| 22 | New Hampshire | $34,889 | $19,000 | $61,000 |
| 23 | Alabama | $33,989 | $20,000 | $56,000 |
| 24 | Pennsylvania | $33,976 | $19,000 | $58,000 |
| 25 | Maryland | $33,556 | $19,000 | $57,000 |
| 26 | Nevada | $33,176 | $21,000 | $50,000 |
| 27 | Louisiana | $32,727 | $19,000 | $54,000 |
| 28 | New Mexico | $32,628 | $20,000 | $50,000 |
| 29 | Arizona | $32,627 | $20,000 | $50,000 |
| 30 | Texas | $32,311 | $19,000 | $52,000 |
| 31 | Colorado | $32,073 | $21,000 | $48,000 |
| 32 | Kentucky | $32,017 | $19,000 | $53,000 |
| 33 | Oklahoma | $31,828 | $19,000 | $50,000 |
| 34 | Kansas | $31,698 | $19,000 | $50,000 |
| 35 | West Virginia | $31,646 | $18,000 | $53,000 |
| 36 | Idaho | $31,587 | $21,000 | $46,000 |
| 37 | Georgia | $31,360 | $18,000 | $52,000 |
| 38 | Arkansas | $31,046 | $19,000 | $50,000 |
| 39 | Tennessee | $31,005 | $18,000 | $51,000 |
| 40 | North Dakota | $30,849 | $19,000 | $48,000 |
| 41 | South Dakota | $30,661 | $19,000 | $48,000 |
| 42 | Utah | $30,543 | $20,000 | $45,000 |
| 43 | Missouri | $30,462 | $18,000 | $49,000 |
| 44 | Wyoming | $30,113 | $20,000 | $45,000 |
| 45 | Ohio | $30,110 | $17,000 | $51,000 |
| 46 | South Carolina | $27,966 | $16,000 | $47,000 |
| 47 | Nebraska | $27,858 | $17,000 | $44,000 |
| 48 | North Carolina | $27,805 | $16,000 | $47,000 |
| 49 | Mississippi | $27,676 | $16,000 | $45,000 |
| 50 | Florida | $27,301 | $16,000 | $46,000 |
Methodology: Driver Salary By State
To better understand driver pay by state, Zippia has aggregated data across a multitude of channels including the BLS, FLC, and OPM. We then supplement that data with actual listed salaries from job posts. Finally, the data science team calculates a weighted average of these inputs to create an average pay for drivers by state.
We took the average annual salary data for drivers from these estimates and ranked every state on this criteria with the state with the highest salary ranking as highest average salary for drivers.
Driver Salary By State FAQs
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What is the highest-paid state for drivers?
The highest-paid state for drivers is Vermont with an average salary of $42,781 per year.
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What city pays drivers the most?
Boston, MA pays drivers the most with an average salary of $42,446 per year.
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What is the worst state for drivers?
The worst state for drivers is Florida with an average salary of $27,301 per year.
Author
Chris Kolmar is a co-founder of Zippia and the editor-in-chief of the Zippia career advice blog. He has hired over 50 people in his career, been hired five times, and wants to help you land your next job. His research has been featured on the New York Times, Thrillist, VOX, The Atlantic, and a host of local news. More recently, he's been quoted on USA Today, BusinessInsider, and CNBC.
