Research Summary. After extensive research by the Zippia data science team, we identified these details of bus driver salary by state for the United States:
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Massachusetts has the highest bus driver salary of $43,160
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Tennessee has the lowest bus driver salary of $29,210
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The national average salary for bus drivers is $36,879
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The national hourly pay for bus drivers is $17.73
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 bus 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 bus 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 bus drivers after this adjustment? That would be Massachusetts.
Here’s a quick snapshot of the top ten states for bus driver salaries:
Let’s take a look at how we got here and a full ranking of all the states.
Highest-Paid Bus Drivers By State
| Rank | State | Average Bus Driver Salary | 10th Percentile | 90th Percentile |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Massachusetts | $43,160 | $36,000 | $51,000 |
| 2 | Connecticut | $43,027 | $35,000 | $52,000 |
| 3 | Washington | $42,308 | $35,000 | $50,000 |
| 4 | Vermont | $42,296 | $36,000 | $49,000 |
| 5 | New Hampshire | $41,665 | $35,000 | $49,000 |
| 6 | Alaska | $39,746 | $36,000 | $43,000 |
| 7 | California | $39,594 | $31,000 | $49,000 |
| 8 | Wyoming | $39,205 | $32,000 | $47,000 |
| 9 | New York | $39,144 | $31,000 | $48,000 |
| 10 | Wisconsin | $38,865 | $31,000 | $47,000 |
| 11 | New Jersey | $38,851 | $31,000 | $48,000 |
| 12 | North Dakota | $38,704 | $32,000 | $45,000 |
| 13 | Oregon | $38,113 | $31,000 | $46,000 |
| 14 | Pennsylvania | $38,108 | $30,000 | $47,000 |
| 15 | Rhode Island | $38,068 | $31,000 | $46,000 |
| 16 | Maine | $37,827 | $32,000 | $43,000 |
| 17 | Minnesota | $37,375 | $31,000 | $45,000 |
| 18 | Colorado | $36,877 | $30,000 | $45,000 |
| 19 | Montana | $36,853 | $30,000 | $43,000 |
| 20 | Idaho | $36,579 | $30,000 | $44,000 |
| 21 | Maryland | $35,971 | $28,000 | $44,000 |
| 22 | South Dakota | $35,868 | $29,000 | $43,000 |
| 23 | Michigan | $35,733 | $29,000 | $43,000 |
| 24 | Arizona | $35,704 | $28,000 | $44,000 |
| 25 | Hawaii | $35,663 | $30,000 | $41,000 |
| 26 | Utah | $35,517 | $28,000 | $43,000 |
| 27 | Texas | $35,226 | $27,000 | $44,000 |
| 28 | Virginia | $35,198 | $27,000 | $44,000 |
| 29 | Nevada | $34,916 | $28,000 | $43,000 |
| 30 | West Virginia | $34,844 | $27,000 | $43,000 |
| 31 | Ohio | $34,767 | $28,000 | $42,000 |
| 32 | Iowa | $34,456 | $28,000 | $42,000 |
| 33 | Kentucky | $33,979 | $27,000 | $42,000 |
| 34 | Delaware | $33,917 | $27,000 | $42,000 |
| 35 | Illinois | $33,909 | $27,000 | $41,000 |
| 36 | Kansas | $33,551 | $27,000 | $41,000 |
| 37 | Alabama | $33,454 | $26,000 | $42,000 |
| 38 | New Mexico | $33,418 | $26,000 | $41,000 |
| 39 | Arkansas | $33,382 | $26,000 | $41,000 |
| 40 | Missouri | $33,039 | $26,000 | $41,000 |
| 41 | Indiana | $32,937 | $26,000 | $40,000 |
| 42 | South Carolina | $32,755 | $25,000 | $41,000 |
| 43 | Louisiana | $32,484 | $25,000 | $41,000 |
| 44 | North Carolina | $32,238 | $25,000 | $40,000 |
| 45 | Oklahoma | $32,159 | $25,000 | $40,000 |
| 46 | Georgia | $32,106 | $25,000 | $40,000 |
| 47 | Florida | $30,899 | $23,000 | $40,000 |
| 48 | Mississippi | $30,845 | $24,000 | $39,000 |
| 49 | Nebraska | $30,419 | $24,000 | $37,000 |
| 50 | Tennessee | $29,210 | $23,000 | $36,000 |
Methodology: Bus Driver Salary By State
To better understand bus 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 bus drivers by state.
We took the average annual salary data for bus drivers from these estimates and ranked every state on this criteria with the state with the highest salary ranking as highest average salary for bus drivers.
Bus Driver Salary By State FAQs
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What is the highest-paid state for bus drivers?
The highest-paid state for bus drivers is Massachusetts with an average salary of $43,160 per year.
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What city pays bus drivers the most?
Nashua, NH pays bus drivers the most with an average salary of $41,569 per year.
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What is the worst state for bus drivers?
The worst state for bus drivers is Tennessee with an average salary of $29,210 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.
