Certified forklift driver vs lift truck operator

The differences between certified forklift drivers and lift truck operators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a certified forklift driver and a lift truck operator. Additionally, a lift truck operator has an average salary of $36,973, which is higher than the $32,915 average annual salary of a certified forklift driver.

The top three skills for a certified forklift driver include pallets, safety procedures and pallet jack. The most important skills for a lift truck operator are pallets, safety procedures, and load trailers.

Certified forklift driver vs lift truck operator overview

	Certified Forklift Driver	Lift Truck Operator
Yearly salary	$32,915	$36,973
Hourly rate	$15.82	$17.78
Growth rate	7%	7%
Number of jobs	115,640	103,337
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 55%	High School Diploma, 53%
Average age	43	43
Years of experience	4	4

Certified forklift driver vs lift truck operator salary

Certified forklift drivers and lift truck operators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Certified Forklift Driver	Lift Truck Operator
Average salary	$32,915	$36,973
Salary range	Between $27,000 And $40,000	Between $29,000 And $46,000
Highest paying City	-	Springfield, OR
Highest paying state	-	Alaska
Best paying company	-	Nestlé
Best paying industry	-	Finance

Differences between certified forklift driver and lift truck operator education

There are a few differences between a certified forklift driver and a lift truck operator in terms of educational background:

	Certified Forklift Driver	Lift Truck Operator
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 55%	High School Diploma, 53%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Certified forklift driver vs lift truck operator demographics

Here are the differences between certified forklift drivers' and lift truck operators' demographics:

	Certified Forklift Driver	Lift Truck Operator
Average age	43	43
Gender ratio	Male, 88.6% Female, 11.4%	Male, 89.7% Female, 10.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 16.2% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 19.6% Asian, 2.4% White, 56.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%	Black or African American, 16.6% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 18.5% Asian, 2.4% White, 57.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage	4%	4%

Differences between certified forklift driver and lift truck operator duties and responsibilities

Certified forklift driver example responsibilities.

Maintain a clean and safe work environment daily by removing empty pallets, wood, plastic and other unuse raw materials.
Unload trucks and repair damaged pallets repacked damage products
Handle emergency hazmat situations requiring quick decision making skills.
Move palletize inbound/outbound freight to assign locations using WMS system

Lift truck operator example responsibilities.

Certify on stand up/sit down forks, clamps, slip sheets and cherry picker
Used WMS system to adjust inventory, either in, out, or amounts.
Perform trailer inspections, loading and unloading inventory, RFT scanner experience, WMS.
Relocate pallets from receiving dock to desire location within warehouse.
Maintain accurate and timely documentation as is required by organization and OSHA.
Load and unload items from machines and dollies.

Certified forklift driver vs lift truck operator skills

Common certified forklift driver skills

Pallets, 16%
Safety Procedures, 15%
Pallet Jack, 13%
Production Lines, 12%
RF Scanner, 6%
Load Trucks, 6%

Common lift truck operator skills

Pallets, 18%
Safety Procedures, 11%
Load Trailers, 6%
AS400, 5%
Electric Pallet Jack, 5%
Forks, 4%

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Transportation Industry
Certified Forklift Driver
Certified Forklift Driver vs Lift Truck Operator

Updated January 8, 2025

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