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The differences between lead drivers and route drivers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a route driver has an average salary of $45,492, which is higher than the $43,769 average annual salary of a lead driver.
The top three skills for a lead driver include DOT, work ethic and CDL. The most important skills for a route driver are CDL, DOT, and pickup.
| Lead Driver | Route Driver | |
| Yearly salary | $43,769 | $45,492 |
| Hourly rate | $21.04 | $21.87 |
| Growth rate | 4% | 11% |
| Number of jobs | 821,463 | 266,899 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 40% | High School Diploma, 47% |
| Average age | 48 | 48 |
| Years of experience | 2 | - |
Lead drivers are professionals who are responsible for supervising the staff drivers of either a logistics or trucking company. These lead drivers must manage the communication between drivers and personnel while generating dispatch reports base on their drivers' tracking logs. They must ensure that vehicles are fit for use according to the standards of the Department of Transportation (DOT) by checking engines and maintaining sufficient fluid levels of all vehicles. Lead drivers must also train and supervise new drivers about the company's policy and safety regulations.
A Route Driver is responsible for delivering and transporting supplies or goods within an allotted time. The tasks will vary upon the organization or industry that a Route Driver works for, however, most of the time, the duties will revolve around picking up and dropping off packages at particular destinations ranging from homes to establishments, and communicating with customers. Furthermore, Route Drivers must keep their vehicles in clean and sound condition, report to supervisors should there be any issue, and adhere to the company policies and regulations at all times.
Lead drivers and route drivers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Lead Driver | Route Driver | |
| Average salary | $43,769 | $45,492 |
| Salary range | Between $27,000 And $68,000 | Between $30,000 And $67,000 |
| Highest paying City | Newark, NJ | Boston, MA |
| Highest paying state | New Hampshire | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | Univar | Blank Rome |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Manufacturing |
There are a few differences between a lead driver and a route driver in terms of educational background:
| Lead Driver | Route Driver | |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 40% | High School Diploma, 47% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between lead drivers' and route drivers' demographics:
| Lead Driver | Route Driver | |
| Average age | 48 | 48 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 86.7% Female, 13.3% | Male, 90.6% Female, 9.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 12.3% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 20.9% Asian, 3.4% White, 58.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% | Black or African American, 12.2% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 18.2% Asian, 3.8% White, 60.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% |
| LGBT Percentage | 4% | 4% |