How To Become A Tractor-Trailer Driver: What It Is and Career Path

What is a tractor-trailer driver and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Tractor-trailer drivers transport materials, equipment, or product with heavy-duty vehicles to a designated destination. You will mostly transport bulk products through a long distance. As a tractor-trailer driver, you are In charge of your truck and the product you transport; hence, it is your responsibility to make sure the products are secured. You should also ensure that your truck is in good shape, and you should have a regular maintenance routine. Furthermore, you will keep records of the deliveries made and your hours on the road. You would also report any challenges to your superior and adhere to every rule mandated for you.

As a tractor-trailer driver, you should have time management skills, knowledge of route planning, organizational skills, communication skills, and you should be able to focus for a long period. You should have at least a high school diploma or GED, and a commercial driver's license is also needed. You will earn an average of $58,249 per year.

ScoreTractor-Trailer DriverUS Average

Salary

4.6

Avg. Salary $58,498

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

7.3

Growth rate 4%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

5.1

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.80%

Asian 3.60%

Black or African American 13.69%

Hispanic or Latino 17.98%

Unknown 4.66%

White 59.26%

Gender

female 6.75%

male 93.25%

Age - 49

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 49

Stress level

7.3

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

4.6

Complexity level is intermediate

7 - challenging

Work life balance

1.4

Work life balance is very poor

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a tractor-trailer driver

Explore tractor-trailer driver education requirements

Most common tractor-trailer driver degrees

High School Diploma

43.6 %

Associate

16.3 %

Diploma

13.7 %

Start to develop specific tractor-trailer driver skills

Skills	Percentages
DOT	38.27%
CDL	21.17%
OTR	14.90%
Customer Service	4.58%
Post-Trip Inspections	3.07%

Complete relevant tractor-trailer driver training and internships

Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New tractor-trailer drivers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a tractor-trailer driver based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real tractor-trailer driver resumes.

Obtain the necessary licensing

Becoming a licensed tractor-trailer driver usually doesn't require a college degree. However, you need to pass an exam to become a licensed tractor-trailer driver in most of states. 13 states require tractor-trailer drivers to have license for their work. You can see the list of states below.

State	Education	Exam	License url
Arkansas	Specific course required	State exam required	Commercial Driver (Tractor-Trailer Truck Driver)
California	-	State exam required	Commercial Driver License
Idaho	-	State exam required	Commercial Drivers
Massachusetts	-	State exam required	COMMERCIAL DRIVERS
Missouri	-	State exam required	Truck Drivers, Heavy and Tractor-Trailer

Research tractor-trailer driver duties and responsibilities

Experience in semi driving, logging, managing bills of lading, light maintenance, vehicle inspections.
Maintain air brake certification and CDL with tank endorsement.
Maintain communication with dispatcher via GPS capable cellular phones.
Lease purchase, OTR driver, all lower 48 and Canada.

Prepare your tractor-trailer driver resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your tractor-trailer driver resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a tractor-trailer driver resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable tractor-trailer driver resume templates

Build a professional tractor-trailer driver resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your tractor-trailer driver resume.

Apply for tractor-trailer driver jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a tractor-trailer driver job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do tractor-trailer drivers rate their job?

-/5

5 stars

4 stars

3 stars

2 stars

1 star

Tractor-trailer driver reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on Jan 2023

Pros

Flexible hours, you can kind of control your income, even travel to high demand areas (while traveling) to make bigger money. It’s just nice to be able to go almost anywhere and have an opportunity to make money.

A zippia user wrote a review on Dec 2022

Pros

Seeing different areas and being left alone. Meeting new people along the way.

Cons

Rough roads people that are texting while I'm driving down the road. At least 5 out of 10 drivers are texting.

A zippia user wrote a review on Feb 2022

Cons

Cinema

Pros

Experience 8 year GCC county almost work driving responsibility passenger drop location and food delivery timing driving delivery I am work hope

What is a tractor-trailer driver and how to become one

Tractor-trailer driver career paths

Key steps to become a tractor-trailer driver

Explore tractor-trailer driver education requirements

Most common tractor-trailer driver degrees

Start to develop specific tractor-trailer driver skills

Complete relevant tractor-trailer driver training and internships

Obtain the necessary licensing

Research tractor-trailer driver duties and responsibilities

Prepare your tractor-trailer driver resume

Choose from 10+ customizable tractor-trailer driver resume templates

Apply for tractor-trailer driver jobs

How did you land your first tractor-trailer driver job

Average tractor-trailer driver salary

How do tractor-trailer drivers rate their job?

Tractor-trailer driver reviews

Tractor-trailer driver jobs by state