How much does a Truck Driver make in Maryland?

BLS reports a median annual wage of $57,180 for Truck Drivers in Maryland as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $48,250 and the 75th-percentile is $64,830.

What is the real (cost-adjusted) Truck Driver salary in Maryland?

After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 104.6 for Maryland), the real-wage equivalent is $54,664 — what the $57,180 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $46,127 to $61,978.

Why is the BEA RPP for Maryland different from a single CPI number?

BEA splits regional price parity into three components — goods, services, and rents — reweighted to the BEA's national consumption basket. Maryland's overall index of 104.6 reflects rents 119.9, services 108.7, and goods 103.2.

How wide is the wage spread in Maryland?

P10 to P90 spans $40,520 to $77,340. That spread captures entry-level to top-quartile pay, including specialty differentials and metro-area variance within the state.

Should I negotiate based on the BLS median for Maryland?

The BLS median is a calibration anchor, not a ceiling. Use it to validate that an offer is in-band — anything well below the P25 in this state is a flag, anything above the P75 typically requires demonstrable specialty depth, niche credentials, or a high-COL metro within Maryland.

OTR vs regional vs local truck driver pay in Maryland?

BLS aggregates Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers (53-3032) into one figure. In Maryland, OTR (over-the-road, multi-week trips) typically pays the highest gross — $65-90K range with experience — but on a real per-hour basis once away-from-home time is counted, regional (home weekly) and local/dedicated (home daily) routes often net comparable take-home. Local LTL and dedicated-fleet routes in Maryland frequently pay above the BLS median when union-represented (Teamsters).

Owner-operator vs company driver in Maryland — which actually nets more?

Gross revenue for an owner-operator in {state} can run $200K-$300K, but after truck payment, fuel, insurance, maintenance, and self-employment tax, net take-home typically lands $70-110K — modestly above company-driver pay but with substantially more risk and capital exposure. The owner-operator advantage is biggest for drivers with paid-off trucks or specialty routes (oversize, hazmat, refrigerated). Company-driver pay is the floor; owner-operator is volatile.

Truck Driver Pay in Maryland: $57K Median + Purchasing Power (2026)

TL;DR

BLS reports Maryland Truck Driver median pay at $57,180. Adjusted for state cost of living, real purchasing power equals $54,664.
Truck Driver ranking: #27 on the BLS table, #42 once cost of living is in.
Cost adjustment is small — neither an arbitrage state nor a high-cost penalty.
Bottom quartile $48,250, top quartile $64,830. The P90 ($77,340) is roughly 1.9× the P10 ($40,520).

Wage breakdown — Maryland

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$40,520	$38,737
P25 (lower quartile)	$48,250	$46,127
P50 (median)	$57,180	$54,664
P75 (upper quartile)	$64,830	$61,978
P90 (top tier)	$77,340	$73,937
Mean	$58,590	$56,012
Employment	23,910 Truck Drivers in Maryland

Cost of living — BEA Regional Price Parity

Component	Maryland index (US = 100)
All-items RPP	104.6
Goods	103.2
Services	108.7
Rents	119.9

Maryland's overall RPP (104.6) is close to the national 100 baseline; nominal and real wage move roughly together.

After-tax take-home — Maryland (2024 BLS · 2024 tax year, single filer)

Layer-by-layer take-home math at the BLS median

Layer	Amount	Note
Gross BLS P50 (Truck Driver)	$57,180	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$4,724	8.3% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	−$2,542	2–5.75% (graduated, +county piggyback 2.25–3.2%)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$4,374	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$45,540	79.6% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$43,536	÷ (104.6 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

What the Maryland state-tax burden means for Truck Driver take-home

Mid-band state-tax burden at 4.4% effective. Combined with federal and FICA, take-home is $45,540 (79.6% of gross). After the 104.6 RPP, real take-home is $43,536. Local-tax overlay: Maryland counties piggyback 2.25–3.2% on state liability — Baltimore City and Howard / Montgomery / PG counties at the top of the range.

Computed from 2026 IRS federal brackets (Rev. Proc. 2025-32), 2026 state DOR brackets, and 2026 FICA rates. Single filer, standard deduction, no other adjustments. See methodology · tax for limitations (married filers, ITM/SALT itemizers, retirement deferrals, HSA, dependent credits, etc.).

National context

Across the United States, BLS reports a national median of $57,440 for Truck Drivers with mean pay of $58,400 and total employment of 2,070,480. Maryland sits at #27 on nominal pay and #42 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, Maryland falls 15 positions — the cost premium eats into the headline wage.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a Truck Driver make in Maryland?: BLS reports a median annual wage of $57,180 for Truck Drivers in Maryland as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $48,250 and the 75th-percentile is $64,830.
What is the real (cost-adjusted) Truck Driver salary in Maryland?: After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 104.6 for Maryland), the real-wage equivalent is $54,664 — what the $57,180 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $46,127 to $61,978.
Why is the BEA RPP for Maryland different from a single CPI number?: BEA splits regional price parity into three components — goods, services, and rents — reweighted to the BEA's national consumption basket. Maryland's overall index of 104.6 reflects rents 119.9, services 108.7, and goods 103.2.
How wide is the wage spread in Maryland?: P10 to P90 spans $40,520 to $77,340. That spread captures entry-level to top-quartile pay, including specialty differentials and metro-area variance within the state.
Should I negotiate based on the BLS median for Maryland?: The BLS median is a calibration anchor, not a ceiling. Use it to validate that an offer is in-band — anything well below the P25 in this state is a flag, anything above the P75 typically requires demonstrable specialty depth, niche credentials, or a high-COL metro within Maryland.
OTR vs regional vs local truck driver pay in Maryland?: BLS aggregates Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers (53-3032) into one figure. In Maryland, OTR (over-the-road, multi-week trips) typically pays the highest gross — $65-90K range with experience — but on a real per-hour basis once away-from-home time is counted, regional (home weekly) and local/dedicated (home daily) routes often net comparable take-home. Local LTL and dedicated-fleet routes in Maryland frequently pay above the BLS median when union-represented (Teamsters).
Owner-operator vs company driver in Maryland — which actually nets more?: Gross revenue for an owner-operator in {state} can run $200K-$300K, but after truck payment, fuel, insurance, maintenance, and self-employment tax, net take-home typically lands $70-110K — modestly above company-driver pay but with substantially more risk and capital exposure. The owner-operator advantage is biggest for drivers with paid-off trucks or specialty routes (oversize, hazmat, refrigerated). Company-driver pay is the floor; owner-operator is volatile.

Sources & methodology

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES), SOC 53-3032, 2024 reference period.
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis — Regional Price Parities, 2023 vintage (all-items, goods, services, rents).
Real-wage figures = nominal BLS wage ÷ (state RPP / 100).
See the methodology page for full computation details and limitations.

By Marcus Liang · Founder & Editor · Last synced 2026-05-05.

Cross-comparison: see how Maryland Truck Driver pay ranks against the other 254 state × occupation pages on the Real Wage Atlas → — four-way ranking by real wage, after-tax take-home, state-tax savings, and cost-of-living arbitrage.