How much does a Truck Driver make in Rhode Island?

BLS reports a median annual wage of $59,710 for Truck Drivers in Rhode Island as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $51,790 and the 75th-percentile is $64,690.

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

After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 102.1 for Rhode Island), the real-wage equivalent is $58,502 — what the $59,710 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $50,742 to $63,381.

What does the top of the Truck Driver pay scale look like in Rhode Island?

The 90th percentile lands at $74,840. That tier typically reflects senior roles, specialty certifications, high-cost-of-living metros within the state, or union-negotiated rate cards. Below that, the P75 quartile is $64,690.

How wide is the wage spread in Rhode Island?

P10 to P90 spans $46,860 to $74,840. That spread captures entry-level to top-quartile pay, including specialty differentials and metro-area variance within the state.

Is Rhode Island a 'real-wage arbitrage' state for Truck Drivers?

No — Rhode Island's RPP is close to the national 100 baseline, so nominal and real wages move roughly together. Neither an arbitrage nor a penalty state.

When does this data update?

BLS OES releases a new May reference set roughly each spring; we re-run the ETL pipeline within two weeks of release. BEA RPP refreshes annually. The last-synced timestamp at the top of this page reflects the most recent build.

Owner-operator vs company driver in Rhode Island — 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.

How Much Do Truck Drivers Make in Rhode Island? $60K (2026 BLS + BEA)

TL;DR

Rhode Island pays Truck Drivers a BLS median of $59,710 — the more useful number is $58,502, what that paycheck buys after rent and services.
Cost of living tracks roughly with the national index, so nominal and real wages stay close.
Bottom quartile $51,790, top quartile $64,690. The P90 ($74,840) is roughly 1.6× the P10 ($46,860).
Truck Driver ranking: #15 on the BLS table, #25 once cost of living is in.

Wage breakdown — Rhode Island

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$46,860	$45,912
P25 (lower quartile)	$51,790	$50,742
P50 (median)	$59,710	$58,502
P75 (upper quartile)	$64,690	$63,381
P90 (top tier)	$74,840	$73,326
Mean	$59,870	$58,659
Employment	3,260 Truck Drivers in Rhode Island

Cost of living — BEA Regional Price Parity

Component	Rhode Island index (US = 100)
All-items RPP	102.1
Goods	98.3
Services	145.1
Rents	102.7

Rhode Island's overall RPP (102.1) is close to the national 100 baseline; nominal and real wage move roughly together.

After-tax take-home — Rhode Island (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)	$59,710	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$5,027	8.4% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	−$1,844	3.75–5.99% (graduated)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$4,568	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$48,271	80.8% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$47,295	÷ (102.1 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

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

Mid-band state-tax burden at 3.1% effective. Combined with federal and FICA, take-home is $48,271 (80.8% of gross). After the 102.1 RPP, real take-home is $47,295.

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. Rhode Island sits at #15 on nominal pay and #25 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, Rhode Island falls 10 positions — the cost premium eats into the headline wage.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a Truck Driver make in Rhode Island?: BLS reports a median annual wage of $59,710 for Truck Drivers in Rhode Island as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $51,790 and the 75th-percentile is $64,690.
What is the real (cost-adjusted) Truck Driver salary in Rhode Island?: After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 102.1 for Rhode Island), the real-wage equivalent is $58,502 — what the $59,710 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $50,742 to $63,381.
What does the top of the Truck Driver pay scale look like in Rhode Island?: The 90th percentile lands at $74,840. That tier typically reflects senior roles, specialty certifications, high-cost-of-living metros within the state, or union-negotiated rate cards. Below that, the P75 quartile is $64,690.
How wide is the wage spread in Rhode Island?: P10 to P90 spans $46,860 to $74,840. That spread captures entry-level to top-quartile pay, including specialty differentials and metro-area variance within the state.
Is Rhode Island a 'real-wage arbitrage' state for Truck Drivers?: No — Rhode Island's RPP is close to the national 100 baseline, so nominal and real wages move roughly together. Neither an arbitrage nor a penalty state.
When does this data update?: BLS OES releases a new May reference set roughly each spring; we re-run the ETL pipeline within two weeks of release. BEA RPP refreshes annually. The last-synced timestamp at the top of this page reflects the most recent build.
Owner-operator vs company driver in Rhode Island — 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 Rhode Island 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.