How much does a Truck Driver make in Tennessee?

BLS reports a median annual wage of $55,610 for Truck Drivers in Tennessee as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $46,130 and the 75th-percentile is $70,600.

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

After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 92.1 for Tennessee), the real-wage equivalent is $60,384 — what the $55,610 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $50,090 to $76,661.

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

The 90th percentile lands at $80,000. 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 $70,600.

How many Truck Drivers does Tennessee employ?

BLS OES counts 63,130 Truck Drivers employed in Tennessee in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.

Where does Tennessee rank for Truck Driver pay?

On nominal BLS wages alone, Tennessee ranks among the 51 states and DC by median pay. After the BEA cost-of-living adjustment the ordering changes — high-cost states fall, low-cost states rise. Both rankings are shown in the data table on this page.

What are the limits of these Truck Driver salary numbers?

BLS OES is an employer survey of W-2 wages — it excludes contractor pay, bonuses outside the base wage definition, equity compensation, and tip income. Self-employed practitioners and gig workers are not represented. For occupations with significant non-W-2 income, the BLS figure is a floor, not a complete picture.

Should I negotiate based on the BLS median for Tennessee?

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 Tennessee.

Truck Driver Salary in Tennessee (2026): $56K Median, BEA RPP-Adjusted

TL;DR

Tennessee pays Truck Drivers a BLS median of $55,610 — the more useful number is $60,384, what that paycheck buys after rent and services.
Cost of living below the national index lifts real wage by $4,774 over the nominal — a take-home arbitrage that nominal-ranking tables miss.
BLS percentile breakdown: P10 $38,380 · P25 $46,130 · P75 $70,600 · P90 $80,000.
State ranks #32 nationally on nominal wage, #17 on real (RPP-adjusted) wage.

Wage breakdown — Tennessee

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$38,380	$41,675
P25 (lower quartile)	$46,130	$50,090
P50 (median)	$55,610	$60,384
P75 (upper quartile)	$70,600	$76,661
P90 (top tier)	$80,000	$86,868
Mean	$57,670	$62,621
Employment	63,130 Truck Drivers in Tennessee

Cost of living — BEA Regional Price Parity

Component	Tennessee index (US = 100)
All-items RPP	92.1
Goods	94.3
Services	76.4
Rents	77.9

Tennessee sits below the national baseline (RPP 92.1), so nominal pay translates to a higher real wage than the BLS median suggests — particularly visible in rents at 77.9.

After-tax take-home — Tennessee (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)	$55,610	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$4,535	8.2% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	$0	no state income tax (Hall tax repealed 2021)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$4,254	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$46,821	84.2% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$50,840	÷ (92.1 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

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

Tennessee levies no state income tax on wages, which is worth roughly $2,781 a year for a Truck Driver at the BLS median compared with the national-average state burden (≈5%). After the favorable cost of living, real take-home is $50,840 — higher than the nominal after-tax figure because RPP is below 100.

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. Tennessee sits at #32 on nominal pay and #17 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, Tennessee climbs 15 positions — the cost of living is favorable relative to the wage.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a Truck Driver make in Tennessee?: BLS reports a median annual wage of $55,610 for Truck Drivers in Tennessee as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $46,130 and the 75th-percentile is $70,600.
What is the real (cost-adjusted) Truck Driver salary in Tennessee?: After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 92.1 for Tennessee), the real-wage equivalent is $60,384 — what the $55,610 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $50,090 to $76,661.
What does the top of the Truck Driver pay scale look like in Tennessee?: The 90th percentile lands at $80,000. 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 $70,600.
How many Truck Drivers does Tennessee employ?: BLS OES counts 63,130 Truck Drivers employed in Tennessee in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.
Where does Tennessee rank for Truck Driver pay?: On nominal BLS wages alone, Tennessee ranks among the 51 states and DC by median pay. After the BEA cost-of-living adjustment the ordering changes — high-cost states fall, low-cost states rise. Both rankings are shown in the data table on this page.
What are the limits of these Truck Driver salary numbers?: BLS OES is an employer survey of W-2 wages — it excludes contractor pay, bonuses outside the base wage definition, equity compensation, and tip income. Self-employed practitioners and gig workers are not represented. For occupations with significant non-W-2 income, the BLS figure is a floor, not a complete picture.
Should I negotiate based on the BLS median for Tennessee?: 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 Tennessee.

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 Tennessee 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.