Career
Light truck drivers
Deliver packages and goods locally.
$44,860
Median pay
+6.3%
Job growth, 2025–35
107,200
Openings a year
High school diploma or equivalent
Typical education
None required
Typical time after high school
Here's what you actually need to know.
The work
What people in this job do
- Obey traffic laws and follow established traffic and transportation procedures.
- Report any mechanical problems encountered with vehicles.
- Verify the contents of inventory loads against shipping papers.
- Inspect and maintain vehicle supplies and equipment, such as gas, oil, water, tires, lights, or brakes, to ensure that vehicles are in proper working condition.
- Read maps and follow written or verbal geographic directions.
The outlook
How the forecast changed this year
The deeper question
What kind of person does this path ask you to become?
What this work centers on
O*NET interest profile, scored 1–7.
The work
Do you want most of your days spent on objects & tools, then information & systems?
Responsibility
Are you willing to be the one responsible for this?
“Obey traffic laws and follow established traffic and transportation procedures.”
Development
What would you need to build over the next 5–10 years?
Reading Comprehension, Active Listening, Speaking, Operation and Control.
Trade-offs
What does it ask of you in exchange?
No degree beyond high school, though short-term on-the-job training is typical, for a median of $44,860 a year and 107,200 openings nationally each year.
Paths in
Degrees that lead here
- Truck and Bus Driver/Commercial Vehicle Operator and InstructorCIP 49.0205
Paths across
Careers that use similar skills
- Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers$58,640 · +3.8%
- Driver/Sales Workers$38,770 · +7.9%
- Couriers and Messengers$39,200 · +8.0%
- Shuttle Drivers and Chauffeurs$37,290 · +7.1%
- Taxi Drivers$42,100 · +11.5%
Ask anything about this career.
“Would this make sense if I don't want to sit at a desk all day?” Answers will come from the sources on this page, with citations. Coming soon.
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Sources
- BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- BLS Employment Projections, 2024–34 (archived), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- O*NET 31.0 Database (August 2026), National Center for O*NET Development / U.S. Department of Labor. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 Crosswalk, NCES and BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-01.