Heavy & Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers salary in Cleveland, OH
Median pay for heavy & tractor-trailer truck drivers in Cleveland, OH: $55,030/yr
Typical range (10th–90th percentile): $40,010 – $76,670 · about 13,320 employed locally
Above the typical metro median ($51,330) by +$3,700 (+7%).
What it's really worth in Cleveland
With Cleveland's cost of living at 91 (US=100), that $55,030 has the buying power of about $60,208 in an average-cost US metro.
Local context: median household income $66,481 · median home $252,210 · median rent $1,461/mo.
How Cleveland ranks for this job
On raw pay, Cleveland, OH is 71st of the 187 metros we hold heavy & tractor-trailer truck drivers wages for. Once Cleveland's cost of living is applied, it ranks 21st.
Pay here goes further than the headline number suggests — Cleveland is one of the places where heavy & tractor-trailer truck drivers gain ground in real terms, because local costs are low relative to what the job pays.
What that salary buys in Cleveland
A median home in Cleveland, OH costs $252,210 — about 4.6× this salary, against a typical US metro figure of 4.7×. Buying is more attainable here than in the average metro on this income.
Median rent of $1,461/mo works out at 32% of gross pay — above the conventional 30% affordability ceiling, so renting would stretch this salary.
Where heavy & tractor-trailer truck drivers earn more
Pay on its own is only half the picture, so each row shows what rent costs there relative to Cleveland.
| Metro | Median pay | vs Cleveland | Rent vs Cleveland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lincoln, NE | $89,760 | +63% | 0.9× |
| Seattle, WA | $63,460 | +15% | 1.5× |
| San Francisco, CA | $62,750 | +14% | 2.2× |
| San Jose, CA | $62,560 | +14% | 2.5× |
Same job elsewhere in OH
| Metro | Median pay | vs Cleveland | Rent vs Cleveland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cincinnati, OH | $56,050 | +2% | 1.1× |
| Columbus, OH | $55,860 | +2% | 1× |
| Akron, OH | $55,110 | +0% | 0.9× |
| Toledo, OH | $54,680 | −1% | 0.9× |
Staying in OH keeps state income tax and licensing the same, which makes these the most directly comparable moves.
Other jobs in Cleveland
Source: US BLS OEWS (May 2023) median annual wage; cost of living from BEA; home price and rent from Zillow; household income from US Census ACS. Rankings are across the 187 metros we hold wage data for in this occupation. Estimates for guidance only. See methodology.