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Heavy & Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers salary in Raleigh, NC

Median pay for heavy & tractor-trailer truck drivers in Raleigh, NC: $49,510/yr

Typical range (10th–90th percentile): $38,430 – $75,580 · about 7,030 employed locally

Below the typical metro median ($51,330) by −$1,820 (-4%).

What it's really worth in Raleigh

With Raleigh's cost of living at 98 (US=100), that $49,510 has the buying power of about $50,338 in an average-cost US metro.

Local context: median household income $91,818 · median home $438,364 · median rent $1,694/mo.

Full Raleigh cost of living & taxes →

How Raleigh ranks for this job

On raw pay, Raleigh, NC is 123rd of the 187 metros we hold heavy & tractor-trailer truck drivers wages for. Once Raleigh's cost of living is applied, it ranks 156th.

The headline number flatters Raleigh. Once housing and everyday costs are taken into account, heavy & tractor-trailer truck drivers here keep less of what they earn than the raw salary implies.

What that salary buys in Raleigh

A median home in Raleigh, NC costs $438,364 — about 8.9× this salary, against a typical US metro figure of 4.7×. Buying is harder here than in the average metro on this income.

Median rent of $1,694/mo works out at 41% 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 Raleigh.

MetroMedian payvs RaleighRent vs Raleigh
Lincoln, NE $89,760 +81% 0.8×
Seattle, WA $63,460 +28% 1.3×
San Francisco, CA $62,750 +27% 1.9×
San Jose, CA $62,560 +26% 2.1×

Same job elsewhere in NC

MetroMedian payvs RaleighRent vs Raleigh
Charlotte, NC $52,090 +5%
Durham, NC $51,220 +3%
Hickory, NC $50,600 +2% 0.9×
Greensboro, NC $49,720 +0% 0.8×

Staying in NC keeps state income tax and licensing the same, which makes these the most directly comparable moves.

Other jobs in Raleigh

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.