Commercial Trucking recruiters serving Birmingham.
Birmingham has 33% more heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers per job than the country as a whole, about 9,170 in the metro. BLS counts 300 business locations of general freight trucking companies across the metro. Below: local pay for every role we staff, the state licensing rules that apply and the nearby markets competing for the same people.
Positions we recruit for in Birmingham.
BLS counts about 17,620 people working in the occupations behind these roles across the Birmingham metro, the largest group being heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers (about 9,170). Relative to the size of the local economy, heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers are far more concentrated here than nationally (location quotient 1.33). Local headcount and pay for each role are below; role descriptions are on the Commercial Trucking hub.
CDL-A Truck Driver
Sample job description →Birmingham: 9,170 employed · $54,460 median, 87th-highest of 112 metros
CDL-B Truck Driver
Sample job description →Birmingham: 3,730 employed · $40,080 median, 97th-highest of 112 metros
Dispatcher / Fleet Coordinator
Birmingham: 460 employed · $48,110 median, 75th-highest of 111 metros
Fleet Manager
Birmingham: 290 employed · $128,740 median, 11th-highest of 112 metros
Safety & Compliance Manager (DOT)
Birmingham: 1,200 employed · $77,780 median, 51st-highest of 112 metros
Diesel Mechanic / Fleet Technician
Birmingham: 1,590 employed · $55,040 median, 109th-highest of 112 metros
Logistics Coordinator
Birmingham: 520 employed · $55,700 median, 33rd-highest of 96 metros
Driver Recruiter
Birmingham: 3,060 employed · $67,880 median, 77th-highest of 112 metros
Terminal Manager
Route / Delivery Supervisor
Birmingham: 3,130 employed · $61,400 median, 71st-highest of 112 metros
What Commercial Trucking roles earn in Birmingham.
Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers in Birmingham earn a median $54,460, 7% under the $58,640 national figure, and 87th of 112 metros. Pay runs $38,370 at the tenth percentile to $77,460 at the ninetieth. The best-paid role below is first-line supervisors of transportation and material moving workers, at $61,400 against $62,890 nationally.
| Role | Birmingham median | Typical range | National median | vs. national | Employed locally |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CDL-A Truck DriverHeavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers (53-3032) | $54,460 | $38,370–$77,460 | $58,640 | −7% | 9,170 |
| CDL-B Truck DriverLight Truck Drivers (53-3033) | $40,080 | $28,750–$93,690 | $44,860 | −11% | 3,730 |
| Dispatcher / Fleet CoordinatorDispatchers (43-5032) | $48,110 | $34,950–$68,460 | $50,340 | −4% | 460 |
| Fleet Manager · Terminal ManagerTransportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers (11-3071) | $128,740 | $67,970–$212,330 | $107,230 | +20% | 290 |
| Safety & Compliance Manager (DOT)Compliance Officers (13-1041) | $77,780 | $41,620–$133,330 | $80,730 | −4% | 1,200 |
| Diesel Mechanic / Fleet TechnicianBus and Truck Mechanics and Diesel Engine Specialists (49-3031) | $55,040 | $39,400–$78,390 | $61,770 | −11% | 1,590 |
| Logistics CoordinatorCargo and Freight Agents (43-5011) | $55,700 | $43,400–$83,710 | $52,260 | +7% | 520 |
| Driver RecruiterHuman Resources Specialists (13-1071) | $67,880 | $45,590–$112,420 | $75,940 | −11% | 3,060 |
| Route / Delivery SupervisorFirst-Line Supervisors of Transportation and Material Moving Workers (53-1047) | $61,400 | $39,100–$97,820 | $62,890 | −2% | 3,130 |
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, Birmingham metro. Range is 10th to 90th percentile; management and office roles are metro-wide. A metro ranking counts only the metros where BLS publishes that occupation.
How Birmingham's commercial trucking market has changed since 2018.
The number of general freight trucking companies in Birmingham rose from 211 in 2018 to 300 in 2023, up 42%, behind the 49% growth nationally. Headcount at those firms went down 14%, to about 3,814 people, so more firms are sharing fewer workers. Average annual pay there went from $59,696 to $74,920 (+26%), in step with the 23% national increase.
| Measure | 2018 | 2023 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| General freight trucking companies: business locations | 211 | 300 | +42% |
| General freight trucking companies: employment | 4,449 | 3,814 | −14% |
| General freight trucking companies: average annual pay | $59,696 | $74,920 | +26% |
BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, private employers, annual averages. A dash means BLS did not publish the figure.
Free Commercial Trucking hiring resources.
Definitive Guide to Commercial Trucking · 2026 Commercial Trucking Salary Guide · 3-Step Interview Guide for Commercial Trucking
Birmingham runs 33% more commercial trucking workers per job than the country as a whole — well above the national concentration. More per job means more people to reach, and more employers reaching them.
Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers. Metro-wide figures for the base occupation; the wage table above is role-specific and commercial.
How Birmingham's commercial trucking market compares
Among the 100 metros we cover with published BLS figures, Birmingham ranks 45th for headcount, 79th for median pay and 19th for concentration for heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers.
| Metro | Employed | Median pay | Concentration | Commercial employers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Birmingham | 9,170 | $54,460 | 1.33 | 300 |
| Huntsville | 2,570 | $56,690 | 0.73 | 99 |
BLS OEWS occupation figures and QCEW business-location counts; a dash means not published.
What this means for hiring:For commercial trucking employers in Birmingham, the local pool is deeper than most, so a well-run search can usually fill field roles from inside the metro.
Sources: BLS QCEW 2023 annual averages and BLS OEWS May 2025, Birmingham metro. Employers are counted by business location.
Commercial Trucking licensing in Alabama.
Alabama does not publish the intrastate minimum age for a Class A or Class B CDL anywhere we can verify: ALEA's CDL pages, FAQ and manuals are silent on age, and the Alabama Code is not machine-readable, so confirm the floor with ALEA's CDL unit in Montgomery before hiring an under-21 driver. Alabama publishes no state intrastate medical waiver programme; its only medical-variance route is restriction code V, applied to drivers holding a federal FMCSA exemption letter or Skill Performance Evaluation certificate. The intrastate-only restriction code is K. Alabama's restriction list departs sharply from the national standard and an out-of-state employer will misread several codes: C is daylight only, J is hearing impaired, Q is power brakes only, and HS and WL are Alabama-only licence designations. The same state rules apply in Huntsville, so candidates licensed there can work in Birmingham without re-qualifying.
Licensing authority: Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA), Driver License Division. Confirm current rules with the agency.
Nearby markets competing for Birmingham talent.
The closest metro we cover is Huntsville, about 85 miles away, with roughly 2,570 heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers (0.3 times Birmingham's 9,170). Nashville pays the most nearby, a $60,630 median, 11% above Birmingham. That is the number any Birmingham offer is competing with when experienced people weigh a move. Atlanta has the deepest pool within reach, so a search for senior roles here usually extends there.
| Metro | Distance | Employed | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Birmingham | – | 9,170 | $54,460 |
| Huntsville | 84 mi | 2,570 | $56,690 |
| Chattanooga | 135 mi | 4,370 | $57,440 |
| Atlanta | 140 mi | 41,830 | $59,100 |
| Nashville | 183 mi | 18,860 | $60,630 |
| Pensacola | 216 mi | 1,710 | $47,950 |
BLS OEWS, May 2025; straight-line miles.
What else is competing for Birmingham crews.
Not commercial trucking work. These are the capital projects big enough to pull the same crews into Birmingham in the months you are trying to fill a seat, each with the status its own market page reports.
- UAB Biomedical Research and Psychology Building$190MBroke ground June 2024, completing summer 2026
An 8-story, 228,735 sq ft research facility housing wet and dry labs for the Heersink School of Medicine and the Department of Psychology. Lab-grade mechanical, electrical, and process-utility construction at a scale most Birmingham contractors rarely see.
- UAB Hospital North Pavilion / emergency department overhaul$73M ($38M North Pavilion permit)Multi-year, phased
Adds 59 new exam rooms and 66,030 sq ft of new construction to boost emergency-care capacity. Hospital-grade mechanical, medical gas plumbing, and ICRA-compliant construction.
These are the 2 projects we track in Birmingham. The Birmingham market page covers hiring conditions across every trade here.
What credentials matter for commercial trucking, and what kills offers in Birmingham.
The 4 credentials that gate the work and the 4 things that most often end a commercial trucking offer are the same in every market, kept in one place: Commercial Trucking credentials and offer risks, each linked to the body that issues it. What is local is the licensing rule above and the pay further up this page.
Is Birmingham a linehaul market or a last-mile one?
For every light-truck driver BLS counts in Birmingham there are 2.5 heavy and tractor-trailer drivers - 9,170 against 3,730, 24th of 112 on that ratio.
Weighted that far to Class A, the linehaul and regional pool is deeper than the headcount suggests and the local-delivery bench thinner.
Nationally it is 2.1 to one.
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025: heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers (53-3032) against light truck drivers (53-3033), across the 112 metros BLS publishes both series for.
Frequently asked - Commercial Trucking hiring in Birmingham.
What do heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers earn in Birmingham?
BLS puts the Birmingham median for heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers at $54,460 a year, 7% below the $58,640 national median. That ranks 87th of 112 metros with published figures, in the bottom quarter. Most of the market sits between $38,370 and $77,460, a 2.0x gap and a moderate spread, so a few thousand dollars over the median buys real experience. Within Alabama, Huntsville pays more, at $56,690.
Is it hard to hire heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers in Birmingham?
Not by national standards. Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers make up 33% more of the Birmingham workforce than they do nationally, about 9,170 people. The 300 general freight trucking companies here average about 13 employees per location. With 42% more of those firms than in 2018, more employers are competing for the same crews.
Which commercial trucking roles pay the most in Birmingham?
Of the roles we recruit for, Fleet Manager pays the most in Birmingham, a $128,740 median (BLS measures that occupation across all industries in the metro). Among field roles the top earner is Route / Delivery Supervisor at $61,400, 52% below it. CDL-B Truck Driver is the lowest-paid field role at $40,080. Relative to national pay, Fleet Manager is the strongest-paying role here (20% above). Diesel Mechanic / Fleet Technician trails national pay the most (11% below).
How many general freight trucking companies operate in Birmingham?
BLS counted 300 general freight trucking companies in Birmingham in 2023, employing about 3,814 people between them. Up from 211 in 2018, a 42% increase against 49% growth nationally. That averages 13 people per location. They pay an average of $74,920, 14% above the $65,587 national average for the same kind of employer.
Which nearby metros compete with Birmingham for heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers?
The closest metros we cover with published figures are Huntsville (84 miles, about 2,570, $56,690 median), Chattanooga (135 miles, about 4,370, $57,440 median) and Atlanta (140 miles, about 41,830, $59,100 median). Atlanta has the larger pool, so it is the first place to look for senior people willing to move. Chattanooga pays 5% more, which is where Birmingham employers tend to lose people.
Plenty of people. Few of them looking.
Birmingham has one of the deeper pools of heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers we cover, but the best of them are already working. Let's find the ones ready to move.
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