Commercial Trucking recruiters serving Chicago.
About 62,210 heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers work in the Chicago metro, at a $62,300 median. BLS counts 11,090 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 Chicago.
BLS counts about 124,830 people working in the occupations behind these roles across the Chicago metro, the largest group being heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers (about 62,210). Relative to the size of the local economy, heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers are about as concentrated here as nationally (location quotient 1.04). Local headcount and pay for each role are below; role descriptions are on the Commercial Trucking hub.
CDL-A Truck Driver
Sample job description →Chicago: 62,210 employed · $62,300 median, 15th-highest of 112 metros
CDL-B Truck Driver
Sample job description →Chicago: 34,680 employed · $47,950 median, 13th-highest of 112 metros
Dispatcher / Fleet Coordinator
Chicago: $58,900 median, 4th-highest of 111 metros
Fleet Manager
Chicago: 8,570 employed · $124,120 median, 16th-highest of 112 metros
Safety & Compliance Manager (DOT)
Chicago: 8,320 employed · $82,020 median, 32nd-highest of 112 metros
Diesel Mechanic / Fleet Technician
Chicago: 8,660 employed · $65,680 median, 25th-highest of 112 metros
Logistics Coordinator
Chicago: 5,630 employed · $59,850 median, 13th-highest of 96 metros
Driver Recruiter
Chicago: 26,470 employed · $78,210 median, 23rd-highest of 112 metros
Terminal Manager
Route / Delivery Supervisor
Chicago: 19,280 employed · $68,330 median, 12th-highest of 112 metros
What Commercial Trucking roles earn in Chicago.
Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers in Chicago earn a median $62,300, 6% over the $58,640 national figure, and 15th of 112 metros. Pay runs $41,300 at the tenth percentile to $88,230 at the ninetieth. The best-paid role below is first-line supervisors of transportation and material moving workers, at $68,330 against $62,890 nationally.
| Role | Chicago median | Typical range | National median | vs. national | Employed locally |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CDL-A Truck DriverHeavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers (53-3032) | $62,300 | $41,300–$88,230 | $58,640 | +6% | 62,210 |
| CDL-B Truck DriverLight Truck Drivers (53-3033) | $47,950 | $34,780–$91,900 | $44,860 | +7% | 34,680 |
| Dispatcher / Fleet CoordinatorDispatchers (43-5032) | $58,900 | $38,260–$82,590 | $50,340 | +17% | – |
| Fleet Manager · Terminal ManagerTransportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers (11-3071) | $124,120 | $73,540–$210,910 | $107,230 | +16% | 8,570 |
| Safety & Compliance Manager (DOT)Compliance Officers (13-1041) | $82,020 | $52,720–$133,490 | $80,730 | +2% | 8,320 |
| Diesel Mechanic / Fleet TechnicianBus and Truck Mechanics and Diesel Engine Specialists (49-3031) | $65,680 | $45,830–$98,660 | $61,770 | +6% | 8,660 |
| Logistics CoordinatorCargo and Freight Agents (43-5011) | $59,850 | $40,030–$80,580 | $52,260 | +15% | 5,630 |
| Driver RecruiterHuman Resources Specialists (13-1071) | $78,210 | $49,580–$125,220 | $75,940 | +3% | 26,470 |
| Route / Delivery SupervisorFirst-Line Supervisors of Transportation and Material Moving Workers (53-1047) | $68,330 | $48,040–$98,900 | $62,890 | +9% | 19,280 |
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, Chicago 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 Chicago's commercial trucking market has changed since 2018.
The number of general freight trucking companies in Chicago rose from 7,787 in 2018 to 11,090 in 2023, up 42%, behind the 49% growth nationally. Headcount at those firms went up 12%, to about 49,788 people. Average annual pay there went from $56,045 to $65,159 (+16%), slower than the 23% national increase.
| Measure | 2018 | 2023 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| General freight trucking companies: business locations | 7,787 | 11,090 | +42% |
| General freight trucking companies: employment | 44,539 | 49,788 | +12% |
| General freight trucking companies: average annual pay | $56,045 | $65,159 | +16% |
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
Chicago sits at about the national rate for commercial trucking — neither unusually deep nor unusually thin.
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 Chicago's commercial trucking market compares
Among the 100 metros we cover with published BLS figures, Chicago ranks 2nd for headcount, 13th for median pay and 43rd for concentration for heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers.
What this means for hiring:For commercial trucking employers in Chicago, the pool is about the national norm for its size, and local employers have trimmed headcount. That usually means experienced people are available but cautious, so the stability of the job matters as much as the rate.
Sources: BLS QCEW 2023 annual averages and BLS OEWS May 2025, Chicago metro. Employers are counted by business location.
Commercial Trucking licensing in Illinois.
The one thing to know about Illinois is institutional: CDL administration sits with the Secretary of State, not a motor vehicle department or a department of transportation, so licence records, downgrades and self-certification all go through the Secretary of State's Driver Services Department. Beyond that, nothing could be verified from an Illinois primary source: every official Illinois host that carries the answers refuses automated access, so the intrastate minimum age in 625 ILCS 5/6-507, the existence of any Illinois intrastate medical waiver, and the Illinois restriction-code set are all unconfirmed here. Do not assume Illinois follows the common 18-for-intrastate pattern or that it prints a K restriction. Call the Secretary of State's commercial driver's licence unit in Springfield to confirm the age floor, any medical waiver route and the printed restriction code before acting. The Chicago metro crosses a state line, so check the rules in the neighboring state too for crews that work on both sides.
Licensing authority: Office of the Illinois Secretary of State, Driver Services Department. Confirm current rules with the agency.
We have not closed a commercial trucking search in Chicago yet. Here is what we have closed.
These are other trades in the same market. We would rather show you the searches we have actually run in Chicago than imply a record in this trade that we do not have yet.
- Commercial Construction Project ManagerA Project Director-level background placed into a PM seat inside a week.
- Service Dispatch CoordinatorA dispatcher who already knows the trade, the software and the workflow.
- Lead HVAC TechnicianNATE, EPA Universal and Heat Pump Council certified, with VRF and VRV experience.
Nearby markets competing for Chicago talent.
The closest metro we cover is Milwaukee, about 85 miles away, with roughly 10,250 heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers (0.2 times Chicago's 62,210). Chicago pays more than every metro we cover within reach ($62,300 median), which helps when recruiting people in from Grand Rapids at $58,270. Chicago is the largest market for this work in the region, so nearby metros tend to recruit from here rather than the other way round.
| Metro | Distance | Employed | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago | – | 62,210 | $62,300 |
| Milwaukee | 83 mi | 10,250 | $59,580 |
| Madison | 123 mi | 4,160 | $59,700 |
| Grand Rapids | 127 mi | 10,820 | $58,270 |
| Indianapolis | 164 mi | 20,480 | $61,980 |
| Dayton | 231 mi | 4,660 | $59,490 |
BLS OEWS, May 2025; straight-line miles.
What else is competing for Chicago crews.
Not commercial trucking work. These are the capital projects big enough to pull the same crews into Chicago in the months you are trying to fill a seat, each with the status its own market page reports.
- O'Hare Global Terminal expansion$12.1BThrough 2030
Largest airport terminal project in US. Airport-grade MEP, baggage systems, central utility plant. Multi-year demand for senior airport-experienced trades.
- Obama Presidential Center (South Side)$830MOpened June 2026
Specialty institutional construction, now complete - historical example of the high-spec finishes and custom MEP work this metro attracts, not an active current driver.
- Foundry Park (North Side, former Lincoln Yards site)$800M Phase 1City Council-approved Feb 2026
Replaces the stalled $6B Lincoln Yards plan, which collapsed in 2025. New owners, scaled-down scope - residential, office, retail. Long-duration commercial construction pipeline once underway.
Showing 3 of 6 projects tracked in this metro. The Chicago market page lists them all.
What credentials matter for commercial trucking, and what kills offers in Chicago.
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 Chicago a linehaul market or a last-mile one?
Chicago carries 62,210 heavy and tractor-trailer drivers against 34,680 light-truck drivers, 1.8 to one against a 1.8 median, 58th of 112 on that ratio.
Neither end dominates, so the pool depends more on which roles you are filling than on the size of the metro.
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 Chicago.
What do heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers earn in Chicago?
BLS puts the Chicago median for heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers at $62,300 a year, 6% above the $58,640 national median. That ranks 15th of 112 metros with published figures, in the top quarter. Experience carries a clear premium, $41,300 at the 10th percentile against $88,230 at the 90th - a 2.1x gap - so an offer at the median mostly reaches newer workers.
Is it hard to hire heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers in Chicago?
It is about average. Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers are as common in Chicago as they are nationally (location quotient 1.04), with about 62,210 in the metro. The 11,090 general freight trucking companies here average about 4.5 employees per location, mostly small shops, so candidates often know every employer in town by name. 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 Chicago?
Of the roles we recruit for, Fleet Manager pays the most in Chicago, a $124,120 median (BLS measures that occupation across all industries in the metro). Among field roles the top earner is Route / Delivery Supervisor at $68,330, 45% below it. CDL-B Truck Driver is the lowest-paid field role at $47,950. Relative to national pay, Dispatcher / Fleet Coordinator is the strongest-paying role here (17% above).
How many general freight trucking companies operate in Chicago?
BLS counted 11,090 general freight trucking companies in Chicago in 2023, employing about 49,788 people between them. Up from 7,787 in 2018, a 42% increase against 49% growth nationally. That averages 4.5 people per location, so most are small shops. They pay about the national average of $65,587.
Which nearby metros compete with Chicago for heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers?
The closest metros we cover with published figures are Milwaukee (83 miles, about 10,250, $59,580 median), Madison (123 miles, about 4,160, $59,700 median) and Grand Rapids (127 miles, about 10,820, $58,270 median). Chicago out-pays Grand Rapids, an advantage when recruiting from there.
The seat is open. The pipeline should not be.
11,090 general freight trucking companies in Chicago are drawing on the same 62,210 heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers. Let's get your next hire lined up first.
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