Commercial Trucking recruiters serving Hartford.
Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers are scarcer in Hartford than in most of the country, 27% fewer per job, so the roughly 5,830 who work here are rarely short of offers. BLS counts 326 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 Hartford.
BLS counts about 13,870 people working in the occupations behind these roles across the Hartford metro, the largest group being heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers (about 5,830). Relative to the size of the local economy, heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers are far less concentrated here than nationally (location quotient 0.73). Local headcount and pay for each role are below; role descriptions are on the Commercial Trucking hub.
CDL-A Truck Driver
Sample job description →Hartford: 5,830 employed · $59,890 median, 38th-highest of 112 metros
CDL-B Truck Driver
Sample job description →Hartford: 4,370 employed · $44,370 median, 45th-highest of 112 metros
Dispatcher / Fleet Coordinator
Hartford: 610 employed · $54,580 median, 15th-highest of 111 metros
Fleet Manager
Hartford: 960 employed · $112,860 median, 27th-highest of 112 metros
Safety & Compliance Manager (DOT)
Hartford: 1,390 employed · $93,890 median, 13th-highest of 112 metros
Diesel Mechanic / Fleet Technician
Hartford: 1,310 employed · $64,530 median, 32nd-highest of 112 metros
Logistics Coordinator
Hartford: 220 employed · $62,830 median, 3rd-highest of 96 metros
Driver Recruiter
Hartford: 3,460 employed · $82,920 median, 9th-highest of 112 metros
Terminal Manager
Route / Delivery Supervisor
Hartford: 2,360 employed · $65,440 median, 21st-highest of 112 metros
What Commercial Trucking roles earn in Hartford.
Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers in Hartford earn a median $59,890, level with the $58,640 national figure, and 38th of 112 metros. Pay runs $47,000 at the tenth percentile to $77,110 at the ninetieth. The best-paid role below is first-line supervisors of transportation and material moving workers, at $65,440 against $62,890 nationally.
| Role | Hartford median | Typical range | National median | vs. national | Employed locally |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CDL-A Truck DriverHeavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers (53-3032) | $59,890 | $47,000–$77,110 | $58,640 | +2% | 5,830 |
| CDL-B Truck DriverLight Truck Drivers (53-3033) | $44,370 | $34,010–$75,040 | $44,860 | −1% | 4,370 |
| Dispatcher / Fleet CoordinatorDispatchers (43-5032) | $54,580 | $41,220–$82,020 | $50,340 | +8% | 610 |
| Fleet Manager · Terminal ManagerTransportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers (11-3071) | $112,860 | $70,770–$172,040 | $107,230 | +5% | 960 |
| Safety & Compliance Manager (DOT)Compliance Officers (13-1041) | $93,890 | $59,120–$135,190 | $80,730 | +16% | 1,390 |
| Diesel Mechanic / Fleet TechnicianBus and Truck Mechanics and Diesel Engine Specialists (49-3031) | $64,530 | $44,720–$97,220 | $61,770 | +4% | 1,310 |
| Logistics CoordinatorCargo and Freight Agents (43-5011) | $62,830 | $51,190–$88,920 | $52,260 | +20% | 220 |
| Driver RecruiterHuman Resources Specialists (13-1071) | $82,920 | $50,610–$132,790 | $75,940 | +9% | 3,460 |
| Route / Delivery SupervisorFirst-Line Supervisors of Transportation and Material Moving Workers (53-1047) | $65,440 | $47,640–$95,400 | $62,890 | +4% | 2,360 |
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, Hartford 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 Hartford's commercial trucking market has changed since 2018.
The number of general freight trucking companies in Hartford rose from 186 in 2018 to 326 in 2023, up 75%, ahead of the 49% national rise. Headcount at those firms went up 28%, to about 2,460 people. Average annual pay there went from $59,250 to $74,016 (+25%), in step with the 23% national increase.
| Measure | 2018 | 2023 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| General freight trucking companies: business locations | 186 | 326 | +75% |
| General freight trucking companies: employment | 1,923 | 2,460 | +28% |
| General freight trucking companies: average annual pay | $59,250 | $74,016 | +25% |
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
Hartford runs 27% fewer commercial trucking workers per job than the country as a whole — well below the national concentration. Fewer per job means the people you want are already working, and usually for someone who would rather keep 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 Hartford's commercial trucking market compares
Among the 100 metros we cover with published BLS figures, Hartford ranks 63rd for headcount, 35th for median pay and 80th for concentration for heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers.
| Metro | Employed | Median pay | Concentration | Commercial employers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hartford | 5,830 | $59,890 | 0.73 | 326 |
| Bridgeport | 3,000 | $61,580 | 0.56 | 134 |
BLS OEWS occupation figures and QCEW business-location counts; a dash means not published.
What this means for hiring:For commercial trucking employers in Hartford, the local pool is thin and local employers have been cutting headcount. Senior hires often come from outside the metro or from adjacent trades, so start searches earlier than you would elsewhere.
Sources: BLS QCEW 2023 annual averages and BLS OEWS May 2025, Hartford metro. Employers are counted by business location.
Commercial Trucking licensing in Connecticut.
Connecticut's intrastate minimum age is 18: the Department states that a CDL applicant must be at least 18, that interstate driving requires 21, and that hauling hazardous material requires 21. Connecticut publishes no application route, named programme or issuing body for an intrastate medical waiver, so do not tell a driver who fails the federal physical standard that Connecticut has an intrastate route until you confirm it with the Department's medical review unit. Even so, Connecticut's published code list does contain a medical-waiver restriction, W, meaning medical waiver required, alongside K for CDL intrastate only - so a Connecticut licence carrying W should be treated as a state medical-waiver licence and queried. Connecticut's code set is unusually state-specific: an out-of-state employer will not recognise endorsements A for activity vehicle, F for taxi, livery and motor bus, and V for student transportation vehicle. The same state rules apply in Bridgeport, so candidates licensed there can work in Hartford without re-qualifying.
Licensing authority: Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles. Confirm current rules with the agency.
We have not closed a commercial trucking search in Hartford 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 Hartford than imply a record in this trade that we do not have yet.
- Senior Manager of SalesA decade of HVAC-specific sales leadership, placed into an owner-direct commercial sales seat in three weeks.
- Commercial Mechanical EstimatorForty years of construction behind the takeoffs - an estimator who knows what the numbers are describing.
Nearby markets competing for Hartford talent.
The closest metro we cover is Bridgeport, about 50 miles away, with roughly 3,000 heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers (0.5 times Hartford's 5,830). Boston pays the most nearby, a $64,010 median, 7% above Hartford. That is the number any Hartford offer is competing with when experienced people weigh a move. Boston has the deepest pool within reach, so a search for senior roles here usually extends there.
| Metro | Distance | Employed | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hartford | – | 5,830 | $59,890 |
| Bridgeport | 48 mi | 3,000 | $61,580 |
| Worcester | 57 mi | 4,470 | $61,610 |
| Providence | 66 mi | 7,030 | $60,610 |
| Albany | 82 mi | 4,830 | $60,720 |
| Boston | 93 mi | 20,090 | $64,010 |
BLS OEWS, May 2025; straight-line miles.
What else is competing for Hartford crews.
Not commercial trucking work. These are the capital projects big enough to pull the same crews into Hartford in the months you are trying to fill a seat, each with the status its own market page reports.
- Hartford HealthCare $850M bond issue$850M ($424M for systemwide capital projects)Multi-year, funding secured
The largest health-system capital financing in the region's recent history, funding a new 470,000 sq ft patient tower at Hartford Hospital, parking-garage demolition/replacement, medical office building renovation, energy-infrastructure upgrades, and expanded patient-care areas.
- Manchester Memorial and Rockville General Hospital acquisitionsPart of the $850M bond packageMulti-year integration
Hartford HealthCare's acquisition of two additional hospitals brings more facilities into the system's capital-improvement pipeline, extending mechanical and electrical demand beyond the main Hartford Hospital campus.
- Connecticut biennial capital program$5B+ in bond authorizations, FY2024-2025Ongoing
Statewide bond funding driving healthcare, education, and adaptive-reuse construction - a broad tailwind for commercial contractors across the Hartford metro beyond the healthcare-specific projects.
These are the 3 projects we track in Hartford. The Hartford market page covers hiring conditions across every trade here.
What credentials matter for commercial trucking, and what kills offers in Hartford.
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 Hartford a linehaul market or a last-mile one?
Hartford runs close to even: 5,830 heavy and tractor-trailer drivers against 4,370 light-truck drivers, 1.3 to one, 91st of 112 on that ratio.
The driving here is mostly last-mile and service, so a Class A search competes for a smaller resident pool than the total implies and often reaches outside 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 Hartford.
What do heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers earn in Hartford?
BLS puts the Hartford median for heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers at $59,890 a year, about the same as the $58,640 national median. That ranks 38th of 112 metros with published figures, in the middle of the pack. Pay is bunched together here, $47,000 to $77,110 across the 10th to 90th percentile and only a 1.6x gap, so small differences in an offer are noticed. No other Connecticut metro we cover pays more for this work (Bridgeport: $61,580).
Is it hard to hire heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers in Hartford?
Yes. Hartford has 27% fewer heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers per job than the country as a whole, roughly 5,830 in the metro, so most of the people worth hiring are already employed. The 326 general freight trucking companies here average about 7.5 employees per location, mostly small shops, so candidates often know every employer in town by name. With 75% more of those firms than in 2018, more employers are competing for the same crews.
Which commercial trucking roles pay the most in Hartford?
Of the roles we recruit for, Fleet Manager pays the most in Hartford, a $112,860 median (BLS measures that occupation across all industries in the metro). Among field roles the top earner is Route / Delivery Supervisor at $65,440, 42% below it. CDL-B Truck Driver is the lowest-paid field role at $44,370. Relative to national pay, Logistics Coordinator is the strongest-paying role here (20% above).
How many general freight trucking companies operate in Hartford?
BLS counted 326 general freight trucking companies in Hartford in 2023, employing about 2,460 people between them. Up from 186 in 2018, a 75% increase against 49% growth nationally. That averages 7.5 people per location, so most are small shops. They pay an average of $74,016, 13% above the $65,587 national average for the same kind of employer.
Which nearby metros compete with Hartford for heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers?
The closest metros we cover with published figures are Bridgeport (48 miles, about 3,000, $61,580 median), Worcester (57 miles, about 4,470, $61,610 median) and Providence (66 miles, about 7,030, $60,610 median).
Thin market. Short list anyway.
With heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers this scarce in Hartford, an open seat rarely fills from a job posting. Let's line up the people before the next one opens.
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