Commercial Trucking recruiters serving Seattle.
Seattle has about 21,230 heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers, 12th of the 112 we cover, and still 23% fewer per job than the country - so they are rarely short of offers. BLS counts 646 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 Seattle.
BLS counts about 47,900 people working in the occupations behind these roles across the Seattle metro, the largest group being heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers (about 21,230). Relative to the size of the local economy, heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers are less concentrated here than nationally (location quotient 0.77). Local headcount and pay for each role are below; role descriptions are on the Commercial Trucking hub.
CDL-A Truck Driver
Sample job description →Seattle: 21,230 employed · $71,240 median, highest of 112 metros
CDL-B Truck Driver
Sample job description →Seattle: 14,680 employed · $49,590 median, 7th-highest of 112 metros
Dispatcher / Fleet Coordinator
Seattle: 2,950 employed · $59,340 median, 3rd-highest of 111 metros
Fleet Manager
Seattle: 1,690 employed · $146,080 median, 2nd-highest of 112 metros
Safety & Compliance Manager (DOT)
Seattle: 6,440 employed · $95,850 median, 9th-highest of 112 metros
Diesel Mechanic / Fleet Technician
Seattle: 3,740 employed · $82,330 median, 3rd-highest of 112 metros
Logistics Coordinator
Seattle: 1,940 employed · $61,860 median, 6th-highest of 96 metros
Driver Recruiter
Seattle: 14,120 employed · $92,770 median, 4th-highest of 112 metros
Terminal Manager
Route / Delivery Supervisor
Seattle: 8,250 employed · $76,390 median, highest of 112 metros
Hiring the same trade in another market? We recruit it in Winston-Salem, NC too.
What Commercial Trucking roles earn in Seattle.
Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers in Seattle earn a median $71,240, 21% over the $58,640 national figure, and 1st of 112 metros. Pay runs $55,980 at the tenth percentile to $93,810 at the ninetieth. The best-paid role below is bus and truck mechanics and diesel engine specialists, at $82,330 against $61,770 nationally.
| Role | Seattle median | Typical range | National median | vs. national | Employed locally |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CDL-A Truck DriverHeavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers (53-3032) | $71,240 | $55,980–$93,810 | $58,640 | +21% | 21,230 |
| CDL-B Truck DriverLight Truck Drivers (53-3033) | $49,590 | $43,270–$76,180 | $44,860 | +11% | 14,680 |
| Dispatcher / Fleet CoordinatorDispatchers (43-5032) | $59,340 | $46,990–$91,900 | $50,340 | +18% | 2,950 |
| Fleet Manager · Terminal ManagerTransportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers (11-3071) | $146,080 | $85,220–$213,910 | $107,230 | +36% | 1,690 |
| Safety & Compliance Manager (DOT)Compliance Officers (13-1041) | $95,850 | $63,510–$149,050 | $80,730 | +19% | 6,440 |
| Diesel Mechanic / Fleet TechnicianBus and Truck Mechanics and Diesel Engine Specialists (49-3031) | $82,330 | $61,410–$115,550 | $61,770 | +33% | 3,740 |
| Logistics CoordinatorCargo and Freight Agents (43-5011) | $61,860 | $49,070–$82,850 | $52,260 | +18% | 1,940 |
| Driver RecruiterHuman Resources Specialists (13-1071) | $92,770 | $58,610–$153,960 | $75,940 | +22% | 14,120 |
| Route / Delivery SupervisorFirst-Line Supervisors of Transportation and Material Moving Workers (53-1047) | $76,390 | $53,690–$106,590 | $62,890 | +21% | 8,250 |
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, Seattle 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 Seattle's commercial trucking market has changed since 2018.
The number of general freight trucking companies in Seattle rose from 518 in 2018 to 646 in 2023, up 25%, behind the 49% growth nationally. Headcount at those firms went up 18%, to about 8,762 people. Average annual pay there went from $58,846 to $71,621 (+22%), in step with the 23% national increase.
| Measure | 2018 | 2023 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| General freight trucking companies: business locations | 518 | 646 | +25% |
| General freight trucking companies: employment | 7,415 | 8,762 | +18% |
| General freight trucking companies: average annual pay | $58,846 | $71,621 | +22% |
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
Seattle runs 23% fewer commercial trucking workers per job than the country as a whole — 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 Seattle's commercial trucking market compares
Among the 100 metros we cover with published BLS figures, Seattle ranks 12th for headcount, 1st for median pay and 72nd for concentration for heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers. Pay here is among the highest we see, so offers need to start near the top of the range.
| Metro | Employed | Median pay | Concentration | Commercial employers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seattle | 21,230 | $71,240 | 0.77 | 646 |
| Spokane | 3,890 | $62,980 | 1.15 | 105 |
BLS OEWS occupation figures and QCEW business-location counts; a dash means not published.
What this means for hiring:For commercial trucking employers in Seattle, the headline number is misleading. About 21,230 heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers work here, one of the larger workforces we cover, but relative to the size of the local economy the trade is thinner than average, so every other employer is drawing on the same people. Local employers have been shedding headcount, so the experienced people who remain are usually well placed and slow to move. Expect to recruit people who are already employed, and to make the case for moving.
Sources: BLS QCEW 2023 annual averages and BLS OEWS May 2025, Seattle metro. Employers are counted by business location.
Commercial Trucking licensing in Washington.
Washington's minimum age to apply for a CDL is 18 with a valid Washington driver licence and no lifetime disqualification, and 21 is required to operate from state to state. Washington has a genuine intrastate medical waiver: a driver who self-certifies non-excepted intrastate must hold a medical examiner's certificate plus an intrastate medical waiver if they need one, it must be valid and carried while driving, and when it expires the driver must apply for a new one through the Department's CDL medical waivers process. Washington publishes all four self-certification categories, and note the local meaning of one: excepted intrastate in Washington means the driver does not operate a commercial motor vehicle at all and no medical documents are required - it is not a general intrastate exemption. Missing documents cause a downgrade and the driver is not approved to drive commercially until current documents are submitted. The Department has stopped processing all non-domicile commercial permit and licence transactions and no longer tests non-domiciled drivers. The same state rules apply in Spokane, so candidates licensed there can work in Seattle without re-qualifying.
Licensing authority: Washington State Department of Licensing; not a motor vehicle department and not the Department of Transportation. Confirm current rules with the agency.
We have not closed a commercial trucking search in Seattle 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 Seattle than imply a record in this trade that we do not have yet.
- Service Operations CoordinatorA lead dispatcher used to 20-25 technicians and 75 calls a day, placed in eight days.
- Commercial SuperintendentTwenty-five years of ground-up commercial leadership, placed in two weeks.
- Construction SuperintendentTenant-improvement and renovation leadership, including prevailing-wage public work.
Nearby markets competing for Seattle talent.
The closest metro we cover is Portland, about 145 miles away, with roughly 14,370 heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers (0.7 times Seattle's 21,230). Seattle pays more than every metro we cover within reach ($71,240 median), which helps when recruiting people in from Spokane at $62,980. Seattle is the largest market for this work in the region, so nearby metros tend to recruit from here rather than the other way round.
What else is competing for Seattle crews.
Not commercial trucking work. These are the capital projects big enough to pull the same crews into Seattle in the months you are trying to fill a seat, each with the status its own market page reports.
- Sound Transit ST3 light-rail expansion$185B+ (revised from the original 2016 $54B estimate)Phased through 2044
Largest transit expansion in the region's history. Heavy civil, tunneling, stations, systems + traction power. Multi-year demand for civil crews, high-voltage electricians, and transit-experienced supers.
- Amazon & Microsoft campus build-outs + TIsReal trend, no verified regional totalRolling
South Lake Union and Eastside campuses plus continuous tenant-improvement churn. High-spec commercial MEP, fast-track fit-out, senior PMs with tech-client experience in constant demand.
- Data center growth (Central WA)Real trend, no verified regional totalSeattle itself has an active 2026 moratorium on new large data-center permits, so growth is concentrated in Central WA, not rolling metro-wide
Central Washington is a major hyperscale market. Mechanical PMs with cooling specialty and high-voltage electrical crews command premiums.
Showing 3 of 6 projects tracked in this metro. The Seattle market page lists them all.
What credentials matter for commercial trucking, and what kills offers in Seattle.
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 Seattle a linehaul market or a last-mile one?
Seattle runs close to even: 21,230 heavy and tractor-trailer drivers against 14,680 light-truck drivers, 1.4 to one, 86th 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 Seattle.
What do heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers earn in Seattle?
BLS puts the Seattle median for heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers at $71,240 a year, 21% above the $58,640 national median. That ranks first of 112 metros with published figures, in the top quarter. Most of the market sits between $55,980 and $93,810, a 1.7x gap and a moderate spread, so a few thousand dollars over the median buys real experience. No other Washington metro we cover pays more for this work (Spokane: $62,980).
Is it hard to hire heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers in Seattle?
Yes. Seattle has 23% fewer heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers per job than the country as a whole, roughly 21,230 in the metro, so most of the people worth hiring are already employed. The 646 general freight trucking companies here average about 14 employees per location. With 25% more of those firms than in 2018, more employers are competing for the same crews.
Which commercial trucking roles pay the most in Seattle?
Of the roles we recruit for, Fleet Manager pays the most in Seattle, a $146,080 median (BLS measures that occupation across all industries in the metro). Among field roles the top earner is Diesel Mechanic / Fleet Technician at $82,330, 44% below it. CDL-B Truck Driver is the lowest-paid field role at $49,590. Relative to national pay, Fleet Manager is the strongest-paying role here (36% above).
How many general freight trucking companies operate in Seattle?
BLS counted 646 general freight trucking companies in Seattle in 2023, employing about 8,762 people between them. Up from 518 in 2018, a 25% increase against 49% growth nationally. That averages 14 people per location. They pay an average of $71,621, 9% above the $65,587 national average for the same kind of employer.
Which nearby metros compete with Seattle for heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers?
The closest metros we cover with published figures are Portland (145 miles, about 14,370, $63,800 median) and Spokane (228 miles, about 3,890, $62,980 median). Seattle out-pays Portland and Spokane, an advantage when recruiting from there.
Deep pool. Heavily fished.
Seattle has 21,230 heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers, 12th of the 112 metros we cover, and still 23% fewer per job than the country. The pool is deep and every employer here is fishing it. Let's get to the ones worth moving first.
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