Career Training Path › CDL / truck driving schools
CDL / truck driving schools
If you finish a CDL / truck driving program and work as a tractor-trailer truck driver, expect to start around $40,140–$47,960 a year and reach the trade's median of $58,640 with experience; the top quarter earn $69,120 or more (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025). There are 219 accredited campuses offering it; their graduates' actual first-year median, counting every graduate whatever job they took, was $38,603, with median debt of $6,333.
What you'd earn working as a tractor-trailer truck driver
Annual wages for the 2,062,040 people employed as heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers nationally — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. This is the figure to plan around if you intend to work in the trade.
How pay grows in this trade
Getting in: Entry-level driver training from a provider on the federal registry (3–8 weeks) and the state CDL skills test; endorsements (hazmat, tanker, doubles) add pay.
- First-year drivers with a large carrier earn near the entry band; pay rises quickly with a clean year of experience.
- Hazmat/tanker, flatbed, regional and dedicated routes pay more than dry-van over-the-road.
- Owner-operators and specialized hauling (oversize, fuel) sit at the top, with much higher costs and risk.
Typical time to mid-career pay: 2–3 years. Licensing and apprenticeship rules vary by state and employer — verify with your state board before enrolling.
What graduates of these programs actually earned
Federal College Scorecard medians for every federally aided graduate of these programs, whatever job they took after finishing — including part-time work, apprentice wages and work outside the trade. That is why they sit below the trade's wage ladder above. Use them to compare schools against each other, not to judge what the career pays.
Find cdl programs by state
457 campuses · $35,172 yr-1 pay Texas
340 campuses · $42,409 yr-1 pay New Jersey
191 campuses Indiana
161 campuses New York
155 campuses · $40,527 yr-1 pay Florida
153 campuses Pennsylvania
148 campuses · $40,743 yr-1 pay Washington
138 campuses Mississippi
118 campuses · $30,880 yr-1 pay Georgia
103 campuses · $35,098 yr-1 pay Illinois
103 campuses · $33,907 yr-1 pay Missouri
101 campuses · $30,388 yr-1 pay Tennessee
91 campuses · $35,791 yr-1 pay Kentucky
87 campuses Oklahoma
86 campuses · $37,218 yr-1 pay Arizona
76 campuses · $38,093 yr-1 pay Louisiana
76 campuses · $38,729 yr-1 pay Maryland
74 campuses · $42,058 yr-1 pay Virginia
74 campuses · $36,942 yr-1 pay Montana
70 campuses Utah
70 campuses Wisconsin
67 campuses · $48,840 yr-1 pay Colorado
66 campuses Arkansas
65 campuses · $35,894 yr-1 pay Alabama
64 campuses · $37,929 yr-1 pay North Carolina
64 campuses · $42,409 yr-1 pay New Mexico
54 campuses · $45,355 yr-1 pay Michigan
51 campuses · $21,102 yr-1 pay Nebraska
51 campuses · $36,991 yr-1 pay Iowa
50 campuses Kansas
48 campuses Minnesota
48 campuses · $38,807 yr-1 pay Ohio
47 campuses · $39,094 yr-1 pay Oregon
45 campuses South Carolina
42 campuses · $42,409 yr-1 pay Idaho
39 campuses West Virginia
39 campuses Maine
38 campuses Massachusetts
34 campuses · $44,246 yr-1 pay South Dakota
32 campuses North Dakota
30 campuses Hawaii
28 campuses Nevada
20 campuses Connecticut
19 campuses · $38,151 yr-1 pay New Hampshire
19 campuses Wyoming
18 campuses Delaware
13 campuses Alaska
12 campuses Vermont
12 campuses Rhode Island
5 campuses · $44,246 yr-1 pay District of Columbia
3 campuses
Where cdl graduates earn the most
Median program-level earnings one year after completion, states with 3+ reporting programs. Source: College Scorecard field-of-study data.
Public vs. non-profit vs. for-profit cdl schools
| School type | Campuses | Median earnings, yr 1 | Median debt | Avg completion |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Public | 167 | $36,959 | $3,832 | 54% |
| Private non-profit | 8 | $36,246 | $6,650 | 78% |
| Private for-profit | 44 | $40,635 | $6,333 | 76% |
How to choose a cdl program
- Check accreditation first. Every campus listed here is accredited by an agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education, or awarded federally reported credentials. Each profile names the accreditor and links to the federal record.
- Compare completion, not just tuition. A cheap program that half the class never finishes costs more than it looks. Profiles show each campus's completion rate against its state average.
- Look at earnings a year out, by program. The Scorecard reports median earnings for graduates of this specific program at this specific campus where enough graduates are counted to publish a figure. That is the number to compare, not national averages.
- Ask about federal aid. "Title IV eligible: Yes" means FAFSA, Pell Grants and federal loans apply. Many also accept GI Bill and WIOA funding — ask.
- Verify state licensing where it applies. Trades like cdl may need a state license or certification after the program; the school should say which exam its graduates sit.
Earnings are median wages and self-employment income reported to the IRS (W-2 and Schedule SE) for graduates who received federal aid and were working and not enrolled, measured in the calendar year after finishing. They are pay only: health insurance, retirement contributions and other benefits are not included.
"What the trade pays" is the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey (May 2025): annual wages for everyone employed in the occupation nationally, at the 10th, 25th, 50th (median), 75th and 90th percentiles. The 10th–25th percentile band is a fair guide to entry-level pay; the 75th–90th to experienced workers. Program earnings (above) are lower because they count every graduate of the program in their first year, including part-time work, apprentice wages and jobs outside the trade.
Sources: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) 2022-23 Completions survey; College Scorecard June 2026; Database of Accredited Postsecondary Institutions and Programs (DAPIP), September 2026), the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) Completions survey, and the Database of Accredited Postsecondary Institutions and Programs (DAPIP). Figures are federal medians and means for campuses in this program group; "not reported" means the federal file withholds the value to protect privacy when too few graduates are counted — never an estimate.