Truck driver pay calculator: weekly and yearly pay, any pay type

By Edwin Horton · Updated October 2026

How the driver pay calculator works

Driver pay comes in three common forms. The calculator puts each on a weekly basis, then adds the extras that make the difference between a fair week and a frustrating one.

• Per mile = pay per mile × paid miles
• Percentage = percent × linehaul (or whatever the pay plan says the percentage applies to)
• Hourly = hours × rate, with hours past your overtime threshold at 1.5× if you pay overtime
• Weekly pay = base + extra stops × stop pay + detention hours × detention rate + bonuses
• Yearly pay = weekly pay × weeks worked

EXAMPLE A company driver paid $0.62 a mile runs 2,400 paid miles: $1,488. Two extra stops at $30 add $60, two hours of detention at $20 add $40, and a $50 safety bonus brings the week to $1,638. Over 48 weeks, about $78,600 a year, or an effective $0.68 a mile.

For context, the national median for heavy and tractor-trailer drivers was $58,640BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 53-3032Heavy and tractor-trailer driver median annual wage$58,640BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 53-3032, 2025Checked Oct 2026Close a year in 2025. That's a reference point, not what your drivers should earn; local markets and freight types vary a lot.

Base pay against effective pay

Effective pay per mile well above base pay: your extras are doing work. Detention and stop pay keep drivers whole on hard days.

Weekly pay swings a lot: percentage pay and spot freight together can make weeks unpredictable for drivers. Steady loads, or a guaranteed weekly minimum, reduce turnover.

For owners: pay is the biggest cost on most P&Ls. Put the weekly number into the trucking profit calculator to see what's left. If pay is why drivers leave, the driver turnover cost calculator shows what each departure costs you.

Pay policy and payroll

Write your pay plan down: how miles are counted, when detention starts, what bonuses require. The truck driver handbook template has a section for it. An accountant for your trucking company can help with payroll taxes and how per diem works. On our small fleet dispatch desk, each driver's pay type and home time sit on their unit's card, so loads fit how they're paid.

Compare your pay plan with the jobs your drivers could take tomorrow, not with last year's market. Drivers compare weekly take-home pay, home time and how they're treated, and they talk to each other. A plan that's competitive on paper but leaves drivers sitting unpaid at docks will lose to one that pays a little less per mile and pays for waiting.

Count miles the way the pay plan does

• Use paid miles as your pay plan counts them
• Include only the stops and detention you pay
• Count weeks worked after vacation and home time
• Compare the weekly total with two local job offers