Heavy & Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers salary in Birmingham, AL
Median pay for heavy & tractor-trailer truck drivers in Birmingham, AL: $50,630/yr
Typical range (10th–90th percentile): $37,230 – $72,840 · about 9,340 employed locally
Below the typical metro median ($51,330) by −$700 (-1%).
What it's really worth in Birmingham
With Birmingham's cost of living at 92 (US=100), that $50,630 has the buying power of about $55,174 in an average-cost US metro.
Local context: median household income $68,329 · median home $262,556 · median rent $1,448/mo.
How Birmingham ranks for this job
On raw pay, Birmingham, AL is 102nd of the 187 metros we hold heavy & tractor-trailer truck drivers wages for. Once Birmingham's cost of living is applied, it ranks 80th.
Pay here goes further than the headline number suggests — Birmingham is one of the places where heavy & tractor-trailer truck drivers gain ground in real terms, because local costs are low relative to what the job pays.
What that salary buys in Birmingham
A median home in Birmingham, AL costs $262,556 — about 5.2× this salary, against a typical US metro figure of 4.7×. Buying is harder here than in the average metro on this income.
Median rent of $1,448/mo works out at 34% of gross pay — above the conventional 30% affordability ceiling, so renting would stretch this salary.
Where heavy & tractor-trailer truck drivers earn more
Pay on its own is only half the picture, so each row shows what rent costs there relative to Birmingham.
| Metro | Median pay | vs Birmingham | Rent vs Birmingham |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lincoln, NE | $89,760 | +77% | 0.9× |
| Seattle, WA | $63,460 | +25% | 1.5× |
| San Francisco, CA | $62,750 | +24% | 2.3× |
| San Jose, CA | $62,560 | +24% | 2.5× |
Same job elsewhere in AL
| Metro | Median pay | vs Birmingham | Rent vs Birmingham |
|---|---|---|---|
| Huntsville, AL | $51,330 | +1% | 1× |
| Tuscaloosa, AL | $49,490 | −2% | 1× |
| Montgomery, AL | $49,370 | −2% | 1× |
| Mobile, AL | $47,980 | −5% | 0.9× |
Staying in AL keeps state income tax and licensing the same, which makes these the most directly comparable moves.
Who hires heavy & tractor-trailer truck drivers around Birmingham
Large local employers in sectors that typically employ this role.
- Books-A-Million · Retail
Other jobs in Birmingham
Source: US BLS OEWS (May 2023) median annual wage; cost of living from BEA; home price and rent from Zillow; household income from US Census ACS. Rankings are across the 187 metros we hold wage data for in this occupation. Estimates for guidance only. See methodology.