Truck Driver Pay in Arkansas (2026)

Key numbers at a glance

Truck driver pay in Arkansas: the numbers

The wage benchmark for this page is the Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS survey for heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers in Arkansas, May 2025 release — the federal government's own series, covering roughly 32,220 driver jobs statewide. That is about 24.7 of every 1,000 jobs in Arkansas — a location quotient of 1.86, meaning truck driving is roughly 86% more concentrated here than in the nation as a whole, one of the highest figures of any state. Annual figures assume 2,080 hours, so treat them as full-time equivalents, not guarantees.

Two things stand out. First, the spread is enormous: the median is a modest $51,550, but the 90th percentile reaches $81,110 — nearly $30,000 above the middle of the market. That is the fingerprint of a two-tier state, where local poultry-plant, feed-mill and hourly distribution jobs set a low floor while private-fleet, LTL and specialized outfits run a separate, high-paying tier on top; Walmart's private fleet in particular is widely reported to be among the better-paying driving jobs in the country. Second, the mean ($57,390) sits well above the median, confirming that the top tier pulls real weight in the average. BLS does not track CPM, but company OTR and regional positions in the mid-South commonly advertise roughly $0.50–$0.70 per mile; confirm current offers with the carrier.

How miles and freight shape pay in Arkansas

Arkansas is what a state looks like when trucking is the hometown industry. Bentonville is Walmart's home base and the center of one of the largest private truck fleets in the country; Lowell is J.B. Hunt's headquarters; Springdale runs Tyson's poultry complex; Fort Smith holds ArcBest and its LTL carrier ABF. Around that core sits the freight that built them: feed and live birds across northwest Arkansas, rice and grain out of the Delta around Stuttgart, timber and paper in the southern counties, and retail distribution for the world's largest retailer. The corridor map is equally strong — I-40 crosses the state Memphis to Fort Smith as one of the nation's busiest east-west arteries, I-30 drops to Dallas, and I-55 shadows the Mississippi to Memphis. Roughly speaking, three structures dominate: national OTR out of the truckload carriers' home terminals, regional mid-South loops touching Memphis, Dallas, Little Rock and Kansas City, and local dedicated work running plants, feed mills and distribution centers.

For company drivers, the practical payoff is choice and stability — a market this concentrated means hometown jobs at every tier, from hourly feed routes to private-fleet gigs with strong benefits, without moving out of state. For owner-operators, Arkansas is double-edged: carrier headquarters mean dense freight and short deadheads on the I-40 spine, but the big carriers' capacity also keeps rate competition sharp — run every offer through the load profit calculator and hold the line on your cost per mile before you book. Fuel tax is tracked on the Arkansas IFTA rates page, and more state comparisons are on the truck driver pay by state hub.

The tax angle in Arkansas

Arkansas taxes wages on a graduated schedule with 0% and 2% low brackets and a top rate of 3.7% effective January 1, 2026 — cut from 3.9% by the legislature's most recent round of reductions (per the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration). On the $57,390 mean wage, a single filer's state income tax runs roughly $1,500–$1,800 before credits — do your own math or ask a CPA. For experienced drivers landing in the $70,000–$80,000 private-fleet tier, the marginal bite stays modest at 3.7%, which makes Arkansas take-home math friendlier than its headline wages suggest. OTR drivers still qualify for the federal per diem deduction on overnights — see the trucking tax deductions guide for what applies across state lines.