Truck Driver Pay in South Carolina (2026)

Key numbers at a glance

Truck driver pay in South Carolina: the numbers

Figures come from the Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS survey for heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers, May 2025 release. South Carolina employs about 34,170 of them and pays a mean of $26.77 an hour — roughly $4,030 a year below the $59,710 national mean. Annual figures assume 2,080 hours.

South Carolina's mean runs low but its ceiling doesn't: the 90th percentile reaches $77,070, within $2,400 of the national top decile. That spread says the state has plenty of entry-level per-mile work at big carriers — the low median — alongside genuinely specialized freight at the top: port drayage, automotive supply chains and tankers. For drivers, the upgrade path inside the state is real: the same CDL that earns $39,000 in a starter seat can earn mid-$70,000s in a dedicated automotive or port-adjacent role. BLS does not track CPM; regional and OTR positions commonly advertise roughly $0.56-$0.74 per mile, and port or local jobs often pay hourly or per-move — confirm with carriers.

How miles and freight shape pay in South Carolina

South Carolina's freight engine is export-heavy — unusual for a state its size. The Port of Charleston is consistently one of the busiest container ports in the country, and its freight doesn't stay at the docks: the SC Ports Authority's inland ports at Greer (up I-26 toward the Upstate) and Dillon (on I-95) push rail-loaded containers deep into the state, generating drayage work at three nodes instead of one. The Upstate is the manufacturing complement: BMW's Spartanburg plant is the country's leading auto-export complex by value (widely reported; hedge volumes with market conditions), feeding finished vehicles to the port and parts lanes inbound from suppliers across the Southeast; Volvo builds near Ridgeville; and the state's tire cluster — Michelin's U.S. headquarters plus major Bridgestone and Continental plants — moves raw materials in and finished tires out on dedicated runs. Aerospace parts for North Charleston, building materials, lumber and paper, peaches and the coast's tourism supply chain round it out. I-85 connects the Upstate to Atlanta and Charlotte; I-95 carries the Eastern Seaboard's through-traffic straight down the state's middle.

Structurally, regional and drayage work lead (hedged): container moves around Charleston, Greer and Dillon; Upstate manufacturing lanes on dedicated schedules; and corridor runs up and down I-85 and I-95, with strong local distribution around Charleston, Columbia and Greenville-Spartanburg and national OTR carriers recruiting statewide. For owner-operators, the port complex means real drayage opportunity but also chassis, appointment and dwell realities — model detention and port time in the load profit calculator before committing, and check the fuel surcharge terms on drayage moves, where surcharges are often flat per-move rather than per-mile. Compare other states on the truck driver pay by state hub.

The tax angle in South Carolina

South Carolina runs a graduated income tax with a 6.0% top rate for 2026 — and a quirk worth knowing: that rate is scheduled to revert to 6.2% on July 1, 2026 unless extended, so verify the current figure with the South Carolina Department of Revenue before modeling your net pay (rates per the Tax Foundation's 2026 table). The lowest bracket is taxed at 0%, which softens the bite at driver-income levels somewhat, and there is no local income tax. Neighboring North Carolina's 3.99% flat rate makes the comparison starker: identical gross pay goes further a state north. Owner-operators should work the trucking tax deductions list and remember that South Carolina's low cost of living — not its tax code — is the main financial argument for basing here.