Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators Salary in Houston, TX (2024)
Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators in the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX metro area earn a median of $46,240 per year ($22.23 per hour) based on 23,910 jobs counted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics in 2024. That is -0.3% against the national median of $46,390 for this occupation.
Pay distribution
The median is a single point on a wide curve. The table below shows where industrial truck and tractor operators actually sit across the pay range in Houston, TX, from the bottom decile to the top.
| Percentile | Hourly | Annual | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $16.79 | $34,920 | |
| 25th percentile | $18.36 | $38,180 | |
| Median | $22.23 | $46,240 | half earn more, half earn less |
| 75th percentile | $23.58 | $49,040 | |
| 90th percentile | $28.27 | $58,810 | |
| Average (mean) | $21.99 | $45,750 |
How Houston, TX compares
The local median of $46,240 runs -0.3% below the US median of $46,390 for this occupation; it pays 4.6% less than the metro-wide median across all jobs ($48,490); within the metro it ranks 449th of 677 detailed occupations by median pay.
| Benchmark | Median annual | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| Houston, TX — this occupation | $46,240 | — |
| US median, same occupation (all areas) | $46,390 | -0.3% |
| Houston, TX — all occupations | $48,490 | -4.6% |
| Highest metro in the US for this job | $57,250 | -19.2% |
At a location quotient of 1.41, this occupation is over-represented locally: the metro has about 141% of the national share of these workers.
High confidence The relative standard error on this estimate is 0.7%, which is a tight margin — the figure is stable enough to plan around.
Ranked 449th of 677 detailed occupations in the metro by median annual wage.
Highest-paying jobs in Houston, TX
To put $46,240 in context, these are the best-paid detailed occupations in the same metro area. This occupation sits 449th.
| Occupation | Median annual | Employment |
|---|---|---|
| Nurse Anesthetists | $235,490 | 900 |
| Dentists, All Other Specialists | $220,420 | — |
| Podiatrists | $213,840 | 70 |
| Physicists | $212,050 | 130 |
| Anesthesiologists | $202,830 | 1,190 |
| Pediatricians, General | $187,590 | 1,280 |
| Architectural and Engineering Managers | $172,810 | 5,510 |
| Dentists, General | $170,170 | 1,410 |
| Geoscientists, Except Hydrologists and Geographers | $168,280 | 1,760 |
| Law Teachers, Postsecondary | $167,680 | 50 |
Where industrial truck and tractor operators earn the most
Across the 25 metro areas with released data for this occupation, medians run from $42,960 to $57,250. These are the top markets.
| Metro area | Median annual | Employment |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | $57,250 | 6,400 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | $54,540 | 35,270 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | $53,990 | 15,540 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $52,450 | 8,130 |
| Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA | $51,470 | 4,350 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | $50,060 | 5,760 |
| Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO | $48,540 | 5,370 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI | $48,420 | 5,210 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | $47,780 | 22,630 |
| Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX | $47,570 | 6,890 |
See the full national picture on the Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators salary by metro page.
Frequently asked questions
What is the median salary for industrial truck and tractor operators in Houston, TX?
The median annual wage is $46,240, or $22 per hour. That means half of the industrial truck and tractor operators working in the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX metro area earn more than this figure and half earn less. The average is $45,750.
What do the highest and lowest paid industrial truck and tractor operators in Houston, TX earn?
The bottom 10% earn $34,920 or less, while the top 10% earn $58,810 or more — a spread of $23,890 between the two ends of the distribution. The middle half of workers sit between $38,180 and $49,040.
Is industrial truck and tractor operators pay in Houston, TX above the local average?
Yes, it is 4.6% below the all-occupation median for the metro, which is $48,490. That comparison is the fairer one for judging local purchasing power, because it holds the metro's overall cost and wage level constant.
How does Houston, TX pay compare with the rest of the US for this job?
At $46,240 the metro median is 0.3% lower than the US median of $46,390 for industrial truck and tractor operators. Across the 25 metro areas covered here, this occupation ranges from $42,960 to $57,250.
How many industrial truck and tractor operators work in Houston, TX?
BLS counts about 23,910 people in this occupation in the metro area, or 7.37 jobs per 1,000 total jobs. At a location quotient of 1.41, this occupation is over-represented locally: the metro has about 141% of the national share of these workers.
About these figures
Figures come from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey for 2024 (employment relative standard error 3.2%). OEWS measures what employers pay, not what any individual earns; it excludes self-employed workers, and it does not adjust for local cost of living.
Read the full methodology, or the original data at bls.gov/oes.