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Metro Wage Data · May 2025

Delivery Driver Wages in New Orleans, LA

3,360 light truck and delivery drivers work in the New Orleans metro area. The median wage is $21.13/hour 2.0% below the national median of $21.57, ranking #32 of 50 major metros on driver pay.

Median hourly
$21.13
national $21.57
Mean hourly
$23.74
national $23.45
Annualized (median)
$43,950
median × 2,080 hrs
Drivers in metro
3,360
SOC 53-3033

What drivers earn in New Orleans

The spread matters as much as the median: the 10th-to-90th percentile range is what you compete against when hiring — and what your drivers see when they compare offers.

10th percentile
entry / new drivers
$13.36 · $27,789/yr
25th percentile
$16.60 · $34,528/yr
Median
the market rate
$21.13 · $43,950/yr
75th percentile
$28.17 · $58,594/yr
90th percentile
senior / specialized
$43.16 · $89,773/yr
For Fleet Operators

What a route day actually costs in New Orleans

Wages aren’t your labor cost. Add payroll taxes, workers’ comp, and benefits (≈27% on top of base pay) and a median-wage driver in New Orleans runs:

Fully-loaded hourly
$26.84
Per 8.5-hour route day
$228
Per driver, annually
$55,817

Driver pay is typically the largest single line in a last-mile P&L. Run your full cost structure — fuel, payments, maintenance, insurance, and New Orleans-level wages — through the forecast tool to see where your margin is headed.

Forecast Your Fleet Costs →Plan Fleet Capacity →

Compare driver pay in other metros

Dallas–Fort Worth, TX
$21.18/hr median (+0.2% vs New Orleans)
Houston, TX
$21.12/hr median (-0.0% vs New Orleans)
Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN
$21.19/hr median (+0.3% vs New Orleans)
Columbus, OH
$21.06/hr median (-0.3% vs New Orleans)
Detroit, MI
$21.25/hr median (+0.6% vs New Orleans)
Tucson, AZ
$20.80/hr median (-1.6% vs New Orleans)
All 50 metros + national trend →

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES), May 2025Light Truck Drivers (SOC 53-3033), cross-industry estimates for the New Orleans metro area (CBSA 35380). Retrieved 2026-07-04. This occupation covers drivers of light trucks and delivery vans, including last-mile delivery. Annual figures are hourly × 2,080 hours. Fully-loaded cost assumes ≈27% burden for payroll taxes, workers’ comp, and benefits — Pexara’s standard modeling assumption; your burden varies by state and benefits package.