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While freight conditions remain challenging and fleets are proceeding cautiously with wage decisions, new data from the National Transportation Institute (NTI) reveals a more nuanced outlook: under the surface, driver pay activity is slowly gaining momentum.

The summer 2025 National Survey of Driver Wages report highlights emerging trends in driver compensation, including updates on base mileage and hourly pay, as well as recruitment tools like sign-on and referral bonuses. It also reveals the most actively benchmarked hiring markets across the U.S.

Key Takeaways from the report, according to Leah Shaver, President & CEO of NTI, include:

• Per-mile pay is edging upward, with year-over-year gains continuing and quarter-to-quarter movement reaching its highest level in over two years. Growth remains modest, but the direction is clear.
• Progression along the pay scale has slowed slightly, yet more carriers are now offering higher per-mile rates overall.
• Sign-on bonuses remained steady this summer after a spring uptick—the first in over two years—suggesting cautious optimism in recruiting investments.
• Benchmarking activity continues to shift, with the top 10 locations evolving as freight patterns adjust to broader economic and policy shifts.

Per-Mile Compensation Sees Growth

For the sixth consecutive quarter, the rate of year-over-year growth for per-mile pay climbed, with summer of 2025 posting the largest gain since the winter of 2024. From spring 2025 into summer 2025, per-mail pay saw its largest quarter-to-quarter gain in more than two years.

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