Bus Drivers, Transit and Intercity
Median $59,050
Occupation · SOC 53-3051
Bus Drivers, School: pay and where the jobs are
What bus drivers, school earn in the U.S., how pay varies across workers and states, and tools to plan around it.
National pay, May 2025
$47,920 median annual wage
- Mean (average) annual wage
- $48,430
- Median hourly wage
- $23.04
- Mean hourly wage
- $23.28
- Employment
- 402,930
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 53-3051.
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How much do bus drivers, school make?
The median annual wage for bus drivers, school was $47,920 in May 2025, so half of workers earned more and half earned less. The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $29,240 and the highest-paid 10% more than $65,730. As an hourly rate, the median is $23.04. About 402,930 people work in this occupation nationwide. The highest state medians are in Massachusetts ($65,170), Washington ($63,370) and Connecticut ($61,520). After taxes and local prices, though, a median paycheck goes furthest in Washington.
Pay ladder
What each step of the pay range for bus drivers, school looks like per month. Take-home here includes federal tax, Social Security and Medicare for a single filer; add your state in the paycheck calculator.
| Step | Annual | Hourly | Monthly gross | Monthly after federal tax & FICA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $29,240 | $14.06 | $2,437 | $2,140 |
| 25th percentile | $38,650 | $18.58 | $3,221 | $2,770 |
| Median | $47,920 | $23.04 | $3,993 | $3,390 |
| 75th percentile | $58,430 | $28.09 | $4,869 | $4,094 |
| 90th percentile | $65,730 | $31.60 | $5,478 | $4,583 |
Bus Drivers, School: pay by state
54 states and territories have a published median, sorted from highest to lowest. The last two columns are our estimates: the median after 2026 federal and state taxes, and that take-home restated in national-average prices.
1
$48,797 take-home in national prices
2
$48,418 take-home in national prices
3
$48,325 take-home in national prices
Where a median bus drivers, school paycheck goes furthest after 2026 taxes and BEA price levels.
| State | Employment | Median | 10th pct. | 90th pct. | Median after tax* | In national prices† |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Massachusetts | 9,330 | $65,170 | $44,530 | $71,980 | $51,206 | $48,418 |
| Washington | 9,660 | $63,370 | $49,670 | $75,530 | $52,219 | $48,797 |
| Connecticut | 7,970 | $61,520 | $45,830 | $65,090 | $48,670 | $46,974 |
| California | 16,600 | $61,040 | $45,870 | $73,680 | $48,730 | $44,012 |
| New Jersey | 13,670 | $59,430 | $46,640 | $71,520 | $47,756 | $43,892 |
| Hawaii | 630 | $59,090 | $45,760 | $73,970 | $46,676 | $42,452 |
| Rhode Island | 1,800 | $58,700 | $47,780 | $67,180 | $47,115 | $46,065 |
| New York | 38,320 | $56,640 | $46,270 | $76,070 | $44,953 | $41,653 |
| Vermont | 860 | $56,580 | $39,840 | $61,970 | $46,180 | $47,143 |
| Maryland | 9,020 | $56,450 | $38,280 | $63,950 | $45,222 | $43,086 |
| District of Columbia | 510 | $55,450 | $51,850 | $55,480 | $44,573 | $40,557 |
| Alaska | 790 | $54,200 | $36,470 | $59,910 | $45,459 | $44,411 |
| Utah | 1,920 | $52,890 | $37,010 | $69,110 | $42,839 | $43,331 |
| Colorado | 3,840 | $52,620 | $40,640 | $70,540 | $42,622 | $41,359 |
| Oregon | 5,210 | $51,270 | $45,830 | $67,260 | $39,766 | $38,473 |
| New Hampshire | 2,040 | $50,990 | $36,030 | $60,650 | $43,150 | $41,425 |
| North Dakota | 1,530 | $50,790 | $43,780 | $81,220 | $42,990 | $48,325 |
| Virginia | 12,930 | $50,190 | $38,830 | $67,060 | $40,436 | $39,994 |
| Illinois | 21,230 | $49,090 | $38,310 | $62,560 | $39,339 | $39,355 |
| Minnesota | 13,110 | $48,940 | $36,580 | $62,170 | $39,483 | $40,036 |
| Maine | 1,670 | $48,640 | $39,050 | $58,590 | $39,414 | $40,612 |
| Indiana | 11,780 | $48,020 | $22,900 | $65,240 | $39,377 | $42,192 |
| Nebraska | 2,330 | $47,760 | $36,800 | $58,340 | $39,262 | $43,574 |
| Wisconsin | 7,840 | $47,760 | $38,930 | $62,780 | $39,089 | $41,542 |
| Pennsylvania | 23,670 | $47,530 | $34,950 | $60,660 | $38,878 | $39,845 |
| Missouri | 8,970 | $46,880 | $33,980 | $58,730 | $38,582 | $42,483 |
| Michigan | 8,780 | $46,380 | $37,860 | $54,500 | $37,726 | $39,209 |
| Iowa | 4,840 | $46,320 | $28,440 | $63,200 | $38,290 | $43,629 |
| Idaho | 2,960 | $46,250 | $36,380 | $56,410 | $37,999 | $39,792 |
| Montana | 1,630 | $46,220 | $36,120 | $57,870 | $37,902 | $40,047 |
| Arizona | 5,020 | $46,050 | $37,370 | $52,870 | $38,424 | $38,165 |
| Kansas | 4,830 | $45,860 | $33,570 | $55,810 | $37,269 | $41,379 |
| Ohio | 5,540 | $45,860 | $30,100 | $60,070 | $38,211 | $41,187 |
| Wyoming | 1,360 | $45,520 | $38,830 | $56,130 | $38,755 | $41,811 |
| Arkansas | 4,340 | $45,500 | $24,080 | $63,300 | $37,543 | $43,185 |
| New Mexico | 1,870 | $45,470 | $31,020 | $65,140 | $37,727 | $40,914 |
| Georgia | 16,880 | $44,950 | $20,740 | $62,060 | $36,803 | $38,220 |
| Kentucky | 6,820 | $44,830 | $36,760 | $63,470 | $36,749 | $40,761 |
| Florida | 13,470 | $44,690 | $35,510 | $54,840 | $38,088 | $36,831 |
| Tennessee | 7,050 | $44,510 | $22,900 | $61,600 | $37,944 | $41,302 |
| Texas | 37,550 | $44,490 | $23,690 | $60,740 | $37,928 | $39,078 |
| Delaware | 1,350 | $42,390 | $36,380 | $60,910 | $34,395 | $34,461 |
| Guam | 110 | $41,720 | $32,360 | $45,180 | — | — |
| Virgin Islands | 50 | $40,120 | $35,730 | $63,660 | — | — |
| South Carolina | 5,900 | $39,900 | $23,640 | $57,150 | $33,744 | $35,994 |
| South Dakota | 1,290 | $39,730 | $33,480 | $50,530 | $34,103 | $38,497 |
| North Carolina | 12,390 | $37,460 | $32,270 | $46,960 | $31,293 | $33,176 |
| Nevada | 2,590 | $37,280 | $37,280 | $50,310 | $32,134 | $32,141 |
| Oklahoma | 3,710 | $36,920 | $20,850 | $48,110 | $30,729 | $34,982 |
| West Virginia | 4,690 | $33,360 | $29,610 | $36,670 | $28,151 | $31,455 |
| Mississippi | 3,790 | $30,640 | $18,680 | $47,300 | $26,306 | $30,253 |
| Louisiana | 6,670 | $29,450 | $21,000 | $50,750 | $25,346 | $28,734 |
| Puerto Rico | 1,280 | $27,950 | $22,130 | $52,280 | — | — |
| Alabama | 10,410 | $17,630 | $16,560 | $21,580 | $15,519 | $17,472 |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 53-3051. *Our estimate for a single filer paid biweekly with no pre-tax deductions or local tax, 2026 federal and state rules. †Take-home ÷ BEA Regional Price Parity × 100 (2024 price levels).
Sources
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25nat.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25st.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.