Average Bus Driver Salary in Canada for 2024

In this article, we will look at the average Bus Driver salary for 2024 in Canada and how that compares to other countries and professions. We'll also look at interesting salary data points like median salary, 25th and 75th percentile salaries, salary amounts based on experience, bonus ranges and more!

The data in this article has been compiled using official government salary data, salary surveys, and other sources such as job postings which contain salary information.

All salary information is in the local currency, which is the Canadian dollar. To keep things simple, we are using the CAD currency code instead of the currency symbol $.

How Much Does a Bus Driver Make in Canada?

A Bus Driver working in Canada will typically earn around 38,000 CAD per year, and this can range from the lowest average salary of about 20,200 CAD to the highest average salary of 58,800 CAD.

Average Annual Salary
38,000 CAD
Average Monthly Salary
3,166 CAD

Lowest Annual Salary
20,200 CAD
Lowest Monthly Salary
1,683 CAD

Highest Annual Salary
58,800 CAD
Highest Monthly Salary
4,900 CAD

These are average salaries for a Bus Driver in Canada and include benefits such as housing and transport. It's also possible for a Bus Driver to earn more or less than the average salaries shown above.

Bus Driver salaries will vary a lot based on your experience, location, skills, and gender. Keep reading below to research more data on each of these areas.

Distribution of Bus Driver Salaries in Canada

So we've looked at the average salaries a Bus Driver will earn in Canada. The next interesting data point is the distribution of salaries.

Salary ranges

We already know that a Bus Driver can earn between 20,200 CAD and 58,800 CAD on average in Canada. This is known as the range in statistics.

The difference between the maximum and minimum values is a good indicator of variability in salaries, and can be used by employers to figure out how much they can expect to pay, and for employees to know how much they can earn.

Median salary

The median salary for a Bus Driver in Canada is 35,200 CAD. This is the middle value in the distribution of salaries.

What this means is that approximately 50% of the population earn less than 35,200 CAD, and 50% of the population earn more than 35,200 CAD.

If you are earning more than the median salary, that's a good indicator that you are being paid well.

If you're not earning more than the median salary, your objective should be to increase your earnings to be at least as high as the median salary (which you can do by asking for a pay rise, looking for a better paying job, etc).

Percentiles

Percentiles are similar to the median salary, but instead of looking at the middle value, they look at the values in the top and bottom half of the distribution.

For the average Bus Driver salary in Canada, 25% of the population are earning less than 26,600 CAD while 75% of the population earn more than 26,600 CAD.

75% of the population earn less than 44,200 CAD, and 25% of the population earn more than 44,200 CAD.

Like the median salary, the 25th and 75th percentile salaries can be used to determine which quartile you fall into so that you know whether you are being paid well enough compared to others in your profession and location.

The difference between a median and an average salary

The median and average salary are both indicators you can use to see if you are being paid fairly based on the overall population.

  • If your salary is higher than the average and the median salary, you are earning well compared to others.
  • If your salary is lower than the average and the median salary, it could indicate you are not being paid well enough.
  • If you are somewhere in between then it's tricky to determine if you are being paid well enough and you might need to research more closely.

Bus Driver Salary by Experience Level in Canada

The most important factor in determining your salary after the specific profession is the number of years experience you have. It stands to reason that more years of experience will result in a higher wage.

We have researched the average bus driver salary based on years of experience to give you an idea of how the average changes once you've worked for a certain amount of time.

  • 0 - 2 Years Experience. A Bus Driver in Canada that has less than two years of experience can expect to earn somewhere in the region of 23,300 CAD.
  • 2 - 5 Years Experience. With two to five years of experience the average Bus Driver salary would increase to 30,100 CAD.
  • 5 - 10 Years Experience. From five to ten years of experience as a Bus Driver, the average salary would be 40,300 CAD.
  • 10 - 15 Years Experience. Once you have more than ten years of experience the average salary reaches around 49,700 CAD.
  • 15 - 20 Years Experience. A Bus Driver with 15 to 20 years of experience can earn an average of 51,900 CAD.
  • 20+ Years Experience. For a Bus Driver with more than 20 years, the expected average salary increases to 57,100 CAD.

Average Salary by Experience Chart

0-2 Years
23,300 CAD
2-5 Years +23%
30,100 CAD
5-10 Years +42%
40,300 CAD
10-15 Years +17%
49,700 CAD
15-20 Years +10%
51,900 CAD
20+ Years +6%
57,100 CAD

Bus Driver Salary by Education Level in Canada

As well as experience in a job, your education plays a big role in how much you can earn. A lot of higher paying positions require a high level of education, but how much can a degree increase your salary?

In our research we have compared the salaries of employees in the same job and career level with different levels of education to see how much more you can earn at each education level.

The salary you can earn based on your education is very specific to both your location and the career path you choose.

In our research, we looked at the average salary for a Bus Driver in Canada based on the education level of the employees in order to find out whether a better education level would increase your salary.

  • High School. A Bus Driver in Canada with a high school education can earn an average salary of 30,100 CAD.

  • Certificate or Diploma. A Bus Driver in Canada with a certificate or diploma education can earn an average salary of 39,800 CAD.

  • Bachelor's Degree. A Bus Driver in Canada with a bachelor's degree education can earn an average salary of 56,600 CAD.

Average Salary by Education Chart

High School
30,100 CAD
Certificate or Diploma +40%
39,800 CAD
Bachelor's Degree +42%
56,600 CAD

How Much is a Master's Degree or MBA Program?

The approximate cost of a master's degree or post-graduate program like an MBA in Canada is around 49,800 to 149,000 CAD and takes two years to complete.

As you can see above, there are financial benefits from reaching master's degree level, but don't expect to see much of a salary increase until you have completed the degree.

It's common for people to pursue an MBA or other post-graduate program in order to switch to a a job that pays more. On average, you can expect to earn around 10% more when switching to a new company.

Whether you decide to pursue a master's degree depends on many factors. If you are able to afford it, the numbers suggest that the return on investment is worth it and you could recover the costs in a few years from the salary increase you would receive.

Bus Driver Salary Compared by Gender

In the modern age, we know that there should never be a pay gap between men and women. Unfortunately, in many professions, there is still a significant difference between the salaries earned by men when compared to the salary of women in the same job.

In Canada, a male bus driver will earn an average of 41,100 CAD, while a female bus driver will earn around 36,500 CAD.

This means that a male bus driver earns approximately 13% more than a female bus driver for performing the same job.

Average Salary by Gender Chart in Canada

Male
41,100 CAD
Female -13%
36,500 CAD

Bus Driver Average Pay Raise in Canada

In many countries, an annual pay raise is often given to employees to reward their service with a salary increase.

From our research, we can see that the average pay raise for a Bus Driver in Canada is around 9% every 17 months.

The national average pay raise across all professions and industries in Canada is around 9% every 15 months.

In this case, we can see that the number of months between the average pay raise is higher than the typical 12 months.

To make the data more meaningful, we can calculate what the approximate annual pay raise would be using a simple formula:

Annual Increase = ( Increase Rate ÷ Months ) × 12

So for this example, it would be:

Annual Increase = ( 9 ÷ 17 ) × 12  = 6%

What this means is that a Bus Driver in Canada can expect to receive an average pay raise of around 6% every 12 months.

Annual Pay Raise by Industry in Canada for 2024

In the chart below, you can see the average annual pay raise percentages for each of the major industries in Canada.

You will see that companies in bigger and more lucrative industries tend to have the higher annual pay raises.

Banking
2%
Energy
4%
Information Technology
6%
Healthcare
8%
Travel
1%
Construction
3%
Education
5%

Bus Driver Bonus and Incentive Rates in Canada

Another part of your overall compensation in a job is how much bonus you receive. Some job roles will be more likely to pay a bonus than others and also more likely to have higher bonus rates.

Generally speaking, jobs that are more involved with direct revenue generation will receive higher bonuses based on the performance towards revenue goals.

A Bus Driver is a low bonus based job, with 28% of employees reporting at least one bonus in the last 12 months.

72% reported that they had not received any bonuses in the previous 12 months.

For the employees that did receive a bonus in the previous 12 months, the reported bonuses ranged from 1% to 3%.

Received Bonus
28%
No Bonus
72%

What are the Types of Bonus?

There are a number of difference types of bonus you can receive in a job. Including:

  • Individual performance bonus - This is a bonus that is awarded to an individual employee for general performance in the job. It's the most common type of bonus.
  • Company performance bonus - This is a bonus that is awarded to a company employees to share profit with the staff.
  • Goal based bonus - This is a bonus that is awarded to an individual employee (or a team) for achieving specific goals, objectives, or milestones.
  • Holiday bonus - This type of bonus is usually paid around the holidays, often the end of the year, and is a token of appreciation for the hard work throughout the year.

Government vs Private Sector Salaries

Another commonly asked question is whether you get paid a higher salary working in the public (government) sector or the private sector.

Public sector employees in Canada earn approximately 6% more than private sector employees in the same role.

Public Sector
123,000 CAD
Private Sector -6%
115,600 CAD

Salaries for Jobs Similar to a Bus Driver

In the table below, we have salary information for jobs that are similar to a Bus Driver in Canada.

Job Title Category Salary
Car Driver Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 38,700 CAD
CDL Driver Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 46,200 CAD
CDL Truck Driver Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 46,300 CAD
Chauffeur Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 45,000 CAD
Courier Coordinator Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 54,500 CAD
Courier Sales Manager Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 91,600 CAD
Deck Officer Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 40,900 CAD
Delivery Driver Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 32,900 CAD
Delivery Specialist Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 44,300 CAD
Delivery Supervisor Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 53,300 CAD
Dispatcher Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 32,600 CAD
Driver Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 35,300 CAD
Driving Instructor Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 47,800 CAD
Goods Receiving Expediter Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 36,700 CAD
Limousine Driver Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 45,100 CAD
Parking Inspector Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 44,500 CAD
School Bus Driver Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 42,000 CAD
Shuttle Driver Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 35,600 CAD
Taxi Driver Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 36,800 CAD
Third Officer Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 35,000 CAD
Train Driver Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 37,900 CAD
Tram Driver Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 37,900 CAD
Transport Officer Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 37,300 CAD
Transportation and Shipping Supervisor Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 54,100 CAD
Transportation Manager Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 151,800 CAD
Truck Driver Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 39,800 CAD

Salary Comparison by City

If you want to compare salaries with different cities in Canada, you can use the links below to explore the data for each specific city we have researched.

City Average Salary
Brampton 34,800 CAD
Calgary 39,800 CAD
Edmonton 41,100 CAD
Gatineau 37,300 CAD
Halifax 35,000 CAD
Hamilton 38,700 CAD
Kitchener 37,100 CAD
Markham 36,700 CAD
Mississauga 40,300 CAD
Montreal 41,300 CAD
Ottawa 39,600 CAD
Quebec 37,800 CAD
Regina 32,200 CAD
Richmond 33,000 CAD
Saskatoon 36,500 CAD
Surrey 35,300 CAD
Toronto 39,300 CAD
Vancouver 42,700 CAD
Vaughan 35,600 CAD
Windsor 34,000 CAD
Winnipeg 40,500 CAD

Salary Comparison by State

The table below includes links to the average salary for each state in Canada.

City Average Salary
Alberta 42,700 CAD
British Columbia 43,200 CAD
Manitoba 38,000 CAD
New Brunswick 35,600 CAD
Newfoundland-Labrador 36,400 CAD
Northwest Territories 38,700 CAD
Nova Scotia 34,900 CAD
Nunavut 39,700 CAD
Ontario 45,700 CAD
Prince Edward Island 30,700 CAD
Quebec 41,500 CAD
Saskatchewan 36,900 CAD
Yukon 30,700 CAD

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