Average CDL Truck Driver Salary in Zambia for 2024

In this article, we will look at the average CDL Truck Driver salary for 2024 in Zambia 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 Zambian kwacha. To keep things simple, we are using the ZMW currency code instead of the currency symbol ZK.

How Much Does a CDL Truck Driver Make in Zambia?

A CDL Truck Driver working in Zambia will typically earn around 25,660 ZMW per year, and this can range from the lowest average salary of about 13,780 ZMW to the highest average salary of 41,560 ZMW.

Average Annual Salary
25,660 ZMW
Average Monthly Salary
2,138 ZMW

Lowest Annual Salary
13,780 ZMW
Lowest Monthly Salary
1,148 ZMW

Highest Annual Salary
41,560 ZMW
Highest Monthly Salary
3,463 ZMW

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

CDL Truck 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 CDL Truck Driver Salaries in Zambia

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

Salary ranges

We already know that a CDL Truck Driver can earn between 13,780 ZMW and 41,560 ZMW on average in Zambia. 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 CDL Truck Driver in Zambia is 29,040 ZMW. This is the middle value in the distribution of salaries.

What this means is that approximately 50% of the population earn less than 29,040 ZMW, and 50% of the population earn more than 29,040 ZMW.

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 CDL Truck Driver salary in Zambia, 25% of the population are earning less than 19,640 ZMW while 75% of the population earn more than 19,640 ZMW.

75% of the population earn less than 34,360 ZMW, and 25% of the population earn more than 34,360 ZMW.

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.

CDL Truck Driver Salary by Experience Level in Zambia

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 cdl truck 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 CDL Truck Driver in Zambia that has less than two years of experience can expect to earn somewhere in the region of 17,100 ZMW.
  • 2 - 5 Years Experience. With two to five years of experience the average CDL Truck Driver salary would increase to 20,520 ZMW.
  • 5 - 10 Years Experience. From five to ten years of experience as a CDL Truck Driver, the average salary would be 26,100 ZMW.
  • 10 - 15 Years Experience. Once you have more than ten years of experience the average salary reaches around 35,300 ZMW.
  • 15 - 20 Years Experience. A CDL Truck Driver with 15 to 20 years of experience can earn an average of 36,800 ZMW.
  • 20+ Years Experience. For a CDL Truck Driver with more than 20 years, the expected average salary increases to 39,800 ZMW.

Average Salary by Experience Chart

0-2 Years
17,100 ZMW
2-5 Years +28%
20,520 ZMW
5-10 Years +38%
26,100 ZMW
10-15 Years +24%
35,300 ZMW
15-20 Years +7%
36,800 ZMW
20+ Years +7%
39,800 ZMW

CDL Truck Driver Salary by Education Level in Zambia

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 CDL Truck Driver in Zambia 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 CDL Truck Driver in Zambia with a high school education can earn an average salary of 20,520 ZMW.

  • Certificate or Diploma. A CDL Truck Driver in Zambia with a certificate or diploma education can earn an average salary of 26,860 ZMW.

  • Bachelor's Degree. A CDL Truck Driver in Zambia with a bachelor's degree education can earn an average salary of 37,880 ZMW.

Average Salary by Education Chart

High School
20,520 ZMW
Certificate or Diploma +43%
26,860 ZMW
Bachelor's Degree +38%
37,880 ZMW

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 Zambia is around 30,000 to 90,000 ZMW 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.

CDL Truck 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 Zambia, a male cdl truck driver will earn an average of 29,540 ZMW, while a female cdl truck driver will earn around 23,700 ZMW.

This means that a male cdl truck driver earns approximately 25% more than a female cdl truck driver for performing the same job.

Average Salary by Gender Chart in Zambia

Male
29,540 ZMW
Female -25%
23,700 ZMW

CDL Truck Driver Average Pay Raise in Zambia

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 CDL Truck Driver in Zambia is around 5% every 30 months.

The national average pay raise across all professions and industries in Zambia is around 5% every 28 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 = ( 5 ÷ 30 ) × 12  = 2%

What this means is that a CDL Truck Driver in Zambia can expect to receive an average pay raise of around 2% every 12 months.

Annual Pay Raise by Industry in Zambia for 2024

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

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

Banking
8%
Energy
7%
Information Technology
6%
Healthcare
5%
Travel
4%
Construction
3%
Education
2%

CDL Truck Driver Bonus and Incentive Rates in Zambia

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

88% 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 0% to 4%.

Received Bonus
12%
No Bonus
88%

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 Zambia earn approximately 21% more than private sector employees in the same role.

Public Sector
80,180 ZMW
Private Sector -21%
66,260 ZMW

Salaries for Jobs Similar to a CDL Truck Driver

In the table below, we have salary information for jobs that are similar to a CDL Truck Driver in Zambia.

Job Title Category Salary
Bus Driver Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 22,340 ZMW
Car Driver Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 20,760 ZMW
CDL Driver Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 24,200 ZMW
Chauffeur Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 25,720 ZMW
Courier Coordinator Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 35,520 ZMW
Courier Sales Manager Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 50,660 ZMW
Deck Officer Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 23,080 ZMW
Delivery Driver Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 20,520 ZMW
Delivery Specialist Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 26,660 ZMW
Delivery Supervisor Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 31,180 ZMW
Dispatcher Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 16,980 ZMW
Driver Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 19,980 ZMW
Driving Instructor Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 30,840 ZMW
Goods Receiving Expediter Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 22,540 ZMW
Limousine Driver Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 24,720 ZMW
Parking Inspector Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 24,720 ZMW
School Bus Driver Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 27,020 ZMW
Shuttle Driver Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 20,760 ZMW
Taxi Driver Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 19,940 ZMW
Third Officer Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 20,000 ZMW
Train Driver Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 23,260 ZMW
Tram Driver Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 24,280 ZMW
Transport Officer Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 20,460 ZMW
Transportation and Shipping Supervisor Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 36,940 ZMW
Transportation Manager Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 89,340 ZMW
Truck Driver Courier / Delivery / Transport / Drivers 22,540 ZMW

Salary Comparison by City

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

City Average Salary
Lusaka 26,660 ZMW

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