Truck Driver · Dallas–Fort Worth, TX

53.7 hours of work

cover a month's rent on a one-bedroom in Dallas–Fort Worth for a truck driver earning the median $28.62 an hour.

Stretched Rank 5 of 20 for Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers (by rent share of take-home) · Metro median pay is 2% above this job's U.S. median

Median pay
$59,530
per year · $28.62/hr · 55,670 Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers
1-bedroom rent
$1,536
per month · HUD Fair Market Rent FY2027 (effective Oct 1, 2026)
Take-home
$4,168
per month after federal tax + FICA
Left after rent
$2,632
per month · yours · 37% of take-home

Hours of work = monthly rent ÷ BLS median hourly wage ($1,536 ÷ $28.62). After federal taxes the same rent takes 63.9 h of take-home pay.

EARNINGS STATEMENT FY2027 (effective Oct 1, 2026)
Truck Driver
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX
Rate (median, hourly)$28.62
Hours in a month173.3
Gross pay$4,961
Federal income tax−$414
Social Security + Medicare−$380
Take-home$4,168
Rent · 1BR · HUD FMR−$1,536

Rent costs

53.7 hours

of work to cover one month

STUB-01

Wages May 2025 estimates · Rent FY2027 (effective Oct 1, 2026)

01 · Paycheck prints

A month at the median wage, line by line.

Rate $28.62 × 173.3 hours (2,080 ÷ 12) prints gross pay of $4,961.

EARNINGS STATEMENT FY2027 (effective Oct 1, 2026)
Truck Driver
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX
Rate (median, hourly)$28.62
Hours in a month173.3
Gross pay$4,961
Federal income tax−$414
Social Security + Medicare−$380
Take-home$4,168
Rent · 1BR · HUD FMR−$1,536

Rent costs

53.7 hours

of work to cover one month

STUB-01

Wages May 2025 estimates · Rent FY2027 (effective Oct 1, 2026)

02 · Taxes peel off

Federal income tax and FICA come off the stub.

2026 single filer, standard deduction. State income tax is not levied in this state.

Federal income tax 2026, single−$414
Social Security + Medicare−$380

Taxes · $793 · peeled

03 · Rent tears away

A strip as tall as the rent.

53.7 h

of work at $28.62/hr pays $1,536, one month of a one-bedroom in Dallas–Fort Worth. The strip is drawn to scale: $1,536 of a $4,961 gross month (31% of stub).

Background tint · rent burden 36.9% of take-home

Rent · 1BR FMR−$1,536

Hours of work

53.7

HUD Fair Market Rent FY2027 (effective Oct 1, 2026) · Dallas–Fort Worth metro

04 · What's left is yours

After tax and the 1-bedroom, this remains.

Stretched

What's left · yours

$2,632

Take-home before rent$4,168
2BR instead (−$1,807)$2,361
vs HUD 30%-of-gross rule0.97×

05 · Floor plan

The stub becomes a one-bedroom.

Rent hatches rooms in ledger red, to scale against take-home. Toggle a 2-bedroom — both figures are precomputed HUD FMRs.

1-bedroom floor plan with rent hatched LIVING BED BATH KITCHEN

Hatched share is 37% of take-home (1BR).

06 · Street grid

How Dallas–Fort Worth compares for Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers

Hours of work to cover a one-bedroom's rent, all metros, fewest hours first.

Comfortable (rent ≤ 30% of take-home)Stretched (30–40%)Strained (> 40%)

Sorted by hours of work (1-bedroom HUD FMR ÷ median hourly wage), fewest first. Rank on the page still uses rent share of take-home.

# Metro Hours Rent Wage / hr 0 – 52 h (HUD 30% of gross)
01 Detroit 41.0 h $1,167 $28.43
02 Houston 46.1 h $1,261 $27.33
03 Minneapolis–St. Paul 46.2 h $1,427 $30.87
04 Phoenix 51.9 h $1,493 $28.74
05 Dallas–Fort Worth 53.7 h $1,536 $28.62
06 Philadelphia 54.6 h $1,558 $28.54
07 Baltimore 56.8 h $1,625 $28.59
08 Atlanta 57.0 h $1,619 $28.41
09 Riverside–San Bernardino 58.5 h $1,705 $29.13
10 Chicago 59.4 h $1,780 $29.95
11 Denver 59.6 h $1,831 $30.72
12 Seattle 63.6 h $2,180 $34.25
13 Tampa 67.8 h $1,648 $24.31
14 San Francisco 71.7 h $2,290 $31.95
15 Washington, DC 76.6 h $2,204 $28.76
16 San Diego 81.2 h $2,335 $28.74
17 Boston 81.8 h $2,518 $30.78
18 Los Angeles 82.8 h $2,402 $29.01
19 Miami 85.5 h $2,121 $24.80
20 New York 87.3 h $2,729 $31.27

The ledger

One month at the median wage, line by line, in dollars and in hours of work.

LinePer monthHours of workBasis
Gross pay$4,961173.3$59,530 ÷ 12
Federal income tax−$41414.5$4,964/yr ÷ 12
Social Security + Medicare−$38013.3$4,554/yr ÷ 12
Take-home$4,168145.6TX has no wage tax
Rent · 1BR FMR−$1,53653.7HUD FY2027 (effective Oct 1, 2026)
Yours$2,63292.0take-home − rent

Hours = dollars ÷ $28.62; 173.3 = 2,080 hrs ÷ 12. May not sum exactly due to rounding.

Hours of work for rent, by pay level

Same $1,536 one-bedroom, different truck driver paychecks.

10th · $20.58 74.6 h
25th · $23.60 65.1 h
Median · $28.62 53.7 h
75th · $35.11 43.8 h
90th · $44.23 34.7 h

Bar scale includes the HUD 30%-of-gross line at 52.0 h (52 h rounded). Same 1-bedroom, different paychecks (BLS wage percentiles ÷ 2,080 hrs).

Take-home vs rent

Monthly take-home pay: $4,168 1-bedroom Rent $1,536 Left $2,632 2-bedroom Rent $1,807 Left $2,361

Where Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers keep more after rent

This ranking uses rent share of take-home (rank 5 of 20), not hours.

≤30% of take-home30–40%>40%30% line

Sources & method

  1. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 — metropolitan areas — vintage: May 2025 estimates. File: oesm25ma.zip, retrieved 2026-10-06.
  2. U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD USER), Fair Market Rents, FY2027 — vintage: FY2027 (effective Oct 1, 2026). File: FY27_FMRs.xlsx, retrieved 2026-10-05.
  3. Internal Revenue Service, Rev. Proc. 2025-32 (tax year 2026 brackets, $16,100 standard deduction) and SSA's $184,500 wage base, used for the take-home estimate.
  4. HUD FMR area: Dallas, TX HUD Metro FMR Area (METRO19100M19100).
  5. Occupation: SOC 53-3032 Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers.

Take-home = annual wage − 2026 federal income tax (single filer, standard deduction) − Social Security and Medicare. State and local income taxes are not deducted. Wages are May 2025 estimates; rents are HUD Fair Market Rents FY2027 (effective Oct 1, 2026). Full details on the methodology page. Page data last rebuilt 2026-10-06.

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