Joplin, Mo., ranked best city for truckers

Tech workers flock to San Francisco. Bankers pack their bags for New York City. Truckers? According to AdvisorSmith, the best city for truck drivers is Joplin, Mo.

AdvisorSmith, a business insurance advising company, recently released its Best Cities for Truck Drivers list. After ranking 384 U.S. cities, AdvisorSmith found that the top 50 comprised of 40% midsized cities, 36% small and 25% large cities, with a majority in the Midwest. Also, 80% of those cities have metro populations below 500,000.

The top 10 cities for truckers:

• Joplin, Mo.
• Danville, Ill.
• Fayetteville, Ark.
• Odessa, Texas.
• Morristown, Tenn.
• Enid, Okla.
• Springfield, Ohio.
• Terre Haute, Ind.
• Midland, Texas.
• Wichita Falls, Texas.

Of the top 50 cities, 38 are small to midsize cities. For those seeking a new location but want to live in a larger city, AdvisorSmith broke down the top 10 cities for truckers by population size. Truckers who prefer living in cities of 500,000 people (including metro area) or more may look into Fayetteville, Ark.; Memphis, Tenn.; Youngstown, Ohio; Greensboro, N.C.; and Scranton, Pa.

To determine which cities are best for truckers, AdvisorSmith looked at three components: average trucker salaries, number of trucking jobs and cost of living. The national average trucking salary is $45,570. Although some trucking salaries fall below the national average, the relatively low cost of living in some cities allows truckers to live a more comfortable lifestyle than their counterparts who earn more in a year in larger, more expensive cities.

According to AdvisorSmith, Joplin has 125% more jobs for truckers compared to the average number of jobs in the list of top 50 cities and 336% more trucking jobs than the city average nationwide. Joplin truckers earn an average annual salary of $42,060 while enjoying a cost of living that is 21% below the national average.

Joplin is also home to one of the country’s largest driver-focused truck shows, the Guilty By Association Truck Show. Hosted by 4 State Trucks, GBATS is held every other year and includes the world’s largest truck convoy for Special Olympics. According to its website, the show features more than 600 working show trucks.

Want to see if your hometown ranks? Click here.

Joplin, Mo., ranked best city for truckers
AdvisorSmith released a study that ranks the best cities for truckers to live, with Joplin. Mo., topping the list. Does your hometown make the list?