Updated May 2026
Best Trucking Companies in Arlington Heights, Illinois (May 2026)
Arlington Heights, Illinois, May 2026: 467 active W2 trucking carriers. KEEP TRUCKING LLC leads with an average weekly pay of $2,200. True Transport Inc. follows at $2,250/week. Illinois anchors the US rail and truck network through Chicago, the largest intermodal hub in North America, with I-80 / I-90 / I-55 feeding a dense concentration of manufacturing, warehousing, and cold-chain freight.
What changed in May 2026
We just started tracking monthly changes for this view. Check back next month to see how rankings have shifted.
Where CDL pay is strongest in Arlington Heights, Illinois this month
The top of the list is KEEP TRUCKING LLC at $2,200/week. A few names below the top earn more on a weekly-pay basis but rank lower on the composite.
#1KEEP TRUCKING LLC — $2,200/wk
KEEP TRUCKING LLC leads the Arlington Heights, Illinois market on combined pay and ranking score this month. Weekly pay here lands in the 96th percentile across Arlington Heights, Illinois. KEEP TRUCKING LLC ranks in the 88th percentile for controlled-substances compliance on FMCSA SAFER data. KEEP TRUCKING LLC tracks as a responsive employer on application-response data.
#2True Transport Inc. — $2,250/wk
True Transport Inc. pays above the 92nd percentile on weekly pay for the Arlington Heights, Illinois market. Top FMCSA dimension here is unsafe-driving avoidance, in the 99th percentile. Application-response data flags this carrier as a responsive employer.
Despite ranking below #1, True Transport Inc. outpays the leader on weekly average — $2,250/week.
#3JK MOVING & STORAGE INC — $2,200/wk
JK MOVING & STORAGE INC sits in the 96th percentile for weekly pay among Arlington Heights, Illinois carriers. JK MOVING & STORAGE INC's FMCSA score is strongest on unsafe-driving avoidance — 94th percentile.
Also in the top 10: #4 Covenant Transport Inc at $1,762/wk, #5 OMAHA TRACK INC at $2,000/wk, #6 Great Plains Trucking Inc. at $1,750/wk, #7 PRAIRIE FIELD SERVICES LLC at $1,750/wk, #8 PREMIER TRANSPORTATION at $1,700/wk, #9 CUSTOM COMMODITIES TRANSPORT at $1,750/wk, #10 Badger Express LLC at $1,700/wk.
What Arlington Heights, Illinois drivers actually run
23% of Arlington Heights, Illinois's active CDL postings are regional and 63% are OTR; local plus semi-local accounts for the rest (14%).
Guaranteed pay is on offer at 2% of Arlington Heights, Illinois postings; dedicated routes at 26%; take-truck-home at 73%. Pet-friendly policies appear at 59% and riders-allowed at 59%.
Arlington Heights, Illinois vs Illinois: the numbers that diverge
| Arlington Heights, Illinois | Illinois top 50 | Delta | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sign-on bonus rate | 33% | 44% | -11 pt |
| Take-truck-home | 92% | 85% | +7 pt |
Source: Lanefinder index, May 2026
Among the figures above, sign-on bonus availability is where Arlington Heights, Illinois differs most from Illinois — 11 points below statewide.
Driving CDL in Illinois
Illinois is one of the most strategically located CDL states — Chicago is the largest US intermodal rail hub, so a huge percentage of national freight passes through. The metro lanes pay well but congestion on I-80, I-90, and I-294 is consistent enough to be a real income variable. Outside the Chicago metro, downstate Illinois looks much more like Iowa or Indiana — agricultural freight, less density, easier driving. State income tax is moderate. The winter operational profile is severe: lake-effect snow, road salt, and the freezing-thawing cycle eat equipment faster than most southern states.
Related guides
- Best owner-operator companies in Arlington Heights, Illinois
- CDL driver salary in Arlington Heights, Illinois
- Best trucking companies in Illinois
How we compile these rankings
Composite-score formula: compensation × 0.30, FMCSA safety × 0.25, benefits × 0.25, operational performance × 0.20. Compensation is anchored on pay percentile and lifted by sign-on bonus tier and guaranteed-pay availability. Operational performance is built mostly from driver-application response data in Lanefinder's platform, with fleet-scale percentile contributing a smaller portion. Updated May 2026.