Updated September 2026
Best Trucking Companies in Knoxville, Tennessee (September 2026)
Knoxville, Tennessee, September 2026: 370 active W2 trucking carriers. WESTERN MOUNTAIN TRANSPORT INC leads with an average weekly pay of $1,700 and an average $5,000 sign-on bonus. HAZMAT ENVIRONMENTAL GROUP INC follows at $2,100/week. Knoxville sits at the I-40 / I-75 junction in eastern Tennessee, with Oak Ridge National Laboratory logistics, TVA industrial supply chains, and manufacturing distribution in the Tennessee River corridor feeding regional freight.
What changed in September 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 Knoxville, Tennessee this month
The top of the list is WESTERN MOUNTAIN TRANSPORT INC at $1,700/week. A few names below the top earn more on a weekly-pay basis but rank lower on the composite.
#1WESTERN MOUNTAIN TRANSPORT INC — $1,700/wk
WESTERN MOUNTAIN TRANSPORT INC is number-one in Knoxville, Tennessee this month on the composite ranking. WESTERN MOUNTAIN TRANSPORT INC ranks in the 93rd percentile for driver fitness on FMCSA SAFER data. WESTERN MOUNTAIN TRANSPORT INC tracks as a responsive employer on application-response data.
#2HAZMAT ENVIRONMENTAL GROUP INC — $2,100/wk
HAZMAT ENVIRONMENTAL GROUP INC pays above the 89th percentile on weekly pay for the Knoxville, Tennessee market. HAZMAT ENVIRONMENTAL GROUP INC's top FMCSA dimension is hours-of-service compliance, in the 99th percentile.
For sign-on cash, HAZMAT ENVIRONMENTAL GROUP INC posts the largest bonus in Knoxville, Tennessee's top 10 at $10,000.
#3JK MOVING & STORAGE INC — $2,200/wk
JK MOVING & STORAGE INC sits in the 95th percentile for weekly pay among Knoxville, Tennessee carriers. JK MOVING & STORAGE INC's FMCSA score is strongest on unsafe-driving avoidance — 93rd percentile.
JK MOVING & STORAGE INC actually pays more weekly than the top-ranked carrier — $2,200/week.
Also in the top 10: #4 IMPERIAL EXPRESS LLC at $1,500/wk, #5 TDR TRANSPORT at $2,200/wk, #6 Covenant Transport Inc at $1,762/wk, #7 Clean Recompression LLC at $2,000/wk, #8 Maumee Express, Inc. at $1,925/wk, #9 South East Carriers INC at $1,600/wk, #10 PRAIRIE FIELD SERVICES LLC at $1,750/wk.
Lane mix and benefits across Knoxville, Tennessee
21% of Knoxville, Tennessee's active CDL postings are regional and 76% are OTR; local plus semi-local accounts for the rest (3%).
Guaranteed pay is on offer at 3% of Knoxville, Tennessee postings; dedicated routes at 25%; take-truck-home at 81%. Pet-friendly policies appear at 68% and riders-allowed at 69%.
How Knoxville, Tennessee compares to Tennessee
| Knoxville, Tennessee | Tennessee top 50 | Delta | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Riders-allowed policies | 80% | 66% | +14 pt |
| Take-truck-home | 90% | 84% | +6 pt |
| Pet-friendly fleets | 72% | 66% | +6 pt |
Source: Lanefinder index, September 2026
Knoxville, Tennessee's biggest divergence from Tennessee is on riders-allowed policies, 14 points above the state baseline.
Driving CDL in Tennessee
Tennessee is a critical national freight crossroads: Memphis hosts the FedEx Express World Hub — one of the world's largest air cargo hubs by tonnage — and a major trucking interchange on I-40 / I-55, with the nightly sort cycle generating enormous regional dispatch demand. Nashville-area automotive (Nissan Smyrna) and manufacturing drive dense I-65 / I-24 lane activity. Cost of living is below the national average; Tennessee has no state income tax on wages. East TN (Chattanooga, Knoxville) is mountain-adjacent — I-40 east through the Smokies and I-24 across Monteagle pass have real winter weight.
Related guides
- Best owner-operator companies in Knoxville, Tennessee
- CDL driver salary in Knoxville, Tennessee
- Best trucking companies in Tennessee
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 September 2026.