Highest Paying Driving Salaries

Delivery driver salaries are on the rise due to a shortage across the industry. If you are searching for high paying jobs in the UK, a career as a delivery driver could be for you. The role is extremely varied and covers vehicles such as buses, trains, HGVs, and taxis, with a mix of long-haul or short-haul routes allowing you to find the perfect work-life balance.

Here we look at the average salaries for delivery drivers in the UK and highlight the benefits and responsibilities that each job provides.

Train Driver

Train drivers earn an average annual salary of £41,600 per year. Train drivers can travel down two separate career paths, either transporting passengers or freight. The role might involve local or national travel, so you could enjoy long open countryside journeys shuttling passengers from Scotland to London, enjoy the eerie mood of London’s underground, or spend your time manoeuvring carts or carriages in work yards, ports, or other transportation hubs.

The work environment can be noisy or involve weekends or nights, so it isn’t a career for everyone. However, many people find a rewarding career with opportunities to move into training or management later down the line.

Bus Driver

Bus drivers earn an average annual salary of £26,300 per year. They are responsible for keeping passengers safe and dropping them off at their destination in a timely and courteous manner. The role can include making many stops on local routes or a few stops on national or airport routes. Your customers can be from all walks of life, such as professionals, school children, or consumers en-route to a shopping centre.

HGV Truck Lorry Driver

HGV truck lorry drivers earn an average annual salary of £31,600 per year. To become an HGV truck lorry driver, you will need to be eighteen years of age or older (for insurance purposes), hold a driving licence, and pass the HGV theory and physical driving test (Category C and Category C1). If you have patience for heavy traffic and working under pressure, truck driving is a rewarding career.

Lorry drivers work short or long routes and can involve overnight stops. Depending on the role, you will need to keep up-to-date logbooks and paperwork, ensure load safety, conduct basic checks and maintenance, and lift goods.

Tube Driver

Tube drivers earn an average annual salary of £44,400 per year. They will work on the London Underground and earn substantially more as they gain experience or by securing a job with Eurostar. Safety is a crucial part of the role, in addition to working to a schedule and stopping the train at the correct platforms. Tube driver applications typically involve several aptitude tests from Pa and English skills to medical, computer, and mechanical comprehension.

Tesco Delivery Driver

Working as a Tesco delivery driver, you will be the face of the company, delivering groceries and products to customers daily. The position is very hands-on and physical, with no two days being the same. Job security is an attractive element, as well as feeling like your own boss.

Sainsburys Delivery Driver

As a Sainsbury’s delivery driver, you can work a part-time or full-time shift pattern. You will meet customers on their doorstep, presenting a professional image at all times. To apply for a driver position with Sainsbury’s, you will need to be eighteen or older with a full UK driving licence and a minimum of one year of driving experience.

You can work for Sainsbury’s directly with guaranteed hours or via their staffing partner on an ad-hoc basis.

Asda Delivery Driver

Delivering shopping on time with Asda and providing excellent customer service is part and parcel of the role. You will drive a regular or electric van and enjoy the freedom of being outdoors for a large portion of your day. If you begin a career with Asda, you should love meeting new people. Asda’s delivery drivers also benefit from a 10% discount on their shopping.

Ocado Delivery Driver

Ocado Group has twenty customer fulfillment centres around the UK and offers full vehicle training for their delivery drivers. You can earn more with Ocado with an LGV licence with benefits including health and wellbeing support, life assurance, pension scheme, retail discounts, and share options

To seal a job with Ocado, you will need to complete a job application, partake in an online video interview and take their online driving risk assessment.

Forklift Driver

Forklift drivers earn an average annual salary of £23,800 per year. Forklift truck driver jobs may involve working regular shifts, during the weekends, evenings, or bank holidays. You will move goods or equipment around a site while following strict safety guidelines and maintaining concentration. Unloading and loading lorries, stacking goods, order picking, and paperwork are typically part of the day-to-day duties.  The career path can lead to a promotion into driver teaching, maintenance, or warehouse management.

Cab Taxi Driver

A taxi driver earns an average annual salary of £30,900 per year. A cab driver is responsible for collecting customers and taking them to their destination. Helping customers with their luggage, holding a conversation, and adhering to road regulations are integral parts of the role. Applicants need a full UK driving licence and a clear criminal record. Work patterns vary and could include weekends, evenings, and nights. Local road knowledge and GPS proficiency are distinct career advantages.

Uber Driver

Uber drivers need a private hire licence from their local council and work in city centres such as London, Birmingham, and Manchester. You must be twenty-one or older, obtain private hire insurance, and have a suitable vehicle.

Delivery Driver

Delivery drivers earn an average annual salary of £26,200 per year. The delivery driver role encompasses many of the positions listed here. The job involves delivering packages to personal and business addresses. You must be comfortable driving in all weather conditions, completing paperwork, following pre-planned routes, taking payments, and conducting vehicle inspections.

Uber Eats Driver

An Uber Eats driver will earn an average annual salary of £20,300 per year. They primarily pick up and deliver food to customers in town and city environments. The work patterns are flexible, making the job attractive to those who have other life commitments. You can make deliveries using a bicycle, moped, motorbike, or car. Regardless of vehicle choice, you must be eighteen or older and pass Uber's right to work and disclosure checks.

Amazon Delivery Driver

As an Amazon delivery driver, you are responsible for ensuring goods, merchandise, and other customer orders reach their destination in a safe and timely manner. The company delivers items all over the UK, so you will easily find an Amazon delivery job near you. You will pick up, transport, and drop off packages and shipments to the customers' desired location; either work, delivery hubs, or home addresses. 

To work as an Amazon delivery driver in the UK, you will need to be 18 years or older or over 21 if you want to work as an Amazon Flex driver. You will need a full UK driving licence and a clean criminal record and pass the Amazon driving check. These delivery driver jobs also require an Android or iOS smartphone with GPS for Amazon Flex and your own vehicle.

DPD Delivery Driver

As a DPD delivery driver, you are the face of the company and therefore are responsible for acting in a professional manner when carrying out your duties. You will collect items from a centralised pick-up point and travel to each delivery location. Working to set collection and delivery times is essential, so you will need excellent organisation and time-management skills.

To be a DPD delivery driver, you will need a full UK driver's licence and a higher-rated driving licence if you are going to drive larger delivery vehicles. You will also need to have a friendly and helpful personality and a desire to provide the best customer experience.

Dominos Delivery Driver

A Domino's pizza delivery driver job involves delivering customer orders to homes and workplaces. You are responsible for ensuring that food arrives hot and fresh to the customer. Above all else, you will need to carry out your work according to safe driving practices and have excellent communications skills when dealing with customers. 

To work as a Domino's delivery driver, you will need to have a reliable vehicle as you will use your own car for the deliveries. You will also need to have a clean driving record and a valid full UK driver's licence. To be successful in this role, you will need a friendly personality and be good at working with others.

Digger Driver

Digger drivers earn an average annual salary of £40,500 per year. Digger driver jobs involve using heavy machinery to carry out groundwork. Responsibilities vary depending on the company or the project scope. You will typically work on construction sites, but you may be required to carry out excavation work at road works, digging trenches for utilities, and other types of projects. While there are no specific qualification requirements to drive a digger in the UK, you will require training in the particular equipment before using it.

Working as a digger driver will typically involve shift work during regular working hours in the week. However, you may have to work during evenings and weekends depending on the project requirements. The result can be challenging, so you will need to be physically fit for this role.

Hermes Delivery Driver

As one of the biggest delivery companies in the UK, Hermes delivery driver jobs are available across the country. You will start your day at the depot to collect your parcels and meet other members of the Hermes delivery team. You are the delivery company representative and will need to follow the best practices for safety and driving. It is your responsibility to deliver various items to clients across your designated delivery area and to offer a professional service at all times.

To work as a Hermes delivery driver, you will need a full UK driving licence and your own vehicle with a valid MOT and insurance. The work is paid per delivery, giving you a fee per parcel successfully delivered to the customer.

If you are inspired to begin a career as a delivery driver, you can check out all transportation and logistics salaries here.


About the Author: Daniel Aldridge

Daniel is driven by the conviction that comprehensive salary data should be accessible to everyone, ensuring empowered and informed career decisions at every stage. From fresh graduates to those contemplating a job switch or relocation, Daniel advocates for arming individuals with this vital knowledge to foster smarter choices.



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