A new report from two truck driver recruitment and retention companies shows a driver market where driver recruiting competition continues to intensify.
Conversion Interactive Agency and People. Data. Analytics, in their Q2 2026 Driver Recruiting & Retention Data Download Report, said a strengthening freight market, ongoing regulatory changes, and a shrinking pipeline of qualified drivers are creating greater competition for quality truck drivers, as recruiting costs continue to grow.
Demand for drivers, they said, is recovering faster than driver supply. Freight indicators are improving, but the pipeline of qualified drivers continues to tighten.
Many fleets are increasing driver pay and bringing back sign-on bonuses.
The report found that 26% of carriers have already increased driver pay in 2026, signaling that recruiting competition continues to push compensation upward.
The report also lists the average company driver sign-on bonus and average owner-operator sign-on bonus.
Company drivers had an average sign-on bonus of $4,184, with a range of $500 to $15,000.
For owner-operators, the average was $5,952, with a range of $500 to $20,000.
What is Causing Driver Dissatisfaction?
Turning to retention, PDA’s survey showed equipment remains the leading source of driver dissatisfaction at 31.5%, followed by compensation at 25.3% and operations at 23.7%.
Q2 findings also reveal a shift in how drivers view equipment reliability. Rather than focusing solely on mechanical failures, drivers are placing greater importance on how quickly and effectively maintenance issues are resolved. Equipment downtime directly affects miles, earnings, productivity, and ultimately retention.
Compensation data reinforces another consistent trend: Predictable earnings continue to matter more than advertised pay.
Nearly 60% of compensation-related concerns stem from inconsistent miles, highlighting the importance of planning, freight consistency, and operational execution in the overall driver experience.
“The data continues to show that drivers aren’t leaving because of one bad day,” said Scott Dismuke, VP of operations at PDA.
“They’re leaving after repeated operational frustrations that affect their ability to earn a consistent paycheck and do their job effectively.”
The Increasing Role of Technology in Driver Recruiting
“The driver recruiting landscape has intensified more rapidly than in previous market cycles we have seen in the past decade,” said Brian Johnston, president of Conversion Interactive Agency.
At the same time, the rapid adoption of artificial intelligence for search is changing how carriers are discovered online.
Foundational website improvements, such as clear content structure, schema markup, and optimized messaging, help AI platforms understand and reference your brand more consistently across a wider range of topics, according to the report.
The more often a carrier is cited in AI-generated responses, the more opportunities it has to enter the decision-making process before a prospect ever visits its website.
Automating recruiting tasks is another way AI can speed the process of finding truck drivers. However, PDA warns that experienced trucking professionals need to provide the insight needed to attract, engage, and hire qualified drivers.
“The common thread throughout this quarter’s data is execution,” Dismuke said. “Drivers understand that problems happen. What determines whether they stay is how consistently those problems are addressed, communicated, and resolved.”
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