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2026 Salary Guide

The 2026 logistics and supply chain salary guide.

Salary ranges for twenty roles across sales, operations, freight brokerage, and supply chain: what companies are paying, what offers are closing, and how region and remote work move the numbers. Built from the HartFelt Careers 2026 Compensation Benchmark.

+8.4%Average base increase for logistics leadership roles year over year
$22KMedian gap between offers that close and offers that walk
63 daysAverage time to fill a VP-level operations role in 2026
~40%How much remote and hybrid roles compress regional pay differences

How to use this guide.

Hiring managers: the median column is the market, and the 75th percentile is what closes strong candidates in a competitive search. If your band tops out below the median, expect the warning signs covered in our full benchmark. Candidates: find your role, adjust for your region, and remember these are base ranges: the total comp columns show what the whole package looks like at the median.

Logistics sales salaries.

Sales compensation in logistics is base plus meaningful variable. The OTE column shows realistic on-target earnings at the median, and top performers routinely beat the 75th percentile base by 20 to 40 percent on total earnings.

RoleBase (25th)Base (Median)Base (75th)OTE (Median)
Business Development Rep / SDR$48,000$55,000$65,000$75,000
Account Executive$70,000$82,000$95,000$140,000
Account Manager / Strategic AM$75,000$88,000$105,000$135,000
Sales Manager / Regional SM$105,000$120,000$140,000$185,000
Director of Sales$135,000$160,000$180,000$245,000
VP of Sales / CRO$190,000$220,000$260,000$400,000
What we see in searches: hiring managers anchor on what they paid two or three years ago. Logistics AE base compensation has moved up 14 percent since 2023, and offers built on the old number rarely get a first conversation with the top third of the market.

Operations salaries.

Operations is where comp structures vary the most. Bonus plans differ widely, and equity or profit sharing enters the picture at the Director level. These are the ranges winning offers in 2026.

RoleBase (25th)Base (Median)Base (75th)Total Comp (Median)
Warehouse Supervisor / Lead$58,000$68,000$78,000$75,000
Warehouse / DC Manager$80,000$95,000$115,000$108,000
Operations Manager$88,000$105,000$125,000$125,000
Senior Operations Manager$115,000$130,000$150,000$160,000
Director of Operations$145,000$165,000$195,000$215,000
VP of Operations / COO$210,000$250,000$300,000$365,000
What we see in searches: senior operations leaders rarely move for a base bump alone. At the Director level and above, the deciding factor is usually whether equity or profit sharing is on paper, not another $15K of salary.

Freight brokerage salaries.

Brokerage is the most commission-leveraged corner of logistics. Base salaries look modest next to the total earnings column, and a strong producer can out-earn any comparable operations role.

RoleBase (25th)Base (Median)Base (75th)Total Earnings (Median)
Broker (Entry/Mid)$45,000$55,000$65,000$85,000
Senior Broker$60,000$72,000$85,000$145,000
Brokerage Team Lead$85,000$100,000$120,000$185,000
Brokerage Manager / Director$110,000$135,000$160,000$225,000
VP of Brokerage$170,000$210,000$260,000$360,000
What we see in searches: commission plans built in a high-margin year quietly fall behind the market when margins tighten. The best brokers read a comp plan like a P&L, and they move when the math stops working.

Supply chain salaries.

Supply chain roles carry a premium over comparable logistics-only positions because the functional scope is broader. Planning, procurement, and network design skills are compounding in demand.

RoleBase (25th)Base (Median)Base (75th)Total Comp (Median)
Demand / Supply Planner$70,000$82,000$95,000$92,000
Supply Chain Analyst$72,000$85,000$100,000$95,000
Supply Chain Manager$95,000$115,000$135,000$135,000
Director of Supply Chain$150,000$175,000$205,000$230,000
VP of Supply Chain$215,000$255,000$305,000$385,000

Regional adjustments.

Apply these as a multiplier on the median base for any role family above.

+12%

Northeast

NYC, Boston, Philadelphia, Newark lead the premium
+10%

West Coast

LA/Long Beach, Seattle, Bay Area: port proximity sets a floor
Baseline

Midwest

Chicago, Columbus, Indianapolis: dense hubs at market rate
−4%

Southeast

Atlanta, Dallas, Memphis: growing fast, lagging the Midwest median
Remote changes the math: if the role can be remote, regional variance compresses by roughly 40 percent. Candidates will accept a location discount; they will not accept a remote discount.

Common questions.

Are these base salaries or total compensation?

The three percentile columns are base salary only. The final column shows the median total package: on-target earnings for sales and brokerage, base plus bonus for operations and supply chain.

How were these ranges compiled?

They come from the HartFelt Careers 2026 Compensation Benchmark: our role-by-role read of the logistics talent market, informed by live searches, conversations with operators and candidates across the vertical, and public market data. Ranges reflect solid performers, not top-one-percent outliers.

When should an offer be above the 75th percentile?

When the candidate brings factors that shift comp 10 to 25 percent above benchmark: P&L ownership at their level, having built and scaled the function before, WMS or TMS implementation leadership, or bilingual capability in trade-heavy markets. The full benchmark covers all six factors.

What does an open seat cost while you decide?

Usually more than the salary gap being debated. Our vacancy cost calculator runs the math on every day a role stays open. Four inputs, no email required.

Methodology. Figures are drawn from the HartFelt Careers 2026 Logistics & Supply Chain Compensation Benchmark, updated for 2026 market movement and cross-checked against public compensation data. Ranges are national; apply the regional multipliers above. This guide is updated as the benchmark is revised.

Put the numbers to work.

Hiring one of these roles? A 30-minute call pressure-tests your comp band against live searches. Looking at your own next move? Join the network and hear about the right roles first.