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CDL training in Chicago, Illinois

62 CDL (commercial driver's license) training programs with costs, results and funding that can make them free

36 schools offer these truck driving programs with classes in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin area, and every one is approved for workforce funding: 53 by Illinois and 9 by Indiana. Each shows its price if you pay yourself and how past students did.

Truck drivers need a commercial driver's license, which generally takes a knowledge test and a driving test. Most drivers have a high school diploma and prepare at a professional truck driving school.1 Since February 7, 2022, federal rules require anyone getting a Class A or B license for the first time, or upgrading to one, to train with a provider on FMCSA's Training Provider Registry.2

In Chicago, 18 of the 62 programs take students without a high school diploma, 1 asks for a diploma or equivalent and 43 ask for earlier courses first.

By kind, the 62 programs here are Class A (29 programs), CDL (class not stated, 24 programs), refresher (5 programs), Class B (3 programs), and 1 more of one other kind.

See the 62 programs

All 94 CDL training programs in Illinois, including online programs

How much does CDL training cost in Chicago?

$2,475 to $4,995

is what the 8 programs with a price cost if you pay yourself

In the typical program

Finished the program
Not enough data
3 programs report it; a typical figure needs 5
Working 6 months later
Not enough data
Only 5 of 62 programs report it
Earned a year, estimated
Not enough data
Only 5 of 62 programs report it
Length
4 to 8 weeks

Source: US Department of Labor, program year 2024 (July 2024 to June 2025). Only programs approved for workforce funding are listed; other schools in Chicago may also offer CDL training. How these figures are made

Is there free CDL training in Chicago?

Who qualifies, and other ways to pay: grants, company-paid training and the GI Bill

All 62 CDL training programs in Chicago approved for WIOA funding

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62 programs

How to pay for CDL training in Chicago

WIOA funding can pay for CDL training in Chicago

Every program on this page is approved for it. Whether you qualify, how much your local area pays and how to apply are on our page Does WIOA pay for job training?

Financial aid and grants for CDL training

Most students can get federal student aid for college, career school or trade school. A Federal Pell Grant, unlike a loan, usually doesn't have to be repaid. Ask the school whether its program qualifies.78

Company-paid CDL training

Some trucking companies run their own schools and may pay the tuition if you drive for them for a set time, such as a year.9

GI Bill for CDL training

Veterans, service members and qualified dependents can use GI Bill benefits for non-college training programs.10

The program list does not show which programs accept these. Ask the school.

Other training in Chicago

How CDL training compares with the rest of transportation and logistics across Illinois: Transportation and logistics training in Illinois

Where the Chicago truck driving program numbers come from

Which Chicago truck driving programs are on this list?

These are the truck driving programs with classes in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin area that are approved for WIOA funding (public workforce funding under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act), as reported to the US Department of Labor for program year 2024 (July 2024 to June 2025). Each state keeps its approved programs on an eligible training provider list (ETPL).11 The list here covers programs approved as of June 30, 2025. Online programs are left out here; they are on the Illinois page. Schools that never applied for approval are missing, so this is a part of what the area offers.

How the prices and results of Chicago truck driving programs are measured

Prices are tuition and required fees for someone paying without workforce funding, as the school reported them; check the current price with the school. Results describe students who left each program in recent years, so they are no guarantee, and the yearly earnings are the reported quarter times four, an estimate. A program without a "Trained with WIOA funding" line may still take WIOA students. Where a field was left empty or withheld, the page says "Not reported", and "Left out" where a figure was filed but failed one of our checks; nothing is estimated to fill a gap. Where the numbers come from explains each figure in full.

How reliable are the Illinois figures?

The US Department of Labor's own results site lists Illinois among the states with "known data quality concerns".12 We leave out the share who finished for Illinois: only a few programs report it, and those at a typical 11%. We leave out prices for Illinois: the state files a code in place of each price, so no price can be shown.

Sources for the facts about CDL training in Chicago

Show the 12 sourcesHide the sources
  1. US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook: Heavy and Tractor-trailer Truck Drivers
  2. Electronic Code of Federal Regulations: 49 CFR part 380, subpart F, Entry-level driver training requirements
  3. US Department of Labor, TrainingProviderResults.gov: About This Site
  4. US Department of Labor: WIOA Adult Program
  5. Code of Federal Regulations, title 20, part 680, sections 680.220, 680.230 and 680.310: career services before training, other grants such as Pell Grants first, and limits on Individual Training Accounts (GovInfo, 2024 edition)
  6. US Department of Labor: American Job Centers
  7. US Department of Education, Federal Student Aid: Eligibility for Federal Student Aid
  8. US Department of Education, Federal Student Aid: Don't Miss Out on Federal Pell Grants
  9. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, Motor Carrier Safety Advisory Committee: Task 21-1 discussion notes (2021)
  10. US Department of Veterans Affairs: GI Bill benefits for non-college degree programs
  11. US Department of Labor, Training and Employment Guidance Letter 8-19, Attachment I: Requirements for Training Providers, Program Eligibility, and the State Eligible Training Provider (ETP) List
  12. US Department of Labor, TrainingProviderResults.gov: search page, note on states with known data quality concerns