It cannot be denied — Americans love pickup trucks. Once again in 2023, pickup trucks dominated car sales, capturing the top three spots. In third place was Stellantis’ Ram pickup with 444,926 trucks sold, and in second was General Motors’ Chevrolet Silverado with 543,780 pickups sold, according to CNBC. And as it has been in the past 41 years, , according to Detroit Free Press, the Ford F-Series truck was the best-selling vehicle also in 2023 with 750,789 units sold. (Here are America’s 17 favorite pickup trucks.)
As CNBC explains, part of the popularity of pickups is that they are also bought by fleet buyers, in addition to individuals. Still, considering their power and versatility and how vast the U.S. is, they appeal to many Americans, and not just in rural areas where distances are great.
To determine the states where the share of pickup trucks is the highest, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed car search and research company iSeeCars.com’s Which States Drive the Most Pickup Trucks? iSeeCars.com analyzed over 21 million used car sales from April 2022 through March 2023 to calculate the shares of light-duty pickup trucks within each state. Listed here are the 32 states where the share of pickups is above the national average of 16.7%.
While pickups may appeal to many, they are certainly more useful in less dense urban areas. Indeed, while states such as New York, Maryland, and New Jersey rank among the states with lowest shares of pickup trucks, sparsely-populated Wyoming, Montana, North Dakota, and Alaska, to name a few, are among the states with the highest shares of pickups. (Also see, the most fuel efficient new pickup trucks on the market.)
Many of the states with the highest shares of pickup trucks also have rugged terrain and / or harsh winters. In fact, according to iSeeCars, the states with the 10 highest share of pickup trucks are Northern and mountainous states. Flat Florida and Illinois, on the other hand, have among the lowest share.
These are the states where the most people drive pickups:
32. Oregon
Source: Sean Pavone / iStock via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 16.9%
31. Arizona
Source: 4kodiak / E+ via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 17.1%
30. Washington
Source: PhilAugustavo / E+ via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 17.6%
29. South Carolina
Source: Kruck20 / iStock via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 18.5%
28. Michigan
Source: pawel.gaul / E+ via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 18.7%
27. Tennessee
Source: Joel Carillet / iStock via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 18.8%
26. Missouri
Source: traveler1116 / iStock via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 18.8%
25. New Hampshire
Source: Sean Pavone / iStock via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 19.3%
24. Colorado
Source: RondaKimbrow / iStock via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 19.3%
23. Texas
Source: Tiago_Fernandez / iStock via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 19.7%
22. Utah
Source: benedek / iStock Unreleased via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 19.9%
21. Oklahoma
Source: Sean Pavone / iStock via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 19.9%
20. Alabama
Source: Kruck20 / iStock via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 20.3%
19. Minnesota
Source: jimkruger / E+ via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 20.7%
18. Kansas
Source: Jacob Boomsma / iStock via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 21.1%
17. Wisconsin
Source: JamesBrey / E+ via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 21.2%
16. Kentucky
Source: Sean Pavone / iStock via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 21.8%
15. Mississippi
Source: SeanPavonePhoto / iStock via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 23.0%
14. New Mexico
Source: Faina Gurevich / iStock via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 23.0%
13. Louisiana
Source: Sean Pavone / iStock via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 23.9%
12. Nebraska
Source: Davel5957 / iStock via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 24.2%
11. Vermont
Source: ErikaMitchell / iStock via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 24.2%
10. Arkansas
Source: Rdlamkin / iStock via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 24.3%
9. Iowa
Source: pabradyphoto / iStock via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 24.4%
8. Maine
Source: SeanPavonePhoto / iStock via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 25.0%
7. West Virginia
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 25.5%
6. Alaska
Source: urbanglimpses / E+ via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 26.4%
5. South Dakota
Source: Different_Brian / iStock via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 29.1%
Source: diamondbackcovers / Flickr
3. North Dakota
Source: wweagle / iStock via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 31.6%
2. Montana
Source: powdr_dayz / iStock via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 34.7%
1. Wyoming
Source: Cheri Alguire / iStock Editorial via Getty Images
- Pickups as pct. of vehicles: 37.1%
ALERT: Take This Retirement Quiz Now (Sponsored)
Take the quiz below to get matched with a financial advisor today.
Each advisor has been vetted by SmartAsset and is held to a fiduciary standard to act in your best interests.
Here’s how it works:
1. Answer SmartAsset advisor match quiz
2. Review your pre-screened matches at your leisure. Check out the advisors’ profiles.
3. Speak with advisors at no cost to you. Have an introductory call on the phone or introduction in person and choose whom to work with in the future
Take the retirement quiz right here.
Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.
Editors' Picks
