In the age of global manufacturing, which semi trucks are still made in the USA?

Global supply chains and overseas production have reshaped the auto industry, but heavy-duty trucks remain a bastion of American manufacturing. Several Class 8 brands continue to build their biggest rigs on U.S. soil, led by Freightliner, Peterbilt, Kenworth, Mack, Western Star, International, and Volvo’s sprawling U.S. operations. Even as foreign ownership muddies the waters, these brands still account for a significant slice of the North American market.

Kenworth, founded in 1923 in Renton, Washington, to serve Pacific Northwest loggers, remains one of the most recognizable names in American trucking. The brand pioneered the first standard diesel engine in an American truck—a 100-horsepower Cummins four-cylinder—and introduced the industry’s first integrated sleeper cab. Today, Kenworth builds its flagship T680 in Renton, Washington, and Chillicothe, Ohio, while sourcing engines from PACCAR’s Columbus, Mississippi facility. Owned by PACCAR, Kenworth shares deep ties with sibling brand Peterbilt, another logging-truck spin-off that PACCAR acquired in 1958. Both brands share platforms, powertrains, and warranties, and their 2025 Class 8 market shares are nearly identical: Kenworth at 15.1% and Peterbilt at 15.3%. Peterbilt’s U.S. production is centered in Denton, Texas, where the brand also maintains its corporate headquarters.

Mack and Volvo, despite their global histories, both maintain major U.S. manufacturing footprints. Mack, founded before 1905, was acquired by Renault in 1990 and later by Volvo in 2001. Volvo, which began building trucks in 1928, operates the world’s largest Volvo truck plant in Dublin, Virginia—New River Valley (NRV)—a 2.3-million-square-foot facility that builds trucks for both Mack and Volvo. Mack also produces trucks at Lehigh Valley Operations in Macungie, Pennsylvania, and Roanoke Valley Operations in Salem, Pennsylvania. Volvo’s U.S. sales dipped 22.7% in 2025, ending the year with a 9.1% Class 8 market share, while Mack bucked the trend with a 9.7% sales increase, lifting its share to 8.7%.

Freightliner, Western Star, and International—all under the Daimler Trucks banner—also build Class 8 trucks in the U.S. Freightliner, the market leader in Class 8, produces its Cascadia and other models in plants across the country, including in Cleveland, North Carolina, and Gastonia, North Carolina. Western Star, known for rugged vocational trucks, builds its models in Portland, Oregon. International Trucks, a Navistar brand, assembles its line of severe-service and highway trucks in Springfield, Ohio, and other U.S. facilities.

Ownership complexity adds another layer to the story. While PACCAR (Kenworth, Peterbilt, DAF) and Daimler Trucks (Freightliner, Western Star, Thomas Built Buses) are U.S.-headquartered, brands like Mack and Volvo are ultimately controlled by Volvo Group, a Swedish multinational. Still, their U.S. plants remain critical to North American production and supply chains. For fleets and owner-operators prioritizing American-made equipment, these brands offer a clear path—even if the corporate structures behind them stretch across continents.