In short: A driver you hire full time is your employee, and Guatemalan labour law sets the floor: Q4,252.28 a month in Guatemala department in 2026 (Q4,002.28 minimum wage plus the Q250 incentive bonus) and Q4,066.90 elsewhere. What changes the rest of the bill is who employs the driver. A family’s household driver is a domestic worker: no fixed workday but ten hours’ daily rest, and IGSS through the PRECAPI programme’s fixed quota, for about Q5,021 (~US$657) a month at the Guatemala-department floor. A business’s driver is on the regular IGSS regime (12.67% employer share) and a 12-hour daily ceiling, for about Q5,426 (~US$711). Both figures are before the car, fuel and overtime. If you only need a driver now and then, per-trip private transfers (US$75 airport to Antigua at one operator) are usually cheaper.
USD figures use the Banguat reference rate of Q7.63682 per US dollar on 24 September 2026. See today’s exchange rate.
This page is about employing a driver: a family, a retiree without a Guatemalan licence, or a business that needs someone behind the wheel most days. For a driver for a day trip from Antigua, see getting around Antigua, and for airport runs see Guatemala City airport to Antigua.
Household driver or business driver?
The Labour Code treats the two differently, so settle this first.
- Household driver. Article 161 defines domestic workers as people who work habitually and continuously in the cleaning, assistance and other tasks of a home or private residence that bring the employer no profit or business. A driver taking a family to school, the shops and the airport fits that description; a driver who carries your company’s clients does not. Domestic workers get the same minimum wage as any non-agricultural worker (domestic workers’ minimum wage).
- Business driver. A driver employed by a company, or used for a business, is an ordinary worker: regular IGSS regime, a written contract, and the workday rules below.
The monthly cost, line by line
| Cost line (per month, Guatemala department, CE1) | Household driver (PRECAPI) | Business driver (regular IGSS) | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum wage, non-agricultural | Q4,002.28 | Q4,002.28 | Acuerdo Gubernativo 256-2025 |
| Bonificación incentivo | Q250.00 | Q250.00 | Decreto 78-89 |
| Paid to the driver (gross) | Q4,252.28 | Q4,252.28 | |
| Employer social security | Q101.22 (Q303.66 per quarter ÷ 3) | Q507.09 (12.67% of the wage; the bonus is exempt) | PRECAPI quota; IGSS rates |
| Bono 14 + aguinaldo set aside (two months’ wage a year ÷ 12) | Q667.05 | Q667.05 | Decretos 42-92 and 76-78 |
| Employer cost at the legal floor | ~Q5,021 (~US$657) | ~Q5,426 (~US$711) | our arithmetic |
In the rest of the country (CE2) the wage is Q3,816.90 plus Q250; on the regular regime that puts the employer cost at about Q5,187 (~US$679).
Where the figures come from:
- Wage and regular IGSS rates: our 2026 minimum wage page and IGSS contribution calculator. On the regular regime the driver also pays 4.83% of the wage (Q193.31 at the CE1 floor), which you withhold and pay over.
- PRECAPI: IGSS’s programme for domestic workers charges a fixed quota calculated on the minimum-wage base, paid quarterly in advance, not a percentage of the real salary: in 2026, Q303.66 per quarter from the employer and Q151.83 from the worker, as set out on our guide to hiring domestic help, which cites IGSS’s PRECAPI payments page. Confirm with IGSS that it accepts your driver under PRECAPI; the mechanics are on our PRECAPI page.
- Bono 14 and aguinaldo: each is one month’s ordinary salary a year, neither includes the Q250 bonus. Bono 14 is paid in July; the aguinaldo is paid 50% in the first half of December and 50% in the second half of January (Decreto 76-78). Run a higher salary through the Bono 14 and aguinaldo calculators.
- The two cost rows are our own arithmetic from those published figures.
What drivers are actually paid
Computrabajo, a Guatemalan job board, publishes salary estimates it says are built from companies, users and employees over the last 12 months. Read on 24 September 2026:
| Job title on Computrabajo | Mean monthly salary | Low and high shown | Salaries in sample |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chófer | 4,065 Q | 3,000 Q – 5,600 Q | 36 |
| Conductor/a | 4,172 Q | 1,496 Q – 5,500 Q | 40 |
Both means are within a few hundred quetzales of the legal floor. Computrabajo does not say whether its figures include the Q250 bonus or which departments they come from. Nothing stops you paying more than the floor, and a driver with the English or experience you want may ask for it; you just cannot legally pay less.
Hours: different rules for the two kinds of driver
Household driver (Article 164). Domestic work is not subject to a fixed schedule or to the workday limits. Instead the worker must have at least ten hours of absolute rest a day, at least eight of them at night and continuous, and two for meals. A driver who does a 5 a.m. airport run and a 10 p.m. dinner pickup on the same day is not getting that rest.
Business driver (Articles 116 and 124). The ordinary limits are eight hours a day and 48 a week on day shifts (06:00 to 18:00) and six hours a day and 36 a week at night (Article 116). Article 124 exempts some workers from those limits, among them workers without immediate supervision and workers who do their job outside the company’s premises, which can describe a driver. Even then, the same article says they cannot be made to work more than twelve hours a day, and hours beyond twelve are paid as overtime.
For either kind of driver, agree up front:
- The normal hours, and how extra hours are paid.
- Days off, and who drives when the driver is off.
- Waiting time. For ordinary workers, Article 116 counts as effective work the time the worker remains at the employer’s orders, which includes sitting in the car outside a meeting.
The contract and the first two months
- Written or verbal. Article 27 allows the contract to be verbal for domestic service, provided the employer gives the worker a card or statement with the start date and agreed wage. For other employment, Article 28 requires a written contract in three copies, one of which the employer must send to the labour authority within 15 days of signing. Put a household driver’s terms in writing anyway.
- Trial period. Under Article 81, the first two months of an open-ended contract are a trial period in which either side can end the contract without liability.
- Register with IGSS: through PRECAPI for a household driver, or through employer registration on the regular regime.
- Check the licence and background. Ask for the driver’s licence (licence classes and renewal) and a police background certificate.
- Put the car’s rules in the contract too: who pays fuel and tolls, whether the car goes home with the driver, and what happens after a traffic fine.
Employ a driver, or book per trip?
A per-trip private transfer carries its own vehicle, fuel and driver. One operator’s published prices, read on 24 September 2026:
| Atitrans private transfer | Price (US$) |
|---|---|
| Private car, Guatemala City airport to Antigua | $75.00 |
| Private minivan, Guatemala City airport to Antigua | $90.00 |
| Private car, Guatemala to Panajachel | $185.00 |
| Private minivan, Panajachel to Guatemala City airport (6 people) | $200.00 |
Against ~US$657 to US$711 a month for a full-time driver at the Guatemala-department floor, before the car, per-trip transfers usually win if you travel a few times a month. Employment starts to pay off when the driver is working most days, running errands and school runs as well as trips, and when you already own the car.
If you want to drive yourself instead, see driving in Guatemala on a US licence and whether you need a car in Guatemala.
Related pages
- 2026 minimum wage in Guatemala
- Minimum wage for domestic workers
- IGSS contribution calculator
- Hiring domestic help legally
- Housekeeper prices
- Getting around Antigua
- Service prices hub
Sources
All read 24 September 2026 unless stated.
- Minimum wage: Acuerdo Gubernativo 256-2025, as carried in our minimum wage page (site data updated 3 September 2026)
- IGSS regular rates, Bono 14 and aguinaldo: as on our IGSS calculator, Bono 14 calculator and aguinaldo calculator; PRECAPI quota as on our domestic-help guide
- Código de Trabajo (Decreto 1441), Arts. 27, 28, 81, 116, 124, 161 and 164, consolidated text (PDF) (read 9 and 22 September 2026)
- Computrabajo Guatemala salary pages: chófer and conductor/a
- Atitrans: private transportation
- USD conversion: Banguat reference exchange rate, 24 September 2026
This page explains published rules and prices. It is not legal advice; for a specific employment contract, ask a Guatemalan labour lawyer.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does a private driver cost per month in Guatemala?
At least the 2026 minimum wage: Q4,002.28 a month plus the Q250 incentive bonus in Guatemala department (Q4,252.28), or Q3,816.90 plus Q250 in the rest of the country (Q4,066.90). Add Bono 14 and the aguinaldo set aside monthly and social security. On the regular IGSS regime (employer 12.67%) the employer cost at the Guatemala-department floor is about Q5,426 a month. A family employing a household driver through IGSS’s PRECAPI programme for domestic workers pays a fixed employer quota instead, which brings the cost to about Q5,021. Computrabajo showed mean driver pay of 4,065 quetzales a month for chófer and 4,172 for conductor on 24 September 2026.
Do I have to register a private driver with IGSS?
Yes, employer registration applies from the first worker. There are two routes. A household driver who counts as a domestic worker can be covered through PRECAPI, IGSS’s programme for domestic workers: a fixed quarterly quota (employer Q303.66, worker Q151.83 per quarter in 2026, as on our domestic-help guide), not a percentage of salary. A driver employed by a business goes on the regular regime: 12.67% from the employer and 4.83% from the worker, on the wage but not on the Q250 bonus. Either way you also owe Bono 14 in July and the aguinaldo, each worth one month’s ordinary salary a year; the aguinaldo is paid 50% in the first half of December and 50% in the second half of January.
How many hours can a private driver work in Guatemala?
It depends on who employs the driver. A driver working for a household, in a job that brings the employer no profit or business, is a domestic worker under Article 161 of the Labour Code, and Article 164 says domestic work is not subject to a schedule or to the workday limits, but the worker must get at least ten hours of absolute rest a day, at least eight of them at night and continuous, and two for meals. A driver employed by a business may fall under Article 124, which exempts, among others, workers without immediate supervision and workers who do their job outside the company’s premises from the ordinary limits, but still says they cannot be made to work more than twelve hours a day, with overtime owed beyond that. Otherwise the ordinary limits of Article 116 apply: eight hours a day on day shifts and six at night.
Is it cheaper to hire a driver or book transfers?
It depends on how often you travel. Atitrans, for example, published a private car from Guatemala City airport to Antigua at US$75 and a private car from Guatemala to Panajachel at US$185 on 24 September 2026. A full-time driver at the Guatemala-department floor costs an employer about Q5,021 to Q5,426 a month depending on the IGSS route, roughly US$657 to US$711, before the car, fuel and insurance. If you need a driver a few times a month, per-trip transfers usually cost less; if you need one most days, employment starts to make sense.
What licence does a private driver need in Guatemala?
The licence class depends on the vehicle. Our Guatemalan driver’s licence page explains the classes and how to get or renew one; ask to see the driver’s licence and check it matches the car you will use.
