Is every Levi’s denim jacket a trucker?

No. The trucker is the Type III, with handwarmer pockets, the form Levi’s introduced in 1962. A single-pocket jacket with a cinch is an earlier type. Read the pockets. The lot number on the patch is the model. Do not use trucker as a synonym for any indigo jacket with a red tab.

Does the big E date the jacket by itself?

It is the older tab lettering, and the jeans article dates the change to a lowercase e in 1971. It is one clue. The lot number, the care label, and the pockets still have to agree. A replaced tab is a weaker clue. Photograph it. Do not stop there.

The patch is blank. Can I still call it a 557?

No. 557 is a number you read. Pockets that match a trucker let you say trucker-form denim jacket. They do not restore a lot number. Sell the pockets, the measurements, and the photos. An unidentified number is honest. A guessed one is a false listing.

How much is a Levi’s trucker jacket worth?

The trucker is Levi’s Type III denim jacket: handwarmer pockets, a two-horse patch, a lot number. It is not a 501. The tag dates it.

By WorthLast updated October 26, 2026Clothing and bags Thrifting Journal

Short answerA Levi’s trucker is the Type III denim jacket, with handwarmer pockets, not a 501 and not an earlier cinch-back jacket. Levi’s introduced that form in 1962. The lot number on the patch is the model. Holes and a blank patch change the sale. Compare sold listings of that number. A photo of the chest cannot show the back.

The jacket people call a Levi’s trucker is the Type III: a denim jacket with two chest pockets, a handwarmer pocket at each hip, and, on the ones that still have it, the leather two-horse patch and a red tab. Levi’s introduced that Type III form in 1962. Earlier denim jackets are other types. A Type I has a single chest pocket and a cinch at the back. A Type II has two chest pockets and often still a cinch, without the hip pockets that make the trucker the trucker. If your jacket has a cinch and no hand pockets, do not title it a trucker to borrow this search. Say what the pockets actually are.

The lot number is the jacket, the same way a 501 ticket is the pair of jeans. The 501 guide is not this page. A number such as 557 is a trucker number people search, and later stock numbers exist. Read the number on the patch or the tag. If the patch is blank or gone, you do not reconstruct 557 from the pockets alone. You have a denim jacket with those pockets, and you say so. The big E on a tab, the care label, and the country line are the dating clues the jeans article already explains for pants. They apply here as clues, not as a second copy of that essay. A jacket with a care label is in the era of care labels. A jacket with a big-E tab is showing the older lettering. The pockets, the number, and the lining still have to agree.

What should you look for?

The pockets: Two chest pockets with flaps, usually pointed on the trucker, and two hand pockets at the waist. A cinch back and a single pocket are an earlier jacket. Photograph the front flat so the pocket count is obvious, and the back so a cinch cannot hide. Do not crop the hips and then claim hand pockets you did not show.
Patch and lot number: The leather patch at the neck or the hem side of the collar placket, the two-horse mark if it is there, and the number printed or stamped on it. Include the care label and the country. A cracked patch is still a patch. Conditioner that darkens a stamp is damage you did. Read it before you oil it.
Tab and buttons: A red tab, and whether the E is the capital letter or the lowercase lettering the jeans note dates to 1971. Metal buttons, and what is stamped on them if you can see it. A missing tab is a missing tab. A replaced zipper is a replacement. The jacket can still be real. The title has to survive the part that was swapped.
Lining and size: Blanket lining, quilt lining, or an unlined body. A lining that is shredded changes the wear. Measure chest and length flat. A vintage size on a tag is not a modern body. A cut hem or a taken-in side is altered. Collectors pay for unaltered. Wearers may not care. Name which sale you are running.

What moves the price?

The number you can read: Comp that lot or stock number, that tab lettering, and that country. A later blank trucker with a modern care label is a used jacket, compared with current Levi’s jackets as well as with vintage sales. A 1960s number you cannot see is not a price you may borrow. The jeans dating article is the method. This jacket is the object.
Condition: Underarm shred, a split side, paint, a broken zipper, and a collar that is gone. Denim jackets were work clothes. Wear is normal. Holes are still holes. A jacket with a sound zipper and intact pockets in a size people wear is the one that clears. Show the worst six inches of the lining and the pits.
Not the 501: The 501 page is the pants: arcuate, selvedge, waist. A jacket does not inherit a selvedge-jean price because both are Levi’s and both are indigo. If you also have the pants, they are a second listing unless you are selling an outfit on purpose and you say so. Measure both.
Type I and Type II: Those jackets have their own buyers. Misnaming them as truckers is how the return happens. If you are unsure of the type, describe the pockets and the cinch and stop. A buyer who wants a Type I will be angry to receive hip pockets. A buyer who wants a trucker will be angry to receive a cinch and no hand pockets. The photo of the back ends the argument.

Where can you sell it?

eBay and closet apps: Levi’s, trucker only if the pockets agree, the lot number, the tab lettering, the measurements, and the pits. The where-to-sell note picks the door. The Poshmark sequence is the label if that is the door. Read the fee. A heavy blanket-lined jacket costs more to ship than a tee. Weigh it.
Local: Right for a shredded lining, an odd size, and a jacket you would rather someone try on. Marketplace is the local door. Say the pit wear so the parking lot is not a surprise. A buyout store may treat it as just another denim jacket. Pull it out of a bulk bag until you have looked at the number. The bulk article is that warning.
Wear: A sound trucker in your size, under what the same jacket sells for used, is a rational buy to own. You do not have to flip a jacket because the patch has two horses. A modern Levi’s trucker with a current tag is a current jacket. Enjoy it or comp it with current jackets. The logo is not a decade.

What can a photo settle?

Front and back flat, both chest pockets and both hand pockets, the patch with the number, the tab, the care label, the lining, and the worst underarm. Worth can read Levi’s from a clear patch. It cannot date a missing lot number, see a shredded lining you did not open, or tell a Type II from a trucker if the back and the hips are out of frame.

What else do people ask?

Is every Levi’s denim jacket a trucker?: No. The trucker is the Type III, with handwarmer pockets, the form Levi’s introduced in 1962. A single-pocket jacket with a cinch is an earlier type. Read the pockets. The lot number on the patch is the model. Do not use trucker as a synonym for any indigo jacket with a red tab.
Does the big E date the jacket by itself?: It is the older tab lettering, and the jeans article dates the change to a lowercase e in 1971. It is one clue. The lot number, the care label, and the pockets still have to agree. A replaced tab is a weaker clue. Photograph it. Do not stop there.
The patch is blank. Can I still call it a 557?: No. 557 is a number you read. Pockets that match a trucker let you say trucker-form denim jacket. They do not restore a lot number. Sell the pockets, the measurements, and the photos. An unidentified number is honest. A guessed one is a false listing.