Quick Facts About Payload
- Payload is the combined weight of everything in the vehicle, including passengers.
- Towing capacity is different than payload capacity. It’s typically a higher number.
- Be aware that new tires can change a truck’s payload capacity.
If you’re shopping for a pickup truck, or certain kinds of SUVs (more on that in a moment), you’ve likely heard some impressive claims about payload capacity. If you’ve been paying attention, you may have even noticed the payload capacities manufacturers claim roughly doubled in the past decade.
So, what exactly is payload? Is payload capacity something different? What do you need to know to buy a vehicle capable of safely carrying everything you need it to? We’ll break it down so you can choose what works best for your situation.
What Is Payload?
Payload is everything your truck or SUV is carrying — including you and your passengers.
A common misconception among truck buyers says that payload is the amount of weight in the bed. It isn’t. It’s the amount of weight in the bed and the cabin combined. You, dear reader, are part of the payload.
Your new 2023 Toyota Tacoma TRD Off-Road may be capable of carrying 1,155 pounds, but don’t load 1,155 pounds of concrete mix into the bed. At most, the truck can carry 1,155 pounds minus your weight, the weight of the passenger who helped you load the concrete mix, and the weight of anything and anyone else you put into the cabin with you.
What Is Payload Capacity?
A vehicle’s payload capacity is the maximum amount of weight it can safely carry. In a car or SUV, that includes all of the weight in the cabin and trunk. In a truck, it consists of all of the weight in the cabin and bed.
If you’re pulling a trailer, the payload also includes the weight of the trailer pushing down on the trailer hitch — something called tongue weight.
Payload Capacity vs. Towing Capacity: What’s the Difference?
Payload capacity differs from towing capacity (a far more complicated subject tackled in our Towing Capacity Guide).
Roughly speaking, payload capacity is the amount of weight a vehicle can carry, and towing capacity is the amount of weight it can pull. Automakers often refer to carrying weight in the bed of a truck as hauling to distinguish it from carrying weight in a trailer or towing.
Towing capacity is higher than payload capacity for the same reason you can pull more weight in a trailer than you can carry on your own shoulders. But payload capacity factors into towing capacity because what an SUV full of people pulling a boat behind it is doing is comparable to you pulling that trailer and carrying some weight on your shoulders.
Key Terms You Need for Hauling
Hauling comes with a much simpler lingo, and easier math, than towing. But there are a few terms that may come up.
| GVWR | Gross Vehicle Weight Rating is the maximum amount of weight a vehicle can hold safely, including its own weight. It takes into account the strength of the frame, suspension, axles, and wheels. |
| Curb Weight | Curb Weight is the total weight of a vehicle and all the fluids it requires to function (including a full tank of gas), but with no people or cargo inside it. |
How Do You Calculate Payload Capacity?
Good news — you probably don’t need to calculate your vehicle’s payload capacity. It will be listed in your owner’s manual. It’s also usually posted in a placard on the driver’s side doorjamb.
This placard may list the weight as “payload capacity,” or under a phrase like “the combined weight of passengers and cargo should never exceed” a certain weight.
If you need to calculate it yourself, you can subtract curb weight from GVWR to get the payload capacity.
For example, a 2023 Chevy Silverado 1500 Crew Cab comes with a GVWR of 6,800 pounds and a curb weight of up to 5,620 pounds. Its payload capacity is up to 2,140 pounds.
We’d also like to point out that since 2021, Ford F-150s became available with a built-in cargo scale, allowing owners to know exactly how much weight they put in their truck beds. It’s a great idea, and we hope other automakers follow suit soon. But it doesn’t weigh what’s in the cabin. So even if you own a truck with a scale, remember that your payload includes the driver and passengers.
Why Does Payload Capacity Matter?
Loading your vehicle with more weight than it is designed to carry is unsafe. It’s also probably against the law where you live.
You might be able to get your vehicle to move with a weight greater than the door sticker says it can carry. If so, you’ll find that it doesn’t accelerate fast enough to keep up with traffic, can slide in turns, and most importantly, takes a much longer distance to brake to a complete stop.
Driving that way causes accidents. It also voids your car warranty. And that isn’t good because it makes you need that warranty.
Overloading your vehicle puts more stress on the frame, suspension, and tires than they can handle. It makes the engine and transmission work harder than they’re designed to work. In a best-case scenario, that’s a lot of wear on parts and will cause them to fail early. In a worst-case scenario, it will cause them to fail immediately.
Oh, and it voids your car insurance contract. So, the cost of those repairs will be entirely on you.
Lastly, in many states, it’s illegal. So, when your transmission fails under the strain of a load the manufacturer said the vehicle can’t carry, leaving you blocking traffic, you’ll get a costly ticket on top of the towing bill and everything else.
In short, don’t exceed your vehicle’s payload capacity. Ever. Should you absolutely need to haul more than your vehicle can safely carry, rental trucks are your friends.
Your family or friends may own trucks you can borrow, too. If all else fails, make two trips.
Is the Advertised Payload Capacity Accurate?
If you’re truck shopping, you could hear some very impressive payload capacities advertised. It’s important to note that they are strictly true. But they generally don’t refer to the truck you’re going to buy.
For example, the manufacturer advertises a 2023 Ford F-150 with a payload capacity of up to 2,238 pounds, and it has one. That is, unless your local Ford dealership serves a heavy commercial clientele, that’s probably a special-order model they don’t keep in stock.
It’s also possible to buy a 2023 F-150 with a payload capacity as low as 1,310 pounds, and your local dealership is far more likely to have that one on the lot to sell you.
Why Do Some SUVs Have Radically Different Payload Capacities Than Others?
Roughly similar vehicles tend to have roughly similar payload capacities. Trucks that compete with one another for sales tend to offer roughly similar payload capacities. The same can’t be said of SUVs.
Some manufacturers build SUVs on truck frames designed to carry heavier loads and flex a bit to keep all wheels in contact with the ground in off-road situations. Those tend to have higher payload capacities.
Others get built on car frames designed for a smoother on-road ride and crisper handling. Those are great daily drivers, but they tend to have lower payload capacities. Automakers and the press often, but not always, call those vehicles “crossovers.”
So, you’ll sometimes see two vehicles with radically different payload capacities marketed as similar. The 2023 Ford Explorer and 2023 Toyota Venza get sold as midsize SUVs, but the Explorer maxes out at 1,723 pounds. The Venza can carry no more than 1,073 pounds.
How to Increase Payload Capacity
It’s possible to increase the payload capacity of your existing vehicle. But be careful. There is easily more bad information than good information available about how to do so.
After all, payload capacity gets affected by the capabilities of many different parts of your vehicle. Upgrading any one doesn’t enable the others to take more strain.
If you could strengthen your hamstrings but no other body part, trying to squat a heavier weight than ever before would succeed in hurting your back. Likewise, upgrading your truck’s shocks might enable you to damage the frame with a heavy load more successfully.
The safest way to increase payload capacity is to reduce weight. Removing the rear seats will buy you a few extra pounds of carrying capacity. Beyond that, if you must move a heavier load than your vehicle is rated to carry, rent something that can safely do it.
How to Decrease Payload Capacity
On the other hand, it’s pretty easy to accidentally lower your vehicle’s payload capacity. Anything that adds weight your truck didn’t have when it left the factory cuts into the amount of weight it can carry.
Aftermarket bed liners, truck caps, and toolboxes are great, functional additions that make a truck a more practical everyday tool. But they all reduce payload capacity. If you choose to add one or more to your vehicle, know its weight, and factor it in every time you haul.
Likewise, new tires can change a truck’s payload capacity. You’re almost certainly going to replace the tires at least once in the lifetime of your vehicle. Consult the manufacturer’s recommendations and the new tires’ weight ratings to ensure you’re not lowering the amount your truck can carry.
Pro Tips for Payload Distribution
It’s essential to ensure you don’t load more weight into your vehicle than it can safely carry. It’s also important to ensure you distribute weight as safely as possible. Just as you’d struggle to carry a heavy weight on one shoulder and a light one on the other, your vehicle can quickly get unbalanced with an uneven load.
Safety Guidelines for Hauling
- Place the heaviest items on the bottom. Top-heavy loads are more likely to shift.
- Spread cargo as evenly as possible in the truck’s bed or SUV’s cargo area.
- Strap heavy items in place so they can’t slide. All trucks for sale in the United States currently have tie-down points for ropes and ratchet straps. A ratchet strap set is much less expensive than damaging your cargo and your truck.
- State regulations generally require an object that sticks out of the back of your vehicle to have a red or orange visibility flag on it. This is so that other drivers can easily see it.
- Remember, when hauling liquids, they slosh and shift their weight around. Store them in small containers to allow as little space as possible for movement, and strap those containers down tight.
- Accelerate and brake gently and leave extra room between you and any other vehicle to allow you to do so safely.
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