Payload and Tongue Weight Checker

Tow rating is the number people shop on. Payload is the number that stops them. A half-ton pickup rated to pull 11,000 lb often runs out of carrying capacity long before it runs out of pulling capacity, because a loaded trailer puts 10 to 13 percent of its weight straight down on the hitch, and that weight counts against the truck's payload along with every passenger, cooler and tool box.

Enter the payload number printed on your driver's door jamb and this tool tells you what is left for tongue weight, and which Black Series models still fit.

Your truck's payload budget

"The combined weight of occupants and cargo should never exceed X lb"
Counted at 170 lb each
Tools, cooler, firewood, generator, dog
Typical WD hitch is 80 to 120 lb
Model GVWR Tongue weight at 12% Verdict

Where to find your payload number

Open the driver's door and look at the white and yellow Tire and Loading Information sticker on the door jamb or the B-pillar. One line reads "The combined weight of occupants and cargo should never exceed X lb." That X is your payload, and it is specific to your truck as it was built, including every option on it. Do not use the brochure figure: a well-equipped crew cab 4x4 can carry several hundred pounds less than the number in the advertisement.

Why tongue weight counts twice

When you hitch a trailer, the tongue pushes down on the receiver. That force is carried by the truck's rear axle and comes straight out of the same payload budget as your passengers. A weight-distribution hitch spreads the load across both axles and improves handling, but it does not create payload, and the hitch hardware itself adds 80 to 120 lb of its own.

This is why the answer to "can a half-ton tow a 10,000 lb trailer" is usually yes on the tow rating and no on the payload. Our guides work through the arithmetic per truck:

Not sure which model you are sizing for? Take the two-minute model quiz, or send us your door-label numbers and we will do the math with you.