What is GVWR? Meaning, where to find it, and GVWR by truck

GVWR is the gross vehicle weight rating: the most a vehicle may weigh fully loaded. That covers the vehicle itself plus fuel, passengers, cargo and any trailer tongue weight on the hitch. The manufacturer sets it, and federal rules require it on the certification label next to the driver’s seat. On the half-ton pickups below it runs from 6,010 to 7,800 lb.

What does GVWR stand for?

Gross Vehicle Weight Rating. The federal definition is one line: “the value specified by the manufacturer as the loaded weight of a single vehicle.” Three words in it do the work.

Word	What it means for you
Specified by the manufacturer	Nobody calculates it for you and no option changes it. It is on the label.
Loaded	It is a ceiling on the vehicle with everything in it, not an empty weight.
Single vehicle	It covers the truck alone. Truck plus trailer falls under GCWR.

What is GVWR on a truck? 19 models compared

The table gives each model’s latest year with a manufacturer GVWR in our dataset, from the same documents as our towing pages. The class column uses the federal classes explained further down.

Model	GVWR	Federal class	Max towing
2025 Toyota RAV4	4,610 lb	C	1,500 lb
2025 Hyundai Santa Cruz	5,523 to 5,798 lb	D	5,000 lb
2025 Toyota Highlander	5,870 to 5,970 lb	D	5,000 lb
2025 Nissan Frontier	6,012 lb	E	7,150 lb
2025 Honda Ridgeline	6,019 lb	E	5,000 lb
2025 Chevrolet Colorado	6,049 to 6,250 lb	E	7,700 lb
2026 Toyota 4Runner	6,005 to 6,505 lb	E	6,000 lb
2025 Jeep Grand Cherokee	6,050 to 6,700 lb	E	6,200 lb
2026 Toyota Land Cruiser	6,725 lb	E	6,000 lb
2026 Toyota Tacoma	5,605 to 6,835 lb	D, E	6,500 lb
2025 Chevrolet Silverado 1500	6,700 to 7,300 lb	E, F	13,300 lb
2025 GMC Sierra 1500	6,700 to 7,300 lb	E, F	13,200 lb
2024 Nissan Titan	7,100 to 7,300 lb	F	9,290 lb
2026 Toyota Sequoia	7,350 to 7,615 lb	F	9,520 lb
2026 Toyota Tundra	6,990 to 7,780 lb	E, F	12,000 lb
2025 Ram 1500	6,010 to 7,800 lb	E, F	11,550 lb
2024 Nissan Titan XD	8,650 to 8,800 lb	G	10,900 lb
2026 Ram 2500	8,565 to 11,040 lb	G, H, 3	20,000 lb
2026 Ram 3500	11,040 to 14,000 lb	3	36,610 lb

A range means GVWR changes with cab, bed, drivetrain or package, so read the configuration table on the model page, or look yours up by VIN. Models with no manufacturer GVWR in our dataset yet, including every Ford, are not listed.

How to find GVWR of a vehicle

Open the driver’s door. Federal rules put the certification label on the hinge pillar, the door-latch post or the door edge that meets it, next to the driver’s seat. If none of those works, it goes on the left side of the instrument panel.

The label must print “Gross Vehicle Weight Rating” or “GVWR” followed by the value in pounds. Below it you will find a gross axle weight rating for each axle. A brochure figure covers a whole model line; the label covers your vehicle as built.

How is GVWR calculated?

You do not calculate it. The manufacturer chooses it, within one federal floor: GVWR “shall not be less than the sum of the unloaded vehicle weight, rated cargo load, and 150 pounds times the number of the vehicle’s designated seating positions.”

So a five-seat truck’s GVWR must leave at least 750 lb for occupants on top of its empty weight and rated cargo. What you can add is GVWR minus what your truck weighs on a scale today. The guide to GVWR vs GCWR vs payload works that through with a real truck.

GVW vs GVWR

GVW, gross vehicle weight, is what the vehicle actually weighs at a given moment, loaded as it is. GVWR is the ceiling on that number. A public scale gives you GVW; the door label gives you GVWR. You are within the rating as long as GVW stays at or below GVWR, and each axle stays within its own rating.

GVWR vs GAWR

GAWR, gross axle weight rating, is the most one axle may carry, measured where the tires meet the road. The label lists one per axle, front to rear. Both limits apply at once: a truck under its GVWR with too much weight over the rear axle is still overloaded, which is what a heavy tongue load tends to do.

Is GVWR the same as towing capacity?

No. GVWR caps the loaded truck. Towing capacity caps the trailer. They are separate ratings, and the gap between them can be large.

The 2026 Ram 3500 shows how far apart they sit. Ram rates its highest-towing configuration at 36,610 lb with a fifth-wheel or gooseneck hitch, on a truck with a 14,000 lb GVWR and a 45,000 lb GCWR. The trailer’s weight does not count against GVWR; only the share resting on the hitch does. That share comes out of payload; the guide to tongue weight shows how much to expect. Run your own numbers in the towing calculator.

GVWR ratings by class

The federal VIN rule sorts every GVWR into a class, and for trucks the VIN must encode the GVWR. Up to 10,000 lb the classes step every 1,000 lb and use letters.

Class	GVWR
A	3,000 lb or less
B	3,001 to 4,000 lb
C	4,001 to 5,000 lb
D	5,001 to 6,000 lb
E	6,001 to 7,000 lb
F	7,001 to 8,000 lb
G	8,001 to 9,000 lb
H	9,001 to 10,000 lb
3	10,001 to 14,000 lb
4	14,001 to 16,000 lb
5	16,001 to 19,500 lb
6	19,501 to 26,000 lb
7	26,001 to 33,000 lb
8	33,001 lb and over

A class is a band, not your rating. A VIN decoder can place a 2026 Tacoma in class D or E; only the door label gives the exact figure, somewhere from 5,605 to 6,835 lb.

GVWR/PNBV meaning

PNBV is the French abbreviation for the same rating, poids nominal brut du véhicule. Canada’s Motor Vehicle Safety Regulations require the compliance label to state GVWR in kilograms, identified in both official languages by the words or the abbreviations “GVWR” and “PNBV.” GAWR gets the same treatment as GAWR/PNBE. A label reading GVWR/PNBV is the rating you are looking for.

For a trailer’s GVWR, which caps the trailer rather than the truck, see what is GVWR on a trailer.

Frequently asked questions

What does GVWR mean?

GVWR means gross vehicle weight rating: the most a vehicle may weigh when fully loaded, as set by its manufacturer. It counts the vehicle itself, fuel, passengers, cargo and any trailer tongue weight resting on the hitch. It is a limit, not a measurement of what the vehicle weighs today.

What is GVWR on a truck?

The same rating: the most the loaded truck may weigh. It is printed on the certification label in the driver's door opening. On the half-ton pickups in our table it runs from 6,010 to 7,800 lb; the 2026 Ram 3500 reaches 14,000 lb.

Does GVWR include trailer weight?

Only the part of the trailer that rests on the truck. The tongue weight on the hitch counts against the truck's GVWR. The rest of the trailer falls under the truck's gross combination weight rating, GCWR, which comes from the manufacturer's towing guide.

What is the difference between curb weight and GVWR?

Curb weight is what the vehicle weighs empty, with fluids and no people or cargo. GVWR is the most it may weigh loaded. The gap between the two is roughly your payload, which is why a heavier trim with the same GVWR carries less.

What does GVWR mean on a car?

The same thing as on a truck: the most the loaded car may weigh. Federal rules require it on every car's certification label, and it caps passengers, luggage and any hitch load together.