Towing capacity calculator
Checks your trailer against the four limits that matter: towing rating, payload, GVWR and GCWR. Pick your truck or type the numbers from your door-jamb label.
How the four limits work
Towing rating is the maximum trailer weight for your configuration. Payload is everything the truck itself carries: people, cargo and the trailer's tongue weight. GVWR is curb weight plus payload, the most the loaded truck may weigh. GCWR is truck and trailer together.
The calculator computes each of the four and reports the tightest one. A common outcome on half-ton trucks is a trailer well under the towing rating that still pushes the truck past payload once the family and the tongue weight are added. That is a real overload even though the brochure number looks fine.
Frequently asked questions
What does the calculator check?
Four limits at once: trailer weight against the configuration's towing rating, tongue weight plus passengers and cargo against payload, loaded truck weight against GVWR, and truck plus trailer against GCWR where the manufacturer publishes it. The tightest limit decides the verdict.
Why does it say I am over payload when my trailer is under the towing rating?
Towing ratings assume a nearly empty truck. Every passenger, the cargo in the bed, and the trailer's tongue weight (10 to 15 percent of trailer weight for a conventional hitch) all count against payload. On many half-ton trucks payload is exhausted long before the towing rating.
What safety margin should I keep?
Most experienced towers stay at or below 80 percent of the rating. The calculator shows your margin against every limit so you can decide. Mountain grades, heat and crosswinds all argue for a bigger margin.
Where do I find my truck's real weights?
GVWR and axle ratings are on the certification label in the driver's door jamb. Curb weight for your exact build is best measured at a truck scale; the manufacturer range shown here is a starting estimate. GCWR is in the towing section of the owner's manual or the manufacturer's towing guide.