Documented F-150 Specs by Configuration Across Engine and Axle

F-150 specs by configuration: start with your situation

This page shows which F-150 ratings apply to the exact truck in front of you, so you don’t buy a truck, trailer, or part on someone else’s number.

Why one F-150 number is almost never your number

Ford’s 2021 guide puts the maximum tow rating at 14,000 lbs. That figure applies only to a SuperCab 8′ box 4×2 or SuperCrew 4×2 with the 3.5L EcoBoost and the Max Trailer Tow Package. Max towing of 14,000 lbs. available on SuperCab 8′ box 4×2 and SuperCrew® 4×2 configurations with the 3.5L EcoBoost engine and Max Trailer Tow Package

For 2024, Ford’s maximum is 13,500 lbs, on a different build: SuperCrew 6.5′ box 4×4 with the 3.5L, requiring the Tow/Haul Package and optional Max Tow Axle. Every rating also assumes a 150-lb. driver and passenger. Change the engine, axle, cab, box, drivetrain or package, and the number changes.

Jump to your situation

• Cross-shopping model years or builds: start with the towing matrix, then the 2021–23 versus 2024–26 changes.
• Sizing for a specific trailer: read the payload, tongue weight and hitch limits, then the configuration decision section.
• Matching wheels, tires or a bed cover to a truck you own: read the wheel and tire specs, the fits-but-shouldn’t list, and the interchange section.
• Checking a used listing: read the model-year changes, then where to check your truck’s label.
• Considering a Lightning or Raptor: both have their own rows and limits in the matrix.

ℹ️ Safety Note: Tow ratings, payload, hitch-receiver limits, and tire and wheel load ratings apply only to the exact build they’re published for. Exceeding any one of them affects braking and stability, not just performance. Use these figures for comparison, then confirm each against Ford’s towing guide for your model year and your truck’s door-jamb label before hitching a trailer or buying load-bearing parts.

📍 Check your own vehicle first: Specifications vary by build date, package and market, and two trucks with the same badge can be built differently. Before you buy anything based on this page, confirm against:

• the Safety Compliance Certification Label on the driver’s door lock facing or latch pillar (GVWR, GAWR, axle code)
• the tire and loading information placard
• your model year’s owner’s manual and towing guide
• the window sticker or VIN build sheet (package codes)

If your vehicle disagrees with this page, your vehicle is right.

What F-150 tow, payload and GCWR ratings actually mean

Five ratings decide what an F-150 can pull and carry, and the smallest one that applies to your load is the one that counts.

Max loaded trailer weight versus GCWR

GCWR (Gross Combination Weight Rating) is the most the loaded truck and loaded trailer may weigh together. The maximum loaded trailer weight is the heaviest trailer allowed for one exact configuration. Combined weight of vehicle and trailer cannot exceed listed GCWR. Do not exceed the Maximum Loaded Trailer Weight listed.

The trailer figure also assumes a stripped truck. Ford’s assumptions are a towing vehicle with any mandatory options, no cargo, tongue load of 10% (conventional trailer) or king pin weight of 15% (5th-wheel trailer) and driver and passenger (150 lbs. each). Weight of additional options, passengers, cargo and hitch must be deducted from this weight.

Payload, GVWR and rear GAWR

Payload is what the truck itself can carry. GVWR caps the loaded truck’s total weight, and rear GAWR caps the load on the rear axle. Addition of trailer tongue load weight and weight of passengers and cargo cannot cause vehicle weights to exceed rear GAWR or GVWR. These ratings can be found on the vehicle Safety Compliance Certification Label.

🔍 What This Spec Means: Payload isn’t just what’s in the bed. It also covers passengers, accessories added after the truck left the factory, and the trailer’s tongue weight. Ford sets tongue weight at 10% of a conventional trailer’s loaded weight, so a 9,000-lb trailer uses about 900 lbs of payload before anyone climbs in.

How Ford calculates the numbers (SAE J2807)

Ford rates its trucks with SAE J2807. Per Ford, that standard defines procedures and requirements to determine gross combined weight ratings (GCWR) and to calculate the trailer weight rating (TWR) for any tow vehicle.

One more distinction matters on long downgrades. The braking system of the tow vehicle is rated for operation at the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR), not Gross Combination Weight Rating (GCWR).

F-150 towing capacity by engine, axle and cab, 2021–2026

The answer depends on engine, axle ratio, cab, box, drivetrain and package. Here are Ford’s published maximums by engine and model year, with the build each one requires.

Maximum rating by engine and model year

Maximum loaded trailer weight in lbs, from Ford’s 2021 and 2023 RV & Trailer Towing Guides and the 2024, 2025 and 2026 F-150 Towing Guides.

In Ford’s own summary tables, the 2021 3.5L EcoBoost is listed at 14,000 lbs with a 3,250-lb max payload. The 2024 guide lists the 2.7L at 8,400 lbs, and the 2026 guide lists the hybrid at 11,600 lbs.

The configuration behind each maximum

In 2023, Ford lists the 14,000-lb figure on SuperCab 8′ box 4×2 and SuperCrew® 4×2 configurations with the 3.5L EcoBoost engine and Max Trailer Tow Package. The 2.7L’s 10,100-lb rows carry a separate footnote: Requires 2.7L EcoBoost® Payload Package (622).

From 2024 on, the top gas ratings share one requirement. For the 3.5L EcoBoost, hybrid and 5.0L maximums, Ford’s footnote reads: Requires Tow/Haul Package and Max Tow Axle upgrade.

📐 On the Spec Sheet: In Ford’s 2026 selector, the 3.5L EcoBoost ranges from 10,500 to 13,500 lbs depending on cab, wheelbase, drivetrain and axle. Only the rows at 19,300–19,400 lbs GCWR, which require the Tow/Haul Package (53T) and Max Tow Axle, reach the top figures.

To see the exact rating for your cab, axle and drivetrain, use our [F-150 towing capacity lookup](INTERNAL: Towing Capacity Lookup).

How axle ratio and wheelbase move the number

A numerically higher axle ratio multiplies torque at the wheels, and Ford publishes a higher GCWR for it. In the 2024 selector, the 2.7L is rated at 7,400–7,600 lbs on a 3.55 axle and reaches 8,400 lbs on a 3.73.

Ford also rates each wheelbase separately. A SuperCrew on the 145.4-inch wheelbase and one on the 157.2-inch wheelbase can carry different ratings with the same engine and axle.

Hybrid, Raptor and Raptor R ratings

The 2024–2026 selectors list the hybrid only as a SuperCrew. For trailers over 10,800 lbs. – Tow/Haul Package (53T) and optional Max Tow Axle is required on the hybrid.

Raptor and Raptor R both use a 4.10 axle and top out at 8,200 and 8,700 lbs. Raptor’s 1,405-lb maximum payload is footnoted to 37-inch tires. Ford also states that 5th-wheel towing is not recommended for Raptor or Lightning models.

F-150 Lightning ratings by battery and package

The 2024 guide requires For trailers over 5,000 lbs. with standard-range battery or trailers over 7,700 lbs. with extended-range battery – Trailer Tow Package (53D). Some Lightning rows also depend on the tires: the 2024 selector footnotes certain ratings to 20-inch all-terrain tires.

Buyers are now shopping used or remaining inventory. Production of the current F-150 Lightning ends this year, Ford said in December 2025, and by this week it’s officially no longer available on Ford’s website. Our [Lightning tow ratings by battery and package](INTERNAL: Lightning towing cluster) break down every row.

You can check any row against Ford’s 2026 F-150 towing guide.

What changed between the 2021–23 and 2024–26 F-150

If you’re weighing a used 2021–2023 against a 2024–2026, both the ratings and the package names changed. A listing’s tow number means nothing without its model year.

Why the maximum dropped from 14,000 to 13,500 lbs

Ford’s top rating fell from 14,000 lbs in the 2021 and 2023 guides to 13,500 lbs from 2024. The build that earns it also moved from 4×2 trucks to a SuperCrew 6.5′ 4×4. Ford’s guides don’t state a reason, and we won’t guess one.

Max Trailer Tow Package versus Tow/Haul Package plus Max Tow Axle

In 2021–2023, the top ratings required the Max Trailer Tow Package (53C). From 2024, they require the Tow/Haul Package (53T) plus the optional Max Tow Axle.

The 14,000-lb reinforced receiver also moved between packages. The 2024 guide says the Tow/Haul Package (53T) includes 2″ reinforced receiver rated at 14,000 lbs. The 2025 guide says the Max Tow Axle includes 2″ reinforced receiver rated at 14,000 lbs. Our explainer on [how the Max Tow Axle differs from the old Max Trailer Tow Package](INTERNAL: Package explainer cluster) walks through the contents of each.

Engines added, dropped and re-rated

• 3.3L V6: appears in the 2021 and 2023 guides, and is missing from the 2024 six-engine table.
• 3.0L diesel: rated at 12,100 lbs in the 2021 guide, and absent from the 2023 guide’s seven-engine table.
• 2.7L EcoBoost: 10,100 lbs with Payload Package 622 in 2021 and 2023, then 8,400 lbs from 2024.
• Hybrid: 12,700 lbs (2021, 2023), 11,200 lbs (2024–2025), 11,600 lbs (2026).
• Frontal area: trucks rated over 7,700 lbs moved from a 60 sq ft trailer frontal-area limit (2021–2023) to 65 sq ft (2024–2026).

The 2026 guide also lists the 3.5L EcoBoost at 382 hp and the hybrid at 420 hp, versus 400 and 430 hp in the 2025 guide. Ford footnotes the 2026 ratings as based on premium fuel per SAE J1349® standard.

⚠️ Watch Out: A used 2021–2023 listing advertised as “tows 14,000” only qualifies if it’s the right cab and drivetrain with the 3.5L EcoBoost and code 53C. Confirm all four on the build sheet before you pay for a rating the truck doesn’t have.

F-150 payload, tongue weight and hitch receiver limits

A trailer inside the engine’s rating can still be over the hitch, the payload or the rear axle. This section shows which limit caps you first.

Standard versus reinforced hitch receiver ratings

Source: Ford 2024, 2025 and 2026 F-150 Towing Guides. The 2021–2023 receiver ratings are

When Ford requires a weight-distributing hitch

Do not exceed trailer weight of 5,000 lbs. when towing without a weight-distribution system. Above that, the weight-distributing figures in the table apply.

Tongue weight, king-pin weight and your payload

Tongue weight for a conventional trailer is 10% of its loaded weight, and king-pin weight for a 5th-wheel is 15%. Both come out of payload. To work out what’s left, try our [payload and tongue weight calculator](INTERNAL: Payload & Tongue Weight Calculator).

Ford’s published payload maximums also shrank:

Max payload of 3,325 lbs. on Regular Cab 8′ box 4×2 with 5.0L gas engine and Max Trailer Tow and Heavy-Duty Payload Packages

Fifth-wheel, frontal-area and altitude limits

A 5th-wheel trailer adds its own clearance problem. Ford’s 2025 RV guide cautions that Shorter pickup boxes (e.g. 5.5’/6.5′ F-150®, 6.75′ F-250®/F-350®) provide less clearance between the cab and 5th-wheel/gooseneck trailer compared to “long box” pickups. Our guide to [which F-150 beds actually work with a fifth-wheel](INTERNAL: 5th-wheel cluster) covers it by bed length.

Two more limits apply to every trailer:

• Frontal area: the 2024–2026 limit is 65 sq ft for trucks rated over 7,700 lbs.
• Altitude: Ford says to reduce Gross Vehicle Weight (GVW) and Gross Combination Weight (GCW) by 2% per 1,000 ft. elevation.

✅ Do This: Before hitching, ask the dealer’s towing specialist or a certified hitch installer to confirm three things in writing:

• the weight-carrying and weight-distributing ratings printed on your receiver label
• the payload left on your door label after accessories
• that your loaded trailer fits the selector row for your VIN

F-150 wheel and tire specs: bolt pattern to load index

These are the wheel and tire specifications Ford-linked sources publish for 2021–2026 trucks, with their sourcing status stated plainly.

Bolt pattern and lug thread, 2021–2026

Ford Performance lists a 20×8.5 wheel for 2021–2026 F-150s with a 6 x 135 mm bolt pattern (six studs on a 135 mm circle) and a 44 mm offset. This Ford Performance Six Spoke Gloss Black 6-Lug Wheel; 20×8.5; 44mm Offset, with a backspace of 6.483 Inch, 164.7mm and bolt pattern of 6 x 135mm (6 x 5.31-Inch)… is designed to fit 2021-2026 F-150 models.

For the studs themselves, Ford dealer guidance cites the owner’s manual. Ford’s online owner’s manual confirms 150 lb-ft for M14 x 1.5 and instructs a re-torque after 100 miles.

Hub bore and offset (sourcing status)

We found hub bore figures of 78.6, 87.1 and 108.6 mm for the same truck, and none came from a Ford document. Until one does, we don’t publish a hub bore. The 44 mm offset above belongs to one Ford Performance wheel, not to every factory wheel on every trim.

Use our [bolt pattern and offset finder](INTERNAL: Bolt Pattern & Offset Finder) to compare a wheel you’re considering against those numbers.

Load index, load range and the tire placard

Your placard sets the tire size and cold pressure your truck’s load ratings were built around. Heavy-duty builds go further.

📐 On the Spec Sheet: Ford’s 2021 Heavy-Duty Payload Package (627) specifies Increases GVWR to 7,850 lbs. on XL and XLT LT275/65R18C OWL A/T tires 18″ silver aluminum heavy-duty wheels. In 2023, the package moved to LT265/70R18C BSW A/T tires, on the XL only.

✅ Do This: Read the size, load index and pressure off your door placard, not off the tires currently fitted. A previous owner may have changed them. Ask the tire shop to confirm, in writing, that the replacement’s load capacity at placard pressure meets or exceeds the original.

F-150 parts that fit but shouldn’t be used

Each of these installs without a problem and then fails a load or clearance limit. Here’s the specification that proves it.

Tires that mount but can’t carry the load

A P-metric tire loses load capacity on a light truck. The RMA guidelines give the formula: For a light truck application, using the formula, the maximum load capacity would be 2028 ÷ 1.10 = 1844 lbs. This load reduction factor is prescribed by Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS).

🚫 Fits But Shouldn’t: A P-metric or Euro-metric tire mounts on an F-150 wheel of the same size. On a light truck, though, its sidewall load rating must be divided by 1.10. If that reduced number falls below your placard requirement, the tire is under-rated for your truck.

Before switching sizes, [compare the new tire size against the original](INTERNAL: Tire Size Comparison tool). Our breakdown of [P-metric versus LT tires on an F-150 that tows](INTERNAL: P-metric vs LT cluster) covers the load tables.

Wheels with the right bolt pattern and the wrong rating

Bolt pattern tells you a wheel will mount, not what it can carry. The load and cold inflation pressure imposed on the rim and wheel must not exceed the rim and wheel manufacturers recommendations even though the tire may be approved for a higher load or inflation.

🚫 Fits But Shouldn’t: An aftermarket 6 x 135 wheel bolts straight on. If its stamped load rating is below what your GAWR puts on each corner, it’s under-rated no matter how well it fits.

Fifth-wheel hitches in a 5.5-foot box

Vehicles equipped with a 5.5′ box will accept a 5th-wheel hitch but most 5th-wheel trailer designs are not compatible with this model.

🚫 Fits But Shouldn’t: A 5th-wheel hitch bolts into a 5.5-foot box, but most 5th-wheel trailers don’t have cab clearance with that box. Ford also doesn’t recommend 5th-wheel towing on any Raptor or Lightning.

Hitch hardware rated below your trailer

Older trucks can have a hitch without the tow package behind it. On 2021–2023 trucks with only the Class IV hitch (53B) and no Trailer Tow Package (53A), Ford says: Do not exceed a trailer weight of 6,000 lbs. with only the Class IV hitch (53B), without the Trailer Tow Package (53A). That note covers the 3.3L and 2.7L; the other engines are capped at 7,000 lbs.

🚫 Fits But Shouldn’t: A hitch-only 2021–2023 truck accepts any 2-inch ball mount you slide in. Without code 53A on the build sheet, the trailer cap is 6,000 or 7,000 lbs, whatever the engine is rated to pull.

Lightning-specific load traps

🚫 Fits But Shouldn’t: On a Lightning, some tow ratings are footnoted to specific tires. In 2023, the 10,000-lb rating required 18-inch all-terrain or 20-inch all-season tires. A replacement set that fits the wheel but differs from the footnoted tire may drop the truck out of that row.

Which wheels and lug nuts interchange with a 2021+ F-150

Interchange questions have two parts: will it bolt on, and will it carry the load. Today we can settle only part of the first.

2015–2020 wheels on a 2021–2026 truck

Ford Performance lists wheels at 6 x 135 mm for both earlier and 2021–2026 F-150 applications. Bolt pattern doesn’t settle hub bore, offset or load rating, so check all three. Our [2015–2020 versus 2021+ F-150 wheel interchange](INTERNAL: Interchange cluster) will carry the full table once sourced.

2004–2014 wheels and the lug-thread question

A retailer states Ford changed the thread from M14x2.0 to M14x1.5 in 2015. But one owner found This online manual from Ford: … it says m14x1.5 for the 2014. Ford’s own documents conflict, so we publish neither. Have a professional thread-gauge the studs before fitting older nuts.

Other brands’ 6-lug wheels

A matching lug count doesn’t mean a matching pattern. We haven’t sourced other makers’ specifications, so we make no claim about them.

Matching tonneau covers and liners to F-150 bed and cab

Bed accessories fail differently from load parts: they fit or they leak and rattle. Matching by box length and model-year range prevents both.

Box length by cab

Ford’s guides show three F-150 box lengths across 2021–2026:

• 5.5-foot (SuperCrew)
• 6.5-foot (SuperCrew in 2024)
• 8-foot (Regular Cab and SuperCab in 2021)

Buy a cover whose maker names both your box length and a 2021–2026 model-year range. A cover listed only as “F-150” doesn’t say which generation it was cut for. You can [find the exact box dimensions for your bed length](INTERNAL: Bed & Cargo Dimension Finder).

Cab-specific floor liner fitment

Floor liners are cut by cab type and model-year range. Match both to the liner maker’s published fitment, not to a generic “F-150” listing.

Where to check your own F-150’s specs before you buy

Every rating on this page has a physical location on the truck, and reading those locations takes about five minutes.

Reading the door-jamb label and AXLE code

Ford explains the code this way: check its Safety Compliance Certification Label (located on the left front door lock facing or the door latch post pillar). Below the bar code, you will see the word AXLE and a two-digit code.

Source: Ford 2024, 2025 and 2026 F-150 Towing Guides.

The tire placard, window sticker and receiver label

• Tire placard: original tire size, load and cold pressure.
• Window sticker or build sheet: package codes such as 53C, 53T, 53D, 622 and 627, and whether the Max Tow Axle is fitted.
• Receiver label: weight-carrying and weight-distributing capacities.
• Owner’s manual: wheel and towing chapters for your model year, available on Ford’s owner-manual pages

Which F-150 configuration fits your trailer and load

These bands come from Ford’s own required-equipment thresholds. They’re thresholds to stay under with margin, not targets to tow at.

Under 5,000 lbs

Any F-150 in these guides is rated to 5,000 lbs or more, so payload and frontal area matter more than the tow rating here. A weight-carrying hitch is limited to 5,000 lbs and a 500-lb tongue.

5,000 to 11,600 lbs

Above 5,000 lbs, Ford requires a weight-distribution system. On 2024–2026 gas trucks, trailers up to 11,600 lbs don’t trigger the Tow/Haul Package requirement; the hybrid’s threshold is 10,800 lbs. Choose the axle row that leaves margin below your trailer’s loaded weight, not the one that just clears it.

Over 11,600 lbs, and when to look beyond the F-150

Here the 2024–2026 gas trucks need 53T plus the Max Tow Axle, and the maximum is 13,500 lbs. Margins get thin at the top: tongue weight is capped at 1,350–1,400 lbs, payload is limited, and frontal area is capped at 65 sq ft.

Ford’s own advice covers this case: when the trailer has a large frontal area that adds substantial air drag or when trailering in hilly or mountainous terrain) it is wise to choose a vehicle with a higher rating.

✅ Do This: Ask the dealer to print the towing selector row that matches the VIN, with its GCWR, then compare it to your trailer’s loaded weight and your planned payload.

F-150 specs and fitment: common questions

Your pre-purchase checklist

The single most important check is the selector row for your VIN. Match engine, axle code, cab, wheelbase and package codes to Ford’s towing guide for that model year, then confirm the door label’s GVWR and GAWR cover your payload.

For towing, have a Ford dealer towing specialist confirm that row in writing. For wheels and tires, have a tire professional confirm load capacity at placard pressure.