Find out whether your truck or SUV can handle your trailer, camper, or toy hauler — with the tongue weight, payload, and axle limits factored in, not just the tow rating.
Your vehicle can tow a trailer only when it clears every limit at once, not just the tow rating. The loaded trailer weight has to stay under the max tow rating; the vehicle-plus-trailer weight under the GCWR; the loaded vehicle weight under the GVWR; and your passengers, cargo, and tongue weight under the payload. A trailer that fits the tow rating can still overload payload once you add people and gear.
Tongue weight is the downward force the coupler puts on the hitch, usually 10 to 15 percent of the loaded trailer weight for a bumper-pull (more for fifth wheels). It counts against payload and GVWR and presses on the rear axle, so it's the number that quietly overloads a truck that looks fine on paper.
Both are a percentage of the loaded trailer weight, but the amount and where it lands differ. A travel trailer puts about 10 to 15 percent on a receiver behind the rear axle — a 7,000 lb trailer at 12 percent is roughly 840 lb. A fifth wheel carries 15 to 25 percent (around 20 percent) as pin weight sitting in the bed ahead of the rear axle — a 12,000 lb fifth wheel at 20 percent is 2,400 lb. That pin weight alone can exceed a half-ton's entire payload, which is why fifth wheels usually need a heavy-duty truck.
GVWR is the most the tow vehicle alone can weigh, including passengers, cargo, and tongue weight. GCWR is the most the vehicle and trailer can weigh together. Stay under both. You'll find them on the driver's door-jamb sticker and in the owner's manual.
The driver's door-jamb sticker lists GVWR, GAWR, and payload. The owner's manual or towing guide has the tow rating and GCWR, which vary by engine, axle ratio, cab, and equipment. The hitch or receiver is labeled with its tongue-weight rating. For real accuracy, weigh the loaded rig at a CAT scale.
Open the driver's door and find the white-and-yellow certification label. The line that reads "the combined weight of occupants and cargo should never exceed…" is your payload as the vehicle was built, already accounting for factory options. Enter that number in the payload field. Remember it has to cover passengers, cargo, and trailer tongue weight together, and aftermarket parts can lower it below the sticker figure.
Use it to plan, then confirm before you hitch up. Results reflect the numbers you enter plus an estimated tongue weight. Verify against your manufacturer's ratings and actual scale weights — truck, trailer, and combined — before a real trip.