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RV glossary · Weights & towing limits

Payload capacity

Also called: Payload

How much weight a truck or SUV can carry: its GVWR minus its curb weight. Passengers, cargo, the hitch itself and the trailer’s tongue or pin weight all count against payload.

Payload is printed on the yellow Tire and Loading Information sticker on the driver’s door jamb (“The combined weight of occupants and cargo should never exceed XXX lbs”). It varies a lot by trim and options: two trucks of the same model can differ by hundreds of pounds.

Payload is frequently the first limit people hit, especially with fifth wheels, whose pin weight is often 15–25% of the trailer’s loaded weight. A truck can have the tow rating for a trailer and still be over payload once the family and gear are inside.

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Related terms

GVWR
The maximum an RV (or a truck) is allowed to weigh when fully loaded, including everything inside it: cargo, water, propane, batteries and, for motorhomes, passengers. It is set by the manufacturer and printed on the weight label.
Curb weight
What a vehicle weighs with standard equipment and full fluids but no passengers or cargo. GVWR minus curb weight equals payload.
Hitch weight
The downward force a bumper-pull trailer puts on the tow vehicle’s hitch, typically 10–15% of the trailer’s loaded weight. Too little tongue weight can cause sway; too much can overload the truck’s rear axle and payload.
Pin weight
The weight a fifth wheel puts on the hitch in the truck bed, usually about 15–25% of the trailer’s loaded weight. It is the fifth-wheel equivalent of tongue weight and often decides whether a truck has enough payload.
GAWR
The most weight a single axle (front or rear) is rated to carry. On a tow vehicle, the trailer’s tongue or pin weight pushes down on the rear axle, so a heavy trailer can exceed the rear GAWR before anything else.

More weights & towing limits terms

UVW · Dry weight · CCC · OCCC · GCWR · GVW · Tow rating · Wet weight

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