Ram · Full-size light-duty pickup
Ram 1500 towing capacity & payload by year
Maximum towing and payload for every Ram 1500 generation from 2002–2026, with the engines behind each rating — and what is really left once the truck is loaded.
2019–2024 · Ram 1500 Classic (4th-gen DS, sold alongside DT)
10,520 lb
maximum towing, properly equipped
What's left after passengers and cargo → Ram 1500 bed sizes & specs →
Manufacturer maximum for a best-case configuration. Cab, bed, drivetrain, axle ratio and options all move the real number, usually downward. Your truck's own limits are on the door-jamb sticker and in the owner's manual.
Ram 1500 towing & payload, generation by generation
| Years | Generation | Max towing | Max payload | Engines |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019–2024 | Ram 1500 Classic (4th-gen DS, sold alongside DT) | 10,520 lb | 2,300 lb | 3.6L Pentastar V6 eTorque (305 hp) · 5.7L HEMI V8 eTorque (395 hp) |
| 2019–present | 5th gen (DT) | 11,550 lb | 2,370 lb | 3.6L Pentastar V6 eTorque (305 hp) · 3.0L Hurricane Twin-Turbo I6 (SO) (420 hp) · 3.0L Hurricane Twin-Turbo I6 (HO) (540 hp) · 5.7L HEMI V8 eTorque (395 hp) · 3.0L EcoDiesel V6 (2019-2023) (260 hp) |
| 2009–2018 | 4th gen (DS) | 10,640 lb | 1,870 lb | 3.6L Pentastar V6 (305 hp) · 5.7L HEMI V8 (395 hp) · 3.0L EcoDiesel V6 (2014+) (240 hp) |
| 2002–2008 | 3rd gen (DR/DH, Dodge Ram 1500) | 8,950 lb | 1,850 lb | 3.7L Magnum V6 (215 hp) · 4.7L Magnum V8 (310 hp) · 5.7L HEMI V8 (345 hp) |
Ratings from before the mid-2010s were set by each manufacturer's own method. The industry-wide SAE J2807 standard adopted since then is stricter, so a modern figure and an older one are not strictly comparable even on the same model.
Trucks that tow about the same
The closest models on record by maximum towing — the natural cross-shop if the rating is what you are buying on.
Ram 1500 towing — frequently asked
How much can a Ram 1500 tow?
The current Ram 1500 (2019–2024) is rated up to 10,520 lb, and the model has reached 11,550 lb in an earlier generation. That is the maximum for one specific configuration — usually the lighter cab and bed with the tow package and the right axle ratio. A loaded crew-cab four-by-four of the same year will be meaningfully below it, and the number on your door-jamb sticker is the one that counts.
What is the payload capacity of a Ram 1500?
Up to 2,370 lb across the generations on this page. Payload covers everything the truck carries rather than pulls: passengers, everything in the cab and the bed, a tonneau cover, and the tongue weight the trailer puts on the hitch. That last one is why trucks so often run out of payload while still well inside their towing rating — a 7,000 lb trailer at 12 per cent tongue weight puts 840 lb into the bed before you have loaded anything.
Has the Ram 1500's towing capacity changed over the years?
Yes — across 2002–2026 the maximum rating has risen, from 8,950 lb on the oldest generation on record to 10,520 lb on the current one. Comparing across generations is not quite like for like, though: the SAE J2807 tow-rating standard was adopted industry-wide in the mid-2010s, and it produced lower, more honest numbers than the in-house methods that came before it.
Does a tonneau cover reduce what my Ram 1500 can carry?
It comes out of payload, not towing capacity. A hard folding or retractable cover typically weighs 50 to 80 lb, and that sits in the same budget as passengers, cargo and tongue weight. On a crew cab already close to its payload limit, it is worth counting — on a truck with plenty of margin, it is noise.
What should I actually plan to tow with a Ram 1500?
Take the rating that applies to your exact truck from the door-jamb sticker, then plan to stay under roughly 80 per cent of it. That margin is what absorbs grades, headwinds, altitude and the fact that a trailer's real loaded weight is always higher than its dry weight. Then check payload separately, because that is usually the limit you hit first.
