Payload Calculator

US & Canada

Payload is the limit most people hit first. Enter two numbers off the door sticker and see what is actually left.

Your payload

1. From the door sticker

lb

Driver's door sticker.

lb

Empty, with a full tank. A scale beats the brochure.

Many stickers print the payload figure directly, on a yellow label reading "The combined weight of occupants and cargo should never exceed X". If yours does, trust that over the subtraction, because it is specific to your build.

2. What you are putting in it

aboard
lb

Everything you add: gear, racks, tools, fuel cans.

lb

The full tongue weight lands on this vehicle. Set 0 if you are not towing.

Result

0

Where your payload goes

Accessories you leave fitted, such as a bed cover, a rack or a toolbox, come out of payload too. Curb weight excludes anything ordinarily removed when not in use.

The arithmetic

  • Payload capacity = GVWR − curb weight
  • Payload used = occupants + cargo + trailer tongue weight
  • What is left = capacity − used

Occupants are counted at 150 lb each. That is not a guess at an average adult: 49 CFR 567.4(g)(3) requires that a GVWR be "which shall not be less than the sum of the unloaded vehicle weight, rated cargo load, and 150 pounds times the number of the vehicle's designated seating positions." Canada's Motor Vehicle Safety Regulations (C.R.C., c. 1038), s. 5.2 sets the same floor in metric, at 68 kg per seat, which is the same 150 lb. Most adults weigh more than that, so put the difference in the cargo field.

What payload is left in four common setups

Illustrative vehicles, not specific models. Every figure is computed by the same code as the calculator above.

Payload remaining in four example setups
Setup Capacity People Cargo Tongue Left
Mid-size SUV, family of four 1,400 lb 600 lb 150 lb 450 lb 200 lb
Half-ton pickup, two up 1,500 lb 300 lb 200 lb 650 lb 350 lb
Half-ton pickup, five up 1,500 lb 750 lb 300 lb 650 lb 200 lb over
Three-quarter ton, two up 3,000 lb 300 lb 300 lb 1,500 lb 900 lb

The pattern is the same every time: the trailer tongue is the single largest item, and adding passengers is what tips a rig over.

Things that quietly eat payload

  • Anything you leave fitted. A bed cover, a toolbox, a roof rack, steps, a bull bar. Curb weight only excludes what is "ordinarily removed when not in use", so permanent additions are payload.
  • A weight distribution hitch. The head and bars are typically heavy, and they sit at the very back.
  • Water. Fresh water is 8.34 lb per US gallon. A 40 gallon tank is over 330 lb.
  • Passengers above 150 lb. The sticker assumed 150 lb each. Anything over that is cargo in practice.

Sources

Common questions

What is payload capacity?
Everything the vehicle can carry: people, cargo, accessories you leave fitted, and the trailer tongue. It is GVWR minus curb weight. 49 CFR 571.3, Definitions defines GVWR as "Gross vehicle weight rating or GVWR means the value specified by the manufacturer as the loaded weight of a single vehicle."
Does payload include passengers?
Yes, and that surprises people. Payload is the combined weight of occupants and cargo. A family of four at the regulatory 150 lb each is 600 lb (272 kg) before anyone packs a bag.
Does payload include the trailer tongue weight?
Yes. The tongue sits on the ball, which sits on the vehicle, so it is payload. On a 6,500 lb (2,948 kg) trailer at 13% that is 845 lb (383 kg), which on many half-ton pickups is most of the payload on its own.
Where is payload written on my truck?
Usually on a yellow label on the driver's door pillar, reading "The combined weight of occupants and cargo should never exceed X". That figure is specific to your build, so trust it over GVWR minus a brochure curb weight.
Why is my payload lower than the brochure says?
Because options are weight. Four-wheel drive, a sunroof, a bigger engine, a crew cab and heavier wheels all raise curb weight, and every pound of it comes out of payload. The door sticker reflects your actual vehicle; the brochure describes the lightest one they build.
What is curb weight exactly?
49 CFR 571.3, Definitions defines unloaded vehicle weight as "Unloaded vehicle weight means the weight of a vehicle with maximum capacity of all fluids necessary for operation of the vehicle, but without cargo, occupants, or accessories that are ordinarily removed from the vehicle when they are not in use." So a full tank counts and you do not, and a roof rack you leave on year-round is not covered by that definition, which is why it has to come out of payload instead.
What happens if I exceed payload?
Mechanically you are overloading springs, tires and brakes past what the manufacturer validated, and tires are usually the first thing to fail. Legally you are over GVWR, which matters at a roadside inspection and can matter to an insurer after a collision. It is also often invisible: nothing warns you.
Is GVWR the same as the two axle ratings added together?
No. 49 CFR 571.3, Definitions defines GAWR as "Gross axle weight rating or GAWR means the value specified by the vehicle manufacturer as the load-carrying capacity of a single axle system, as measured at the tire-ground interfaces." GVWR is a separate figure and is usually lower than the two GAWRs added up, so you can be within GVWR and still overload the rear axle, which is exactly what heavy tongue weight does.