2021 Ford F-150 towing capacity.

Published towing ratings for the 2021 F-150 run from 5,000 - 14,000 lbs depending on engine, tow type, cab, axle ratio, wheelbase, drivetrain, and equipment. Ford's guide also publishes engine-level max payload up to 3,325 lbs; the actual payload for a truck comes from its certification label.

Find your exact towing capacity Run the 2021 lookup tool → Compare engine families View 2021 powertrain matrix → View full comparison chart Full model index →

Retrieved from official Ford 2021 RV & Trailer Guide publications. Citations available below.

POWERTRAIN

Towing Capacity by Engine

Your engine determines your base towing limit and which max-tow packages are available. Start here to see the 2021 ratings for your specific truck setup.

Ford’s towing charts sometimes use technical engine labels. We show the familiar engine name first and Ford’s chart label alongside it so you can match both.

Highest Capacity

3.5L EcoBoost V6 (3.5L GTDI V6) · Engine max payload 3,250 lbs

Range: 10,300 - 14,000 lbs

Max conventional tow 14,000 LBS

5.0L Ti-VCT V8 (5.0L 4-Valve V8) · Engine max payload 3,325 lbs

Range: 8,200 - 13,000 lbs

Max conventional tow 13,000 LBS

3.5L PowerBoost Hybrid V6 (3.5L Hybrid V6) · Engine max payload 2,120 lbs

Range: 9,100 - 12,700 lbs

Max conventional tow 12,700 LBS

3.0L Power Stroke Diesel V6 (3.0L Turbo Diesel V6) · Engine max payload 1,840 lbs

Range: 8,200 - 12,100 lbs

Max conventional tow 12,100 LBS

2.7L EcoBoost V6 (2.7L GTDI V6) · Engine max payload 2,480 lbs

Range: 7,600 - 10,100 lbs

Max conventional tow 10,100 LBS

3.3L Ti-VCT V6 (3.3L PFDI V6) · Engine max payload 1,985 lbs

Range: 5,000 - 8,200 lbs

Max conventional tow 8,200 LBS

3.5L EcoBoost V6 High Output (3.5L GTDI V6 H. O.) · Engine max payload 1,400 lbs

Range: Up to 8,200 lbs

Max conventional tow 8,200 LBS

PHYSICAL LIMITS MAX HITCH

14,000 LBS

DOCUMENT RULES ALTITUDE

-2% / 1K FT

TOWING LAWS FRONTAL AREA

55-75 SQ FT

SAFETY BASELINE EQUIPMENT

1 RULE

Single threshold rule

VIEW ALL POLICY RULES

FIG. 2021 LOAD Load + Altitude

Base loading guidance from Ford

Conventional: 10% tongue weight of total loaded trailer weight.
5th-wheel: 15% king pin weight of total loaded trailer weight.
High altitude: reduce gross combined weight by 2% per 1,000 ft of elevation.

FIG. 2021 HITCH Hitch Capacities

Receiver and bumper ratings vary by model scope

Rear Step Bumper All F-150 Weight-carrying 5,000 / 500 lbs; no weight-distributing rating published.
Hitch Receiver All F-150 Weight-carrying 5,000 / 500 lbs; weight-distributing 14,000 / 1,400 lbs.

FIG. 2021 FRONTAL Frontal Area

Frontal-area allowances are year and setup specific

Conventional towing

55 sq ft

All F-150 · 5,001 to 7,700 lbs Any Powertrain with Trailer Towing Package or Payload Package and 55 sq. ft. Trailer Towing Ratings Between 5,001 and 7,700 lbs.
60 sq ft

All F-150 · 7,701 lbs and up Any Powertrain with Trailer Towing Package or Payload Package and 60 sq. ft. Trailer Towing Ratings 7,701 lbs. and Greater

5th-Wheel / Gooseneck

75 sq ft

All F-150 · All eligible trailer weights All 5th-Wheel and Gooseneck Applications with Any Powertrain with 75 sq. ft. Trailer Towing Package or Payload Package

FIG. 2021 SAFETY Universal Safety Baseline

Required equipment and threshold rules for the 2021 guide

F-150 non-Lightning pickup Trailers over 5,000 lbs require Trailer Tow Package (17T, 53A, 53B) or Max Trailer Tow Package (53C); rows above the proven 53B engine-section cap suppress 53B.

Technical Audit

Data sources

These citations show the Ford guide pages used to build the 2021 overview.

Show source pages for the 2021 guide

DOC_ID: ford-tow DOCUMENT BASIS

Ford RV & Trailer Towing Guide 2021

Audit Scope PAGES: 3, 16, 19-22, 41, 46

PDF Creation Date 2021-10-20

Guide Revision Date 2021-05-19, 2021-05-28, 2021-06-09, 2021-06-21, 2021-10-18