Most people who ask us for a towing chart already have a trailer in mind. It might be a grain trailer that needs to reach the elevator in September, a gooseneck stock trailer, or a holiday trailer that has to climb a gravel grade to the lake in July. What they want is one page that lines up every Ram pickup so they can see which truck clears the trailer. This is that page. If you already know you are in half ton territory, our new Ram 1500 inventory shows what is on the lot in Portage la Prairie today.
If the trailer is bigger than that, go straight to the heavy duty trucks in our new Ram 2500 inventory and new Ram 3500 inventory. Either way, read the second half of this page before you hitch anything, because the number on the chart is a ceiling for one build, and the stickers on your own truck are what actually limit you.
Key Takeaways
- 2026 model year, maximum when properly equipped: Ram 1500 up to 11,610 lb (5,266 kg), Ram 2500 up to 20,000 lb (9,072 kg), Ram 3500 up to 36,610 lb (16,606 kg).
- Each maximum belongs to one configuration. Engine, cab, box, axle ratio, drive, rear wheels and hitch type all move it.
- GCWR is the real ceiling. It caps the loaded truck and the loaded trailer together, so everything in the cab and box spends the same budget.
- Tongue weight and pin weight are payload. Towing and payload maximums are mutually exclusive; you never get both at once.
- Your door jamb labels beat every chart, including this one. Bring us the VIN and we will read the real numbers with you.
The Chart, Truck by Truck
Everything below is the 2026 model year, maximum when properly equipped, taken from the same Ram spec sheets our single model guides use. Kilograms are rounded to the nearest kilogram.
Ram 1500
3.0L Hurricane Standard Output: up to 11,610 lb (5,266 kg)
5.7L HEMI V8 eTorque: up to 11,320 lb (5,135 kg)
3.0L Hurricane High Output: up to 10,000 lb (4,536 kg)
3.6L Pentastar V6 eTorque: up to 8,130 lb (3,688 kg)
Maximum payload: up to 2,360 lb (1,070 kg), on a Pentastar Quad Cab 4x2
The 540 horsepower High Output rates lower than the Standard Output because towing follows gearing and GCWR, not horsepower. The top Hurricane rating needs the 3.92 axle; the same engine on a 3.21 axle drops to the 8,000s. The full cab, box and axle breakdown lives in our Ram 1500 towing capacity chart.
Ram 2500
6.7L Cummins High Output turbo diesel: up to 20,000 lb (9,072 kg)
6.4L HEMI V8: more than 17,000 lb (published figures differ slightly by source, so we confirm yours from the build)
Payload: the gas truck out carries the diesel, because the Cummins and its hardware add curb weight
The Cummins High Output makes 430 horsepower and 1,075 lb ft, which Ram lists as best in class available base diesel torque. The 2500 also carries a class exclusive coil link rear suspension. More on both in our Ram 2500 towing capacity guide.
Ram 3500
6.7L Cummins High Output turbo diesel: up to 36,610 lb (16,606 kg)
6.4L HEMI V8: up to 18,150 lb (8,233 kg)
Maximum payload: up to 7,590 lb (3,443 kg) with the 6.4L HEMI
The 36,610 lb figure is the top of the whole lineup and belongs to a very specific 3500 set up for fifth wheel or gooseneck towing. Both heavy duty trucks offer a class exclusive automatic levelling rear air suspension, which is worth a lot with a heavy pin weight sitting in the box.
What the Door Stickers Actually Limit
The brochure number is the question everyone asks. These five terms are the ones that decide the answer, and they are the ones buyers mix up most at our desk.
GVWR, gross vehicle weight rating. The most the truck itself may weigh when loaded: the truck, fuel, people, cargo, and the tongue or pin weight pressing down from the trailer. It is on the certification label in the driver's door jamb.
GAWR, gross axle weight rating. The most each axle may carry, front and rear, printed on the same label. A heavy tongue weight can overload the rear axle even when the truck's total is under GVWR.
GCWR, gross combined weight rating. The most the loaded truck and loaded trailer may weigh together. This is the one that ties towing and payload into a single budget. On a Ram 1500 Hurricane Standard Output with the 3.92 axle, for example, the sheet lists a GCWR of 17,000 lb. Weigh the loaded truck, subtract it from the GCWR, and what is left is the most trailer you can pull that day.
Payload. GVWR minus the truck's curb weight. It includes every person in the cab, everything in the box, and the tongue or pin weight. Your truck's payload as built appears on the Tire and Loading Information placard on the door jamb.
Tongue weight and pin weight. The downward force a trailer puts on the truck. Ram's 1500 chart assumes a conventional trailer puts 10 percent of its weight on the ball, and the 1500's Class IV receiver tops out at 1,100 lb of tongue weight. A fifth wheel or gooseneck puts roughly 15 to 25 percent of its loaded weight straight into the box as pin weight.
Why the Brochure Number Is a Ceiling, Not Your Number
Every maximum on the chart is achieved by one exact truck. Change the cab, the box, the axle ratio, the drive, or single to dual rear wheels and the rating changes. That is why two Ram 3500s parked side by side on our lot can carry very different tow ratings.
Then the fine print starts spending the number. The Ram 1500 ratings already assume a 300 lb passenger allowance, so a full crew and a loaded box eat into it. Ram states plainly that trailer weight and payload ratings are mutually exclusive. A weight distributing hitch is recommended over 5,000 lb on the 1500.
The heavy duty trucks run into payload first. Put a big fifth wheel in the box of a 2500, add the hitch, four people and a full tank, and the payload is often gone well before the tow rating is. That is the usual reason a 2500 buyer ends up in a 3500, and our Ram 2500 and 3500 payload guide runs that arithmetic properly.
Three Manitoba Trailers, Three Different Answers
A national spec sheet does not know it is harvest, or that the last two kilometres to the yard are gravel. Here is how the chart plays out on the trailers we actually see around Portage la Prairie.
The grain trailer. A loaded tandem grain trailer headed to the elevator is heavy, dense and short, and it is usually pulled off a field approach onto gravel. That is heavy duty work. The honest call is usually a Cummins 2500 or 3500 on a gooseneck, sized to the GCWR with the trailer full, not empty.
The stock trailer. Cattle move. Twenty head of calves shifting on a rough road push the truck around in a way a camper never does, and a gooseneck stock trailer puts a big pin weight in the box. Look at payload and rear GAWR first. This is where the 3500's payload and the automatic levelling rear air earn their keep.
The big holiday trailer. The one that surprises people. A 30 foot travel trailer loaded for two weeks weighs well over its dry weight once water, propane and gear go in, and a gravel grade up to the lake with a crosswind off the fields asks more of a half ton than the brochure suggests. A properly equipped 1500 handles many of these with margin. Once the trailer climbs toward the top of the 1500 chart, or it is a fifth wheel, we would rather put you in a 2500 than sell you a truck twice.
One more Manitoba rule: any trailer with a gross weight over 910 kg, about 2,000 lb, needs its own working brakes and a breakaway system. Every trailer on this list is over that line. Before the season, book a service visit and have us check the brakes, the wiring and the brake controller on both the truck and the trailer.
FAQs
What is the maximum towing capacity of each 2026 Ram pickup?
For the 2026 model year, maximum when properly equipped: Ram 1500 up to 11,610 lb (5,266 kg), Ram 2500 up to 20,000 lb (9,072 kg), and Ram 3500 up to 36,610 lb (16,606 kg). Each figure belongs to one specific configuration.
What is the difference between GVWR and GCWR?
GVWR is the most the truck alone may weigh loaded, including people, cargo and the trailer's tongue or pin weight. GCWR is the most the loaded truck and loaded trailer may weigh together. GCWR minus your loaded truck weight is the most trailer you can pull.
Where do I find my truck's real ratings?
Open the driver's door. The certification label lists GVWR and the front and rear GAWR, and the Tire and Loading Information placard shows the payload for your truck as built. Or bring us the VIN and we will look them up.
Does tongue weight count against payload?
Yes. Ram's 1500 chart assumes 10 percent of a conventional trailer's weight rests on the ball, and a fifth wheel or gooseneck puts roughly 15 to 25 percent into the box. All of it comes off your payload.
Can I tow the maximum and carry the maximum payload at the same time?
No. Ram states that trailer weight and payload ratings are mutually exclusive. The truck has one combined budget, the GCWR, and the trailer and the load both spend it.
The Bottom Line
The chart answers the first question: a Ram 1500 up to 11,610 lb, a Ram 2500 up to 20,000 lb, a Ram 3500 up to 36,610 lb, 2026 model year, maximum when properly equipped. The labels on your door jamb answer the question that matters, which is what this truck can pull with this trailer and this crew on board.
Bring us the trailer's loaded weight and the job, and we will match it to a real truck in our new Ram 1500 inventory, where every new 1500 carries the Eh+ value stack, or step up to the Ram 2500 lineup or the Ram 3500 lineup if the trailer says so. If your current truck is the one coming up short, start with an instant cash offer on your trade so you know where you stand.
Tyler Dunn, Dunn Ram Trucks, Portage la Prairie
